Tax relief on professional fees and union subscriptions

If you pay an annual fee to a professional body that HMRC has approved, and you need the membership for your job or it is relevant to it, you can claim tax relief on it. Approved bodies are on HMRC’s List 3, which includes regulators such as the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). The relief is worth the tax on the fee at your rate, so 20 per cent for a basic rate taxpayer. Trade union subscriptions qualify only for the part that pays for professional services, if the union is on the list for that part.

Fees that usually qualify

For public sector staff, the most common claims are:

• NMC registration for nurses, midwives and nursing associates
• HCPC registration for paramedics, physiotherapists, radiographers, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, dietitians, biomedical scientists and other allied health professions
• General Medical Council registration and royal college membership for doctors
• General Pharmaceutical Council registration
• Social Work England and the equivalent registers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
• professional institutes, such as accounting, HR, engineering or surveying bodies, for staff whose job relates to them

What matters is whether the specific body is on List 3, not what kind of body it is. Search the list on gov.uk by name before claiming. Registration fees for the NMC, HCPC and others change from time to time; check the body’s own website for the current amount you paid.

Trade unions and professional associations

Several bodies combine union work with a professional role. Examples include unions for nurses, midwives, physiotherapists and doctors. HMRC treats these differently: often only a share of the subscription is linked to professional activity and can be claimed. The union or HMRC’s list should show what proportion qualifies.

Union subscriptions for ordinary representation and bargaining do not qualify. A general union with no professional element on List 3 gets no relief. Trade unions in the public sector covers what unions do.

What it is worth

The relief reduces your taxable income by the amount of the fee. The saving is the tax that would have been paid on it:

Where you pay tax	Your top rate	Saving per £100 of fees
England, Wales, NI	Basic 20%	£20
England, Wales, NI	Higher 40%	£40
Scotland	Intermediate 21%	£21
Scotland	Higher 42%	£42

National Insurance is not reduced.

Say you are a band 5 radiographer in England on £32,073 paying your own HCPC fee and a professional body subscription. If together they come to £300 in a year, the relief is worth £60. Add a uniform flat rate expense and the total can be noticeably more; see uniform tax relief.

How to claim

For most employees, the claim goes through HMRC’s online service on gov.uk. You will need the name of the body, the amount you paid each year and your employer’s details. If you already file Self Assessment, you claim on the return.

HMRC normally gives relief for the current year through your tax code. The code number goes up slightly, so a little less tax is taken each month. For earlier years, it pays a refund. Claims can be made for earlier years within HMRC’s time limits, which gov.uk sets out, provided you paid the fee yourself in each of those years.

Keep a record of each year’s fee, such as the renewal email or bank statement. HMRC may ask for evidence.

When registration and revalidation happen

Nurses and midwives renew their NMC registration every year and revalidate every few years; see NMC revalidation explains the cycle. HCPC registrants renew on a regular cycle set for their profession; see HCPC registration. The annual fee you pay is what you claim relief on. Revalidation itself has no separate fee to claim.

When you cannot claim

You cannot get relief if:

• your employer pays the fee or reimburses you
• the body is not on List 3, even if membership helps your career
• the membership has nothing to do with your current job
• you are claiming course fees, exam fees or the cost of books

If you are unsure whether a body qualifies, the body itself often states its List 3 status on its website, and HMRC can confirm. For problems with a claim, contact HMRC directly through your personal tax account.