Midwife Tax Rebate

As a midwife, you can claim tax back on some of the expenses of your employment. It is up to you to record and report your expenses to HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs),

You can claim for:

1. NMC fees

If you are required to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council you can claim tax relief on the cost of your subscriptions. Typically, anyone registered with the NMC can claim tax relief at around £20 per year or £40 per year for higher rate taxpayers. You can also claim additional tax back on any fees you paid to register a subsequent qualification.

You may already be claiming tax relief on NMC fees but as the fees recently increased last year you may now be able to claim a bit more tax back.

2. RCM membership

If you are member of the Royal College of Midwives you can also claim tax relief on your subscriptions. If you pay the full subscription rate you could be due around £47 per year in tax.

Unison membership

Union membership isn’t usually tax deductible, however, if you work in healthcare you can claim tax relief on membership fees with Unison. Unison has more than half a million members in the healthcare sector, so a number of midwives will be members. The amount on which you are allowed to claim tax relief is restricted, but if you pay the highest subscription rate you could be due around £35 to £70 per year in tax.

Professional indemnity insurance

If you have to pay professional indemnity insurance, through providers such as the MPS (Medical Protection Society) for instance, you can also claim the tax back on the cost of your premiums. You’d usually get 20%-40% of what you paid back in tax.

Upkeep of equipment and uniform

Midwives are given an allowance to cover the cost of laundry and upkeep of uniforms, which can be worth between £20 and £40 per year in tax, depending on which rate of tax you pay.

You can also claim an additional allowance for shoes and tights. The allowance is relatively small but it can increase any rebate and tax relief by £3 to £7 per year.

HMRC has a broad definition of a nurse which includes “nurses and midwives of all grades and includes auxiliaries, students, nursing assistants and healthcare assistants or workers”. This definition will include most care workers too, so most workers engaged in nursing or direct patient care can be classed as nurses when it comes to making a claim.

Can I backdate my claim?

You can backdate your claim over the previous 4 tax years, even if you’ve had several jobs or left your job in midwifery. For the current and future tax years you can get tax relief through your tax code, meaning you’ll get a bit less tax deducted from your pay packet.

How do I claim?

It’s really easy to do and you can complete your part of the claim in seconds, just enter your details through the calculator.