How do I claim working from home using simplified expenses? Approximately 28hrs a month,

Hi there, Matt! Let me help clear things up for you regarding working from home using simplified expenses.

Just a disclaimer, we can only provide general guidance to help ensure your home-running costs related to business activities are accounted for. To ensure you're eligible and to check the simplified flat rate per month, you can go to these links:

• HMRC: Simplified expenses
• Simplified expenses if you're self-employed: Working from home.

To claim working from home using simplified expenses, it's recommended to keep track of the hours you work from home each month.

Then, to account for the flat rate amount each month in QuickBooks Sole Trader, you can manually create transactions that fall under Business Expenses and should use HMRC’s simplified flat rate. Here's how:

1. In QuickBooks Sole Trader, go to Transactions.
2. Select New transaction.
3. Select the Expense radio button.
4. Enter description like HMRC Simplified Expenses – Working from Home (28 hours/month) in the Payor field.
5. Enter the flat rate in the Amount field.
6. From the Category dropdown, select an appropriate expense category (e.g., Home Office or Utilities).
7. Select Save.

In the process I've described above, I recommend further consulting your accountant.

When it's time to prepare your Self Assessment tax return, here's a handy checklist to utilise: Self Assessment for Income Tax: Checklist for QuickBooks.

I hope this helps! If you have any other questions about claiming expenses or completing your Self Assessment, feel free to ask.