If you are self-employed and running a business from your home, there are simplified arrangements available for claiming a fixed rate deduction for certain expenses where there is a mix of business and private use. The simplified expenses rules are not available to limited companies or business partnerships involving a limited company.

The use of the flat rate expenses for business work carried out from your home will eliminate tedious calculations based on the proportion of personal to business use for household bills.

Instead a monthly deduction is allowable. The current monthly rates are based on the amount of business use of the home as follows:

• 25 or more hours worked per month can claim  £10.00
• 51 or more hours worked per month can claim  £18.00
• 101 or more hours worked per month can claim  £26.00

There is no issue if the amount of hours worked varies from month to month as different amounts can be claimed for each month. The flat rate doesn’t include telephone or internet expenses. You can claim the business proportion of these bills by working out the actual costs and business use.