A variety of expenditure may be incurred as a junior doctor: travel to various hospitals and clinics; the laptop necessary for studying on; medical books, courses and exam fees; then when you have passed those exams, you have to pay subscriptions to the various professional bodies. So how much of those expenses can you legitimately claim against your salary for tax purposes?

As an employee you can only claim expenses that are ‘wholly, exclusively and necessarily’ incurred in the performance of the duties of your employment, (as the tax law puts it). This generally rules out anything you have spent to put yourself in a position to perform your job, such as travelling to your hospital base (see page 2 of this newsletter), or training before you start work.

No tax relief is available for training and exam fees. This may seem particularly unfair as you are unable to sit exams and simultaneously perform your job. However there are three possible ways of obtaining some relief for these costs:

1. Ensure your employment contract requires you to pass the exam either during your contract or before you start. Your employer can then reimburse you for the exam costs even though you sat the exam before taking up the employment. As long as you are in your new post when you receive the reimbursement the amount paid is tax free in your hands.
2. If you have some private practice income you can deduct the cost of courses which update your knowledge, but not for training to perform a completely new specialisation or provides you with a new qualification.
3. If your job includes a significant amount of research during which you are required to study the findings of other professionals, you may be able to deduct your training costs, but the Inspector of Taxes is unlikely to accept your claim without lengthy argument.

You can claim for the cost of your subscriptions to professional organisations that appear on the Inland Revenue’s list of approved bodies, which most medical bodies do. You can also claim for the cost of small items of replacement medical equipment or protective clothing which your employer does not provide. The medical equipment will not normally include your laptop computer, and the clothing must be specialist items you are required to buy, not ordinary clothes such as a suit.