If you work in the security industry and travel to different places of work, you could be owed a tax refund if your employer doesn’t pay the full amount of travel expenses that HMRC say you’re entitled to including for meals, hotels and uniforms.
You can also claim for the cost of your security industry association (SIA) licence if your employer has not paid for this for you. Also depending on your job requirements, you may need a public space surveillance (CCTV) licence.
Your claim can be backdated four years. Once you have made your claim HMRC will adjust your tax code to include the expenses. This will then continue in to any future years’ tax codes whilst in the same employment.
Those who work in the security industry could be eligible to claim tax back on a variety of work-related expenses, including:
Security workers may be eligible for a tax rebate if their employer doesn’t pay for travel expenses – whether they use public transport or their own vehicle to travel to different workplaces.
If you are a security worker you may also be eligible to claim for other expenses such as the food you eat, your uniform, your SIA licence and any hotel stays you pay for that are related to your work.
In order to assess your eligibility for a tax rebate, we will require the following information:
The Security Industry Authority is the regulatory body of the security industry in the UK and its role is to make sure that people have the correct training and qualifications to work in the industry. Subsequently, if you want to work in the security industry the law says you will require an SIA licence – which requires the undertaking of SIA training and the passing of exams. If you are caught working in security without an SIA licence then you could be faced with a fine of up to £5,000 or even a prison sentence.
The main areas of the security industry that the SIA focuses on are:
The cost of the SIA licence is £220, which you have to pay even if you are unsuccessful and don’t get your licence. In some cases the employer might pay the fee for you, but if they don’t you could be eligible for tax relief on the cost of the licence.
Some forms of security work require other licences, the cost of which can also be included in a tax rebate claim: