Are child care costs a legit expense if you are selfemployed?

[tracyk]

I am starting to freelance and wondered if my nursery fees are tax deductible.

No they aren't.

You will have to move to America for that.

So, you can go out for a posh lunch with potential client and that counts towards a bsiness expense. But, childcare, oh no. That's not necessary for work. I guess you are supposed to have a wife at home to look after your kids.

Stupid Gordon.

Can't deduct lunch expenses, uwila, surely? Entertainment has been non-deductible for a good few years now.

I thought if it was a potential client this was still the deal. But, I could be wrong. Anyway, the point is still that childcare is necessary to go to work and it should be treated as such. (but I'm dreaming. This will never happen under tac and spend monger Grodon Brown). He makes his money from tax paying parents. Doubt he'd be willing to give that up.

While I hold no brief for Gordon, it is only under him that any kind of limited tax relief on childcare (albeit very, very limited) has come in. Seems a bit harsh to single him out over something that successive Tory chancellors didn't even manage the current half-hearted effort over.

As one in the process of planning the move from FT employed to FT self-employed, this (plus the stuff irish mentioned) is a major bugbear of mine, though.

Don't think so - I certainly never include childcare costs (I'm a freelancer too).

Sadly not, uwila. According to my accountant, the pisstake potential was just too great.

But yes, my accounts would look very different if I could deduct childcare expenses.

Because of course we girls only have childcare so that we can get our nails and hair done, doncha know. Earning pin money is just an agreeable side effect.

Still, suppose we should be grateful that the days are gone when a woman's entire income was assessed as additional to her husbands, and hence taxed at his highest rate...

Don't you fret. When Cameron is in office, I will complain about him. Gordon has been there for 10 years and hasn't done much. I've lived here for 5 years and he continues to take more and more of my hard earned money while I see less and less benefit from it.

you can get tax credits though

Oh, how generous.

I'm not self employed, but I agree that it wrong thet people who are are penalised for it. The govedrnment should help small businesses not hold them back.

Hire chauffeur and put baby in boot? (chauffeur is tax deductible)