Professional Fees and Union Subscriptions: The Tax Relief Most People Miss

If you pay a yearly fee to a professional body, or subscriptions to a union or association that is relevant to your job, you may be entitled to tax relief on it. This is one of the most quietly overlooked claims for PAYE workers, because the payments often come out by direct debit and are simply forgotten about. Yet they can be claimed for the current tax year and four years back.

This guide explains which fees qualify, how the relief works, and how to claim it.

What is professional fees tax relief?

HMRC allows tax relief on certain professional membership fees and subscriptions when membership is necessary for your job, or genuinely helpful to the work you do. The idea is that if you have to belong to a professional body to do your role, the cost should not come entirely out of taxed income.

As with other employment expenses, you receive relief at your tax rate rather than the full fee back. So a basic rate taxpayer gets 20 percent of the fee, and a higher rate taxpayer gets 40 percent.

Which fees and subscriptions qualify?

HMRC keeps an approved list (often referred to as List 3) of professional bodies and learned societies whose fees are eligible. Membership organisations on that list cover a very wide range of professions. Common examples that frequently qualify include bodies and unions in:

• Healthcare, such as the Nursing and Midwifery Council, the Royal College of Nursing, the General Medical Council and Unison.
• Engineering and technical institutions.
• Accountancy, law and finance professional bodies.
• Teaching and education associations.

Two conditions generally need to be met:

1. The organisation must be one HMRC approves for relief.
2. Membership must be relevant to your employment, ideally required or clearly connected to the duties of your job.

You cannot claim for an organisation you have joined purely for personal interest, or for a body that is not on HMRC’s approved list, even if it feels work-related.

What does not qualify

• A subscription you pay for personal or social reasons.
• Lifetime memberships, generally, since relief is usually for annual fees.
• Fees your employer pays or reimburses in full. If your employer already covers it, there is nothing left for you to claim.

How much can I claim and how far back?

You claim relief on the fees you personally paid in each tax year, at your tax rate. Because you can backdate the claim by four tax years on top of the current year, several years of subscriptions can be reclaimed in one go. For someone who has paid a meaningful annual fee for years without ever claiming, the combined relief can be well worth having.

As of the 2025/26 tax year, the backdating window reaches to 2021/22, and the oldest year falls away each 5 April, so claiming promptly preserves an extra year.

How to claim tax relief on professional fees

You can claim directly with HMRC through your online account or on form P87, listing the bodies you paid and the amounts. Keep evidence of your payments, since HMRC has tightened its requirements for backing up employment expense claims.

Alternatively, TaxPro can claim it for you and, importantly, check it against everything else you are entitled to. Professional fees rarely come alone. Someone paying an NMC or RCN fee, for example, is often also entitled to a uniform laundry claim and sometimes mileage too. We make sure nothing is missed and we deal with HMRC on your behalf. We work on a no win, no fee basis, so a percentage fee only applies if a refund is secured.

Frequently asked questions

My union fee is small. Is it really worth claiming?

On its own a single year may be modest, but across five years and combined with other reliefs such as uniform, it often adds up to a worthwhile claim.

How do I know if my professional body is approved?

HMRC publishes an approved list of professional organisations and learned societies. If you are unsure, TaxPro can check whether yours qualifies.

My employer pays my professional fee. Can I claim?

No. If your employer pays or fully reimburses the fee, there is nothing for you to claim.

Can I claim for more than one organisation?

Yes, if you pay eligible fees to more than one approved body that is relevant to your job, each can be included.

Claim the fees you have been paying

If you pay annual fees to a union or professional body for your work, check whether HMRC owes you relief, for this year and the four before it.

Start your claim with TaxPro and we will confirm which of your subscriptions qualify and claim every eligible year, on a no win, no fee basis.

TaxPro works on a no win, no fee basis. If we secure your refund, our fee for PAYE claims is 37.5% plus VAT (minimum £50 plus VAT). If there is no refund, there is nothing to pay.

Not sure if your body qualifies? See our list of approved professional bodies (List 3).