UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi all,

This is probably a quick and easy one for you all - but I've failed to find it whilst searching the forum and I've seen conflicting advice from semi-authoritative sources.

I should stress this is both small-beans and a legit question, mostly for academic interest, rather than creative or dishonest accounting - and assumes the recipient is declaring the income.

So... Are there any restrictions on paying relatives for services performed as part of letting a property - assuming they *Do Not* have a share in the property.


Examples - Can my brother invoice me for plumbing (yes - of course - right?)

Can I bill my father for admin tasks or management performed whilst he is unable, due to health, or vice versa?

Can I bill my wife for loft/cellar/garden clearance - assuming I have no share in ownership of the property?

If they're invoicing you for the work and accounting for the income on their own tax return, and it's not just a deliberate dodge to soak up people's de minimis allowances, then I don't see a problem.

Thanks for your opinion.

In our actual situation it's barely worth doing the paperwork, but it's useful to know what the actual rules are in case things change.

It's certainly seems a method to utilise some of the self-employed/side-hustle £1k allowance legitimately - and I totally agree the accounting needs to be robust.

Thank-you again.

I am still trying to get my head around  a husband who would bill his wife for a bit of gardening.My advice to her would be to start charging you for  services rendered if you get my drift.

How far could someone take this though?

My dad has been managing my property since 1st July when the tenants left (and left behind a massive mess and job). He overhauled it, arranged cleaning (more relatives), did a lot himself, arranged plumber to fix leaks, builder to re plaster, goes daily to check in the property etc. I would estimate he's spent at least 150 hours on it since 1st July

I feel its reasonable to give him something like £3,000 (so about £20 p/h) for the work but is there a limit - eg could someone just as easily say that work is worth £9,000 (£60 p/h)  - and how would the tax man verify either? It seems like this is open to manipulation but there must be some limits right??

Quote from: Haroon on August 16, 2022, 10:23:24 PM
How far could someone take this though?

...

I feel its reasonable to give him something like £3,000 (so about £20 p/h) for the work but is there a limit - eg could someone just as easily say that work is worth £9,000 (£60 p/h)  - and how would the tax man verify either? It seems like this is open to manipulation but there must be some limits right??

I like to think that if there isn't an explicit rule against this, then good recordkeeping and reasonable numbers are whats needed to satisfy the tax man.

A contemporaneous log of time spent, rather then plucking numbers from the air, might add credibility.

I mean the hourly rate is an interesting one though - Letting agents taking a % will charge £2k per annum for very few hours of work, so is a fair rate the £20 they pay their staff, or the  £200 they bill you?

Quote from: heavykarma on August 06, 2022, 10:19:21 AM
I am still trying to get my head around  a husband who would bill his wife for a bit of gardening.My advice to her would be to start charging you for  services rendered if you get my drift.

I think I know what you are getting at. I do invoice her for that, but since I charge by the inch it's a pittance. I'm not sure how it's relevant here though?


I mean, lets say that you do £360 of gardening p.a., if it's legit and only required 30 minutes of accounting, why would you not save the £140 in tax?