Tax relief on fees and subscriptions

BASES recently applied to the HMRC to join the list of professional organisations and learned societies so eligible members can claim tax relief on their fees or subscriptions.

We are pleased to advise that BASES has been included on the list of approved professional organisations and learned societies (list 3). The entries on List 3 are sorted in a format to make it easier to use, so BASES is listed under S, as Sport and Exercise Sciences, British Association of.

Members who are and have been employed within the profession of Sport and Exercise Sciences since 6 April 1992 have qualified, and will continue to qualify, for tax relief for the annual subscriptions they have made and continue to make.

BASES members can claim tax relief on:

· professional membership fees, if you must pay the fees to be able to do your job

· annual subscriptions you pay to approved professional bodies or learned societies if being a member of that body or society is relevant to your job

Members cannot claim tax relief on life membership subscriptions, or for professional membership fees or annual subscriptions you have:

· not paid yourself (for example if your employer has paid for them)

· paid to professional organisations that are not approved by HMRC

Individual members can claim a deduction from earnings under section 344 ITEPA 2003 for the annual subscriptions they make to an approved professional body (included on HMRC’s List 3). 

The individual member must be employed in the profession that is represented by the organisation that they pay their subscriptions to. In the case of BASES, professional members can get tax relief on the full annual subscription of £99 at the highest rate of tax they pay on their earnings (20% for basic rate taxpayers (soon to be 19%), 40% for higher rate taxpayers and 45% for additional rate taxpayers). 

When making a claim on Form P87, the individual member should enter the annual subscription paid in the year they are claiming for. As long as they have been in relevant employment in the years concerned, individual members can claim refunds for closed tax years up to a maximum of four years (currently 2018/19 – 2021/22). For any current (open) year the individual member will receive tax relief via an adjustment to their tax code matching the annual subscription paid. The increased tax code will spread the relief at 20%, 40% or 45% over the year. This adjustment will automatically carry forward to the next tax year, so individual members should notify HMRC immediately if there is going to be a change to the amount of professional subscriptions paid, to ensure the correct amount is reflected in their tax code. 

When reporting the professional subscriptions on the Self-Assessment return employment page SA102, the individual member should enter the annual amount paid in the relevant year at section19.

Further details from the HMRC, including how to claim any tax relief, can be found here.