Can I claim my phone?
Yes, the business share. Your contract, calls and data, the handset, and broadband at home all count in proportion to their business use, and a phone used only for the business counts in full. Here is how the split works.
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What counts
Your contract, calls and data
Phone and mobile bills are office costs, claimed on their business share. Gov.uk's own example: £200 of mobile bills over the year, £130 of it personal and £70 business, and the £70 is the expense.
The handset
A phone you buy for the business is equipment. Under the cash basis, which most sole traders use, equipment is an allowable expense in the year you pay for it; under traditional accounting it is claimed through capital allowances. Either way, only the business share.
Broadband and a landline
Internet and telephone bills at home are claimed on their business share, separately from any working from home claim: HMRC's flat rate for working from home does not include telephone or internet. Where private use of a line is not significant, HMRC's manual allows the full cost.
A separate business phone
A second phone and contract used only for the business is wholly and exclusively a business cost, so the whole of it is allowable and there is no split to work out or defend.
The rules behind every claim: allowable expenses for sole traders.
Working out the business share
Gov.uk's rule for anything used for both business and private purposes is that you can only claim the business part. There is no set percentage: the split has to be a fair reflection of how the phone is used, and one you can explain if asked, such as the business calls on an itemised bill as a share of all calls, or the business days in a week.
The same share applies to everything on the contract. If a contract is 60% business use, then 60% of the monthly charge, 60% of the handset and 60% of any add-on is the expense, and 40% stays private.
One trap: if you claim the £1,000 trading allowance against your income, you cannot claim any expenses at all for that trade, your phone included. The allowance only pays when your total allowable expenses are under £1,000.
Recording it in FileThat
Record the phone and broadband bills as Phone, fax, stationery and other office costs, give each one its business-use percentage, and the business share is filed in the office costs box of your quarterly update. The full bill stays on the record, so the split is there to show.
Straight answers
Can I claim my mobile phone bill as a sole trader?
Yes, the business share of it. Phone and mobile bills are among the office costs gov.uk lists, and for a phone used for both business and private calls you claim only the business part. Gov.uk's example is £200 of bills, £130 personal and £70 business, with £70 as the expense.
Can I claim a new phone handset?
Yes, the business share of its cost. A handset is equipment, and under the cash basis, which has been the default for sole traders since 6 April 2024, equipment is an allowable expense in the year you pay for it. Under traditional accounting you claim capital allowances on it instead.
Can I claim broadband if I work from home?
Yes, the business share, and separately from the working from home claim. HMRC's flat rate for working from home does not include telephone or internet, and if you claim actual household costs instead, internet and telephone use are on gov.uk's list of costs to divide. HMRC's manual allows the full cost where private use is not significant.
Is a separate business phone easier to claim?
Yes. A phone and contract used only for the business is wholly and exclusively a business cost, so all of it is allowable and there is no business share to work out. With one phone for everything, the claim is the business share and you need to be able to show how you reached it.
Can I claim my phone and HMRC's working from home flat rate?
Yes. The flat rate for working from home replaces the business share of household running costs such as heat, light and power, and gov.uk says it does not include telephone or internet expenses. Your phone and broadband are claimed on their business share in the usual way alongside it.
Can I claim my phone if I use the trading allowance?
No. Gov.uk is explicit that you cannot claim expenses if you use the £1,000 tax-free trading allowance. The allowance replaces all of your expenses for that trade, so it only makes sense when your allowable costs for the year, phone included, come to less than £1,000.
Do I have to use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax?
If your qualifying income is over the threshold, yes. It has been £50,000 since 6 April 2026, and falls to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028. Qualifying income is your turnover before expenses, from self-employment and property together, as shown on your tax return.
Keep every claim, file it with HMRC
The income and expenses ledger is free all year, so every claim is recorded the day you pay for it. Each new quarterly update costs from £3.99, with 4 free credits to start and no monthly subscription.
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