visa fees business expense?

[nks]

Hello,

I am employed as well as self-employed (sole trader). Wondering if UKBA visa fees and fees I will be paying to my visa consultant are part of business exepenses.
I wish they are not as I am walking a tight rope for earnings and any additional exepenses will be a dent.

Thanks,
nks

[geriatrix]

It is up to you whether or not you wish to show them as business expenses.

[nks]

Thanks. This is comforting

[AccountantMatthew]

It is up to you whether or not you wish to show them as business expenses.

From a tax perspective, they are not self-employed business expenses and cannot be claimed as such when it comes to self assessment return filing time.

It therefore follows that there is no point in including them in your accounts as you would only have to add the expenses back when calculating your tax.



If anybody wants a second opinion on this then it's best to go straight to HMRC. Call them on 0845 900 0444.

[srpdata]

I had talked the same thing to my accountant couple of weeks back , she told me that its not safe to claim that as expense , you can still claim that but if caught by HMRC it will be tough for you to prove it as this is a realy genuine expense for your company. Any other views, do let me know

[Chase53]

Yes srpdata is right. My accountant said the same thing. The exact lines from the accountant below:

HMRC’s point of view on this is that you have chosen to come to this country and do business here, so you should pay for any work permits or visa fees personally. Also, a company can function without the proprietor being in this country, as it can be run by someone else. The company and the director are two separate entities from a legal point of view.