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Form P87: Claim for tax relief for expenses of employment

Updated on 3 April 2023

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Have you paid expenses related to your employment? You may be able to claim tax relief. We provide an example, showing you how to complete form P87, which you can use to claim tax relief on employment expenses.

Illustration of a hand and magnifying glass and a pile of receipts

You can use form P87 to make a claim for tax relief in certain circumstances:

  • you are not within Self Assessment – that is, you do not have to submit an annual tax return;
  • you are an employee and you have spent your own money on allowable employment expenses (which are not then reimbursed by your employer); and
  • your allowable employment expenses are less than £2,500 for the tax year.

If the claim is for the current tax year, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will usually make an adjustment to your tax code. If the claim is for a previous tax year, HMRC may make a repayment by cheque – they will either send the cheque to you or you can ask them to send it to someone else (your nominee). Alternatively, you can ask for the repayment to be sent direct to your bank or building society.

You have four years from the end of the tax year to make a claim; so, for 2023/24, you must make a claim by 5 April 2028. As we are in 2023/24, you can make a claim going back to the 2019/20 tax year.

You can complete and submit form P87 online through the Government Gateway, or you can choose to complete it onscreen and post it to HMRC.

We use the annotated form plus example below to illustrate how you should complete the postal form P87. Please do not use the details provided in the example when completing your own form.

If you want to complete and submit the form online and have not got a Government Gateway account, you can set one up as part of the claim process. This will also give you access to other government and HMRC online services including your Personal Tax Account. You can find out more about your Personal Tax Account in our digital services guide.

If you choose to complete form P87 onscreen and post it to HMRC, check our guidance here first as to all information you need to hand before you start. Once you complete the form, you should save it and print it, before signing and sending to HMRC. You should retain a copy of the completed form for your own records.

There is a HMRC guidance document to accompany the P87 form, which you can access on GOV.UK.

Note that since 21 December 2022, claims for tax relief made on P87 forms must include the following information:

  • all the details in section 1, except for the title and contact phone number which are optional;
  • employer PAYE reference number in section 2 and
  • type of industry in section 2 if the claim includes flat rate expenses. (The industry is the particular type of economic activity your employer is in.)

HMRC say that any forms that do not include the required information, received on or after 21 December 2022, will be rejected. For help with where to find your employer PAYE reference number, see our news article.

Example

John X, who was born 1 January 1968 (National Insurance number QQ 12 34 56 A), was employed as an Area Manager by Superstore in 2022/23. John is a basic rate taxpayer. He lives at 1 ABC Road, with the post code AB1 2CD.

Superstore is based at 1 XYZ Road, with the post code AB2 3CD. It is a retailer, so this is the type of industry, although John doesn’t need to enter it as he is not claiming flat rate expenses. Superstore’s Employer PAYE reference is 123/A123 and John’s employee number, shown on his payslip, is 123. (Not everyone will have an employee number.)

John is not able to claim any tax relief in respect of flat rate expenses. He does not pay any professional subscriptions. His employer reimburses him for any hotel costs and meals, when he has to stay away from home for work.

John drives his own car for work, and he has to travel most days between different retail locations. In 2022/23 he does 12,000 business miles. His employer pays him mileage at the rate of 25p per mile, so he receives £3,000 in total. The HMRC mileage rates are 45p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles and 25p thereafter, so he can claim an extra 20p per mile for his first 10,000 miles (£2,000).

He will not receive a repayment of £2,000 – he will receive tax relief on the amount claimed. As John is a basic rate taxpayer, he will receive tax relief at the basic rate of tax of 20% on £2,000, that is £400.

John is making a claim for tax relief after the end of the tax year and he wants HMRC to send the repayment cheque direct to him.

Below is an annotated version of the postal form P87 to show how to complete the form using John’s details:

Form P87: 2268 by LITRG

Tax guides

Introduction to the tax system How do I work out my tax? What income is taxable? What tax allowances am I entitled to? What tax rates apply to me? How is my tax collected? What if I cannot pay my tax bill? Do I need to complete a tax return? Self Assessment: understanding the basics What is Simple Assessment? How do I claim tax back? How do I claim back tax I have overpaid through PAYE on wages or pensions? How do I claim back tax if I complete a tax return? How do I claim back tax if I am taxed under the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS)? How do I claim back tax on savings income? How do I claim a marriage allowance refund? How do I claim back tax on a payment protection insurance (PPI) pay-out? Should I use a tax refund company? What is National Insurance? How do I get a National Insurance number? What are Specified Adult Childcare credits? What is Scottish income tax? What is devolution? Do I have to pay Scottish income tax? How does Scottish income tax work? What is Welsh income tax? Do I have to pay Welsh income tax? Do I have to join a pension scheme? Tax relief on your pension contributions HMRC digital services Enquiries, penalties, appeals, complaints and debt Enquiries How to survive an enquiry by HMRC Tax penalties Tax appeals Alternative Dispute Resolution How do I complain to HMRC? What if I cannot pay my tax bill? What if I have a tax credits overpayment?
Am I employed, self-employed, both or neither? Working through a limited company What is the national minimum wage? How do I work out my tax? What income is taxable? What tax allowances am I entitled to? What tax rates apply to me? How is my tax collected? How is tax collected on taxable state benefits? How do I check my coding notice? Do I need to complete a tax return? What tax do I pay on redundancy payments?Employment benefits and expenses What are benefits-in-kind? What payments and benefits are non taxable? What if I incur expenses in relation to my job? What travel expenses can I claim? What if I use my own car for business purposes? Payroll giving Allowances and expenses paid to armed forces personnel and deductions from their income Pensions and employees What is automatic enrolment for employees? What National Insurance do I pay as an employee? How do I repay my student loan? What if I do not pay enough tax? What if I pay too much tax? What if I work abroad temporarily? What if I am in the armed forces and work overseas? First time workers Apprenticeships

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