Cookie

Thanks for the price guideline. I did wonder if any money claimed back would go straight into the Accountant's pocket for his fees

JonboyE

Probably. From the accountants point of view they hope the tax savings they can find will more than compensate for their fees. But next year, and the year after that, you will know what you can claim and it's all free.

It might be worth shopping around. I've given quite a tight budget for their fees, but these look like very straightforward returns.

BristolUK

Sounds reasonable. But why not try Quicktaxweb first. You can input all your details and see how it goes before making a payment. The payment might be considerably less than an accountant. Or just do it to get an idea what's asked for.

Or you could try it anyway and then compare it with the accountant's results.

They haven't got 2007 'up' yet, but you might be able to do everything as if you were filing for 2006 - just for practice.

Cookie

Thanks for that. Will have a attempt over the weekend.

JonboyE

Lump sum allowances are considered to be employment income. Is the lump sum for home use included on your OH's T4 (year end employment tax information slip)? If not, it must be declared on line 104 of the tax return.

There is a very limited number of deductions an employee can claim against wages/salary. The general rule is that the employee must be required, as a condition of their employment contract, to incur these expenses. The first step is to get the employer to certify this by downloading, completing and signing form T2200.

With this in hand download guide T4044 and form T777 to calculate any allowable expenses. Normally, clothing and equipment are not allowed (though a tradesman's tools may be), and home light/heat/maintenance etc are only allowed to the extent that a part of your home is used more than 50% of the time for work activities. Union and professional subscriptions are usually allowable expenses, others only if they are required by your OH's contract of employment