any tax benefit for private school fees?

[khk710725]

Sorry for complete ignorance but is there any tax benefits from school fees in uk? I. e. offsetting against income. etc. Just wondered because thought paying private fees on top of taxes seem double paying for education...

Y

I fucking hope not.

Are you kidding?

Well yes I suppose it is, but you don't get the National Health Service money back if you go private, so why would you for schools?

No, like pretty much all expenditure it comes out of your taxed income.

No but you have the choice not to pay for education. School fees currently not VATable but who knows when/if this might change.

Sorry yes fees are paid out if taxed income. You used to be able to covenant fees such that the school reclaimed the tax to top up what parents would be charged but that was abolished about 30 years ago.

None whatsoever.

Thought you can use childcare vouchers for qualifying afterschool care or holiday clubs and during EYFS (nursery and perhaps start of reception depending on when your DC's birthday falls), but not all schools are set up to take them.

The taxes you pay aren't just for your own child's education, they are a small contribution towards the education of all children in the country. After all, childless people don't get a tax refund.

Many private schools have charitable status, so they don't pay tax, so their fees are cheaper than they would otherwise be.

Well, people who don't have children have their taxes used for education for other people's. There's no rebate for anyone who doesn't use certain aspects of society's services. Why should you get an effective rebate for choosing a private school?

Oops, cross posted.

I understand that there are tax benefits available to grandparents paying school fees out of their income for grandchildren but it must be from income not capital. Check with HMRC

I understand that there are tax benefits available to grandparents paying school fees out of their income for grandchildren but it must be from income not capital.
NO

Yes you can just choose not to spend but look at reality. If there were enough number of decent state schools why bother to spend. Just allowing private system in a sufficiently large number is to blame as well. If lets say there were only 3 super elite private schools in the system, general level of state schools would've been much better and hence further lessening a need to go private. So decision to go private(and paying for mine and others) should not be entirely your personal decision. I pay quite good tax here but not a Brit and have one in state and one in a private (Would have never sent there if an acceptable state option was nearby)

YES there are tax benefits available to grandparents paying school fees out of their income for grandchildren but it must be from income not capital.

"Under this exemption, if an individual is paying an expense that can be considered normal expenditure (i.e. habitual and regular payments with a pattern), out of income and not capital that leaves the individual making the payments with enough income to maintain their normal standard of living, these payments will not be considered a gift for inheritance tax purposes."

So it's only an IHT benefit

Well yes, as part of IHT planning it can be useful, but that's a pretty esoteric reason.

No in the same way childless adults don't get tax relief

If you are already paying for school fees out of income now then No there isn't such a scheme.
You could in theory put your maximum tax-free allowance into a different cash ISA every year and then cash these in when needed to pay school fees. This would require advance planning though and is not specific to school fees.

catslife
but the money going into the ISA has already been taxed at the highest incremental rate so there is no saving.

I believe in America where their tax system is different that if you privately educate your children you do get a reduction on your local taxes, similar to our council tax, because it's more clear where different taxes our going. Local schools are paid for through local taxes I believe. Here money from income tax goes straight into the big pot at the top so it's not so clear.
If I do privately educate my children, which I hope to funds permitting, I'm still quite happy for my taxes to be spent on other peoples childrens education!

Is this question a wind up?

yes there is:- check out this article, if you are self employed/have a business you can do it.... I do :)

www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-2558653/The-5-sneaky-perfectly-legal-ways-Britains-richest-parents-cut-tax-bill-private-school-fees.html

If you pay school fees in advance they are removed from your estate for inheritance tax purposes. But you have to die to benefit from that.