Work uniform tax rebates Reclaim £100s from past six years

If you wear a uniform to work - whether just a simple polo shirt with a logo on it, or full attire eg, nurses, policemen – and have to wash, repair or replace it yourself, you may be able to reclaim tax of £100s, overpaid in the past six years.

Am I eligible for a tax rebate?

To be able to claim tax relief, ALL of the following must apply:

• You wear a recognisable uniform that shows you've got a certain job, like a branded t-shirt or police uniform (plus we've heard reports that even plain clothes, without a logo, that you only wear for work may count - it's worth a try).
• Your employer requires you to wear it while you're working.
• You have to pay to clean, repair or replace it yourself. However, you can't claim if your employer washes your kit, provides facilities to do so (even if you don't use them) or pays you for doing this maintenance.
• You paid income tax in the year you are claiming for.

How much could I get?

The amount you're able to claim tax relief on depends totally on your industry. The standard allowance for spending on uniform maintenance is £60 (for 2012/13) – so basic rate taxpayers would be able to claim £12 back (20% of £60) and higher rate payers £24 (40% of £60). The £60 is a flat rate, so you don't need to record and report all the individual amounts you spend.

Most people can claim for the past six years - plus the current year - if you've been wearing the uniform all that time. Bear in mind that before April 2008 the flat rate was £45 per year.

A basic rate taxpayer, claiming the standard uniform allowance for the last six years (and this one), could reclaim £75 in total. Once you're registered, you'll be taxed less in future too.

Some occupations have more specific limits, often to do with specialist uniforms, with the maximum allowance of £140. A higher rate taxpayer would get back £56 tax on that for each year they claim on. Check the full list of occupations to see if yours is listed.

The only way you can get more than the standard payment is to prove that your annual uniform laundry bill is higher. Speak to the tax office if you want to do this as it's a little more complicated.

People have claimed over £300 back!

If you need a bit more inspiration - though it's very easy to try - here are a couple of the many successes we've heard since first mentioning this possible rebate.

How do I claim the tax back?

If this is your first time claiming a tax allowance or the amount you paid out was more than £1,000, then you'll need to claim the money back by post.

Claiming for first time - need to do it by post

Send a letter to the tax office on your payslip/P60, or to the generic address HM Revenue & Customs, Pay As You Earn, PO Box 1970, Liverpool, L75 1WX. Write 'Repayment Claim' on the envelope to speed things up.

The letter should include and mention the following (where applicable):

• Employer's name and address and dates of employment for the past six years
• Your occupation, job title and industry sector
• Details of any laundry or cleaning services provided by your employer, if any
• Details, if any, of payment or vouchers provided by your employer to cover laundry or other costs
• Why your uniform can't be worn outside work (eg, it includes the company logo)
• Whether you want the rebate to be deducted from the current year's tax or you would like a cheque

You will then be sent a letter telling you how much you're entitled to. It could take around 5 weeks to process your claim.

Reclaimed before? This time you can phone them

If you've claimed before and had expenses of less than £1,000, you can do the reclaim over the phone (for bigger claims you'll need to use the letter route). Call 0845 300 0627 (or 01355 359022) 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday or 8am to 4pm on Saturday.

If, as part of its normal tax admin, HMRC sends you a P810 'Tax Review' form – to check your tax code is correct – you can also fill this in to claim tax relief. For expenses over £1,000, or if you changed jobs midway through a tax year, you'll need to fill out additional forms.

Anything else worth knowing?

You can't claim for the initial cost of buying the clothes.

There are other tax-deductible expenses you may be able to claim, such as the cost of professional fees, specialist tools or travel for your job. See more on the other allowances on the HMRC website. For instance, nurses also get a £12 allowance for shoes, £6 for tights and tax relief on RCN subscriptions.