HOW MUCH CAN I CLAIM FOR A WORK FUNCTION IF I TRADE THROUGH A LIMITED COMPANY WITH AN ITEM SUCH AS A CHRISTMAS PARTY
This affects anyone who may have an “annual” function such as a summer party or Christmas party.
You can spend up to £150 (including VAT) per head each year on annual functions to entertain your employees. If the spouse is also a member of staff, this is then £150 each.
This means that the VAT can be claimed on this amount as it does not fall within the entertaining category, unlike when you are entertaining clients, which cannot be claimed for.
Be mindful that the £150 per person is NOT an allowance. If the cost per head is above £150, say £155 for example, the whole amount is then disallowable to be taken as an expense.
The amount can be split between two or more annual functions
To work out the cost of head, you would add up all the expenses, which may include say venue hire, food entertainment, alcohol etc, then divide by the number of people attending.
The cost would most likely be treated as staff welfare within the accounts.
LEGISLATION ON THIS FROM HMRC
Expenses and benefits: social functions and parties: What’s exempt – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The annual event would need to meet the following criteria
- The cost per head must be £150 including VAT per or less
- the event must be available to all employees to attend
- the event must be annual by nature – this can be a Christmas or summer event or both
HOW CAN WE HELP
We can help with regards to doing the accounts in this case, by making sure you are compliant within the limits.