How to reclaim weekend working expenses for a sole trader without triggering an HMRC enquiry

Working weekends as a sole trader is often part of running a small business — especially in retail, creative services or hospitality. I regularly help clients reclaim the extra costs that come with weekend work, but I also see patterns that attract HMRC attention. In this article I’ll walk you through what you can legitimately claim, how to present the claims so they look reasonable and defensible, and practical recordkeeping tips that reduce the risk of an enquiry.

What counts as a weekend working expense?

First, let’s be clear on scope. Weekend working expenses are simply additional costs you incur as a direct result of doing business at the weekend rather than during a regular weekday. Typical examples I see are:

• extra travel or mileage for attending events, markets or client meetings on Saturdays and Sundays;
• meals or subsistence if you’re working away from home and that time is necessary for the job;
• temporary accommodation when an overnight stay is required because of a weekend event;
• additional utilities if you use a workspace at home on weekends (this is usually a portion of home running costs);
• overtime pay to casual staff or self-employed contractors hired specifically for weekend shifts;
• materials or supplies bought to fulfil weekend orders or events (e.g. stall stock for a Saturday market).

What’s important is that each expense has a clear business purpose and is not simply a personal convenience. If a cinema trip happens to be on a Sunday, it’s not a business expense. But if you’re selling at a Sunday market and buy extra packaging on that day, that’s clearly business related.

Allowable vs non-allowable — a quick table

How to avoid triggering an HMRC enquiry

HMRC doesn’t object to legitimate expenses. They object to claims that look exaggerated, inconsistent, or poorly documented. Here are the practical behaviours that reduce risk:

• Be reasonable — claims that are wildly out of line with typical costs for your trade stick out. If every weekend you claim overnight stays in expensive hotels, be prepared to justify why cheaper options weren’t available.
• Match the expense to the activity — when possible, show how the cost relates to a particular event, client or job. My clients often attach market stall receipts or event booking confirmations to their expense entries.
• Keep contemporaneous records — record costs when they happen. Notes on receipts like “Stall at Camden Market — 12 July” help later.
• Use business bank cards or a separate business account — payments on a personal card are not disallowed, but using a business account creates a cleaner trail and reduces the chance of HMRC asking for explanations.
• Don’t create a pattern of personal items as business items — avoid using ambiguous descriptions like “marketing expenses” for a mixed personal/business purchase.

Recordkeeping checklist I give to clients

I recommend the following minimum records for every weekend expense claim:

• Original receipt or invoice (photograph acceptable if legible);
• Date, time and place of the expense;
• Business reason — which job, event or client it relates to;
• Method of payment and the amount;
• If mileage, a mileage log showing start/end points, purpose and miles;
• Where accommodation or meals are claimed, a note of why the stay/meal was necessary for business.

Specific expense types and how to treat them

Mileage and travel: For sole traders the simplest approach is to reclaim using HMRC’s approved mileage rates (45p per mile for the first 10,000 business miles, 25p thereafter, for cars as at my last check). This avoids needing to apportion fuel and running costs and is easy to justify. Keep a trip log that states purpose and distance.

Meals and subsistence: You can claim reasonable subsistence when working away from your usual workplace. HMRC won’t allow extravagant claims — think of modest, business-appropriate meals. If you attend client hospitality, separate staff and client costs correctly: client entertainment is not allowable, staff subsistence is.

Accommodation: If a weekend event requires overnight stay, claim the actual cost with supporting receipts. Cheaper options are safer — high-end hotel rooms for routine weekend work can look suspicious unless you can justify them.

Home office and utilities: If you work from home on weekends, you can claim a proportion of household costs. Two options:

• flat rate simplified expenses (HMRC publishes rates based on hours worked at home per month);
• actual cost apportionment — calculate business proportion of electricity, heating, mortgage interest/rent and claim that share. This requires accurate records and is sensible if your business use is high.

Purchases for weekend trading: Items bought specifically for weekend sales (packaging, stall hire, stock) are straightforward allowable expenses. Keep receipts and tie the purchase to the event where possible.

What will raise red flags — and how to prevent them

• Large, frequent weekend accommodation or travel claims — justify necessity in writing; keep booking confirmations and event schedules.
• Repeated meals claimed that match personal eating habits — vary the level of detail: attach business agendas, client names or reason for the meeting.
• Using vague descriptions — be specific: “materials for Sunday craft fair — 14/9/25” is much stronger than “materials.”
• Mixing personal and business purchases on one receipt — split the cost at the point of purchase or clearly note the business portion in your records.

Practical templates and tools I use with clients

To make this easy, I recommend a few simple templates and tools:

• A mobile receipt app (I like Receipt Bank/ Dext and Hubdoc) to capture images immediately and add notes;
• A weekly mileage spreadsheet with columns for date, start/end, purpose, miles and reference to client/job;
• A simple expenses log for weekend events where you record the event name, dates, costs and why each cost was necessary;
• Use cloud accounting software (Xero, QuickBooks Self-Employed, FreeAgent) to code and attach receipts — this creates an audit trail.

What to do if HMRC asks questions

If HMRC contacts you about weekend expense claims, don’t panic. Provide the documentation and a clear explanation tying the expense to business activity. If anything is missing, be honest — and where possible offer substitute evidence (bank statements, event listings, emails confirming bookings). If you’re unsure, get advice. I’ve helped clients respond to routine information requests without escalation simply by producing well-organised records.

Finally, a practical mindset shift helps: treat weekend costs as business transactions that deserve the same care as invoices you issue to clients. When claims are modest, well-documented and clearly connected to revenue-generating activity, they’re low risk and entirely legitimate. If you want, I can share the simple expenses and mileage templates I give clients — they make weekly bookkeeping much less stressful and keep HMRC enquiries at bay.