Lost Receipts... what to do?

[James Jackson]

Hi all,

I am a freeagent user, and I am putting in all my expenses. My question is, if I have lost a receipt for an item which I have bought for business use but have lost the receipt is it worth still putting it into freeagent or not?

Basically, my question is do you 100% have to have a receipt to claim an expense?

Thanks

James

 

[Zeno]

Depends on your attitude to risk. If you are enquired into and if the inspector takes issue with these missing receipts then you may have additional tax to pay.

Most people take the view that this is a worthwhile gamble based on the likelihood of enquiry however you can also use other records to support you claim - bank statements, credit card statements, diary etc.

 

[Wild Goose]

Most people take the view that this is a worthwhile gamble based on the likelihood of enquiry however you can also use other records to support you claim - bank statements, credit card statements, diary etc.

..or the item itself if it's a computer or some other tangible piece of kit that will physically be there to show the inspector. That's fine for the accounts, but don't try claiming VAT without a VAT invoice though - that will just get clawed back with an additional penalty when the VAT-visitor calls.

A lot of people just use probability: they lose their petrol receipts or their pay-as-you-go phone receipts and so claim a fair estimate. So long as it's reasonable and plausible, the Revenue generally accept this.