If you’ve left or are leaving the UK its likely you are entitled to claim tax back from the UK government. It doesn’t matter if you’re a UK citizen or a foreign visitor, as long as you have paid tax you could be eligible to make a claim.
What can I claim for?
A common myth…
It’s a common myth that if you leave the UK you claim back all of the income tax you have paid.
In most cases you will not be able to claim back all of the tax you have paid in the UK. It is possible in some very specific circumstances, but the vast majority of people leaving will only be able to claim back a portion of the income tax they have paid in the UK.
UK Tax Back for the year in which you leave
When you are normally employed under PAYE you will usually get a tax free personal allowance. The allowance means you can earn so much without having to pay any tax. If you leave the UK during a tax year you probably won’t use up all of your tax free allowance resulting in a tax rebate being owed to you.
Other reasons for being due UK tax back
When claiming your tax back for the year in which you leave it’s recommended you review the last four tax years at the same time. Depending on the type of employment you have had its possible to claim back expenses which can increase the amount of tax rebate you are owed.
Lots of expenses can be reclaimed including:
- Uniform laundry
- Tools bought for work use
- Using your own vehicle or public transport to travel to different places of work
- Professional or Union fees
These can all be reclaimed at the same time as making a P85 repayment claim for leaving the UK.
