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Top Other benefits topic #2349

Subject: "Carers Allowance - expenses" First topic | Last topic
Reg R
                              

Caseworker, A4U Shropshire
Member since
03rd Mar 2009

Carers Allowance - expenses
Fri 15-Jan-10 12:55 PM

Have a client who has an appeal shortly for a Carers Allowance overpayment due to exceeding the earnings limit, in the disability rights handbook is detailed that expenses may be able to be deducted from earnings if they are 'wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of employment'. I assume this applies to employed people. My client works as a teaching assistant in a children nursery and she provides her own clothes, aprons for work and eats her lunches with the children. Have looked in the CE Regs but could not come up with an appropriate interpretation of what 'wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of employment' would practically cover.

It would be appreciated if someone could direct me to where there is a description of what 'wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of employment' covers and would it be reasonable to argue the use of such expenses in the case i have sighted above.

  

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Replies to this topic
RE: Carers Allowance - expenses, ariadne2, 15th Jan 2010, #1
RE: Carers Allowance - expenses, clairehodgson, 01st Feb 2010, #2
      RE: Carers Allowance - expenses, ariadne2, 01st Feb 2010, #3
           RE: Carers Allowance - expenses, clairehodgson, 01st Feb 2010, #4

ariadne2
                              

Welfare lawyer and social policy collator, Basingstoke CAB
Member since
13th Mar 2007

RE: Carers Allowance - expenses
Fri 15-Jan-10 03:25 PM

"Wholly, exclusively and necessarily" means exactly the same thing in social security law as it does in tax law. In tax law, if an employer provides a non-cash perk, or reimburses you for expenses and it is tax free, then it isn't income for benefit purposes. Equally, if you have to spend money to do your job which is not reimbursed by your employer, then you can deduct it when you do your tax return. Two good examples are the cost of travelling AT (never TO) work - say from your main place of work to a different one - and the cost of professional subscriptions which are a necessary part of your job (like a practising certificate for a solicitor or doctor, or the cost of keeping your name on the roll of solicitors for a non-practising solicitor who works as a judge).

If you are buying things you would need anyway even if you weren't working, like clothes and lunches, they don't count. They also don't count if you could do the job without them. I don't suppose your client wears anything greatly different for her work from the sort of thing she would wear anyway, except perhaps aprons for art classes, and lots of people who don't work buy aprons.

  

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clairehodgson
                              

solicitor, CMH Solicitors, Durham
Member since
09th Apr 2009

RE: Carers Allowance - expenses
Mon 01-Feb-10 05:31 PM

but there was a case involving a barrister who successfully claimed the cost of court clothes against her tax as an expense on the grounds that she would never wear such stuff in normal life...

  

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ariadne2
                              

Welfare lawyer and social policy collator, Basingstoke CAB
Member since
13th Mar 2007

RE: Carers Allowance - expenses
Mon 01-Feb-10 05:57 PM

Yes, but barristers are self employed and the rules are different.

  

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clairehodgson
                              

solicitor, CMH Solicitors, Durham
Member since
09th Apr 2009

RE: Carers Allowance - expenses
Mon 01-Feb-10 08:51 PM

true....

  

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