Food and Subsistence Tax Rebate: Claiming Back Work Meal Costs

If your job takes you away from your usual workplace and you pay for your own meals while you are out, you may be able to claim tax relief on those costs. It is one of the less well known employment expense claims, and it often goes hand in hand with mileage and travel, yet plenty of people who qualify never claim it.

This guide explains what food and subsistence relief is, the all important rule about temporary workplaces, and how to claim it correctly.

What is a food and subsistence tax rebate?

Subsistence is the term HMRC uses for the cost of food and drink (and sometimes accommodation) you have to pay for while travelling for work. When you are working away from your normal base and buy a meal you would not otherwise have bought, HMRC accepts that this is an additional cost of doing your job, and allows tax relief on it in qualifying circumstances.

As with other employment expenses, you get relief at your tax rate rather than the full cost of the meal back.

The key rule: temporary workplaces

This is the condition that decides most subsistence claims. You can generally claim food and travel costs when you are travelling to a temporary workplace, but not for travel to a permanent one, and not for your ordinary commute.

A temporary workplace is, broadly, somewhere you go for a limited duration or a temporary purpose, rather than your regular, fixed place of work. Examples might include:

• A site or client location you are sent to for a short project.
• Different locations you rotate between rather than one fixed base.
• A one-off or short term posting away from your usual workplace.

There are detailed rules around how long you can attend a place before it stops counting as temporary, which is exactly the sort of thing that catches people out on a self-assessment of their own claim. If your working pattern involves moving between sites, it is well worth getting it checked.

What can you claim?

Where you qualify, claimable subsistence costs can include:

• Meals and drink bought while working away from your base.
• Accommodation costs if you have to stay away overnight for work.
• Associated reasonable costs of being away, in some circumstances.

The costs must be ones you actually paid yourself and were not reimbursed for by your employer. If your employer pays you a tax free subsistence allowance or reimburses your meals, there is usually nothing further to claim.

Food, mileage and travel often go together

Subsistence rarely stands alone. If you are buying your own meals because you are working away, you are very likely also doing business mileage or other travel, and possibly paying for accommodation too. These claims naturally sit together, and claiming them as a package across several years is where the value builds. It is also why it pays to have someone look at the whole picture rather than one expense in isolation.

How much can I claim and how far back?

The value depends on how often you work away, what you spend, and your tax rate. As always, you can claim for the current tax year plus the previous four, so a few years of regular travel for work can add up to a worthwhile claim. As of 2025/26 the window reaches back to 2021/22, and the oldest year drops off each 5 April.

How to claim

You can claim through HMRC online or on form P87, but subsistence claims need care: you have to establish that the workplace was temporary, that the costs were genuinely additional, and that you were not reimbursed. HMRC has tightened its evidence requirements for employment expenses, so keeping records of where you worked, when, and what you paid matters.

TaxPro takes this off your hands. We assess whether your workplaces qualify as temporary, claim your food, travel and accommodation costs together, and present a properly evidenced claim to HMRC. We work on a no win, no fee basis, so a percentage fee only applies if your refund is secured.

Frequently asked questions

Can I claim for my lunch every day?

Generally no. You cannot claim for ordinary meals at or near your permanent workplace. The relief is for additional food costs when working away at a temporary workplace.

My employer pays me a meal allowance. Can I still claim?

If your employer reimburses your subsistence or pays a tax free allowance that covers it, there is usually nothing more to claim. You can only claim costs you bear yourself.

Do I need receipts for meals?

Keeping receipts and a record of where and why you were working away makes the claim much stronger, particularly given HMRC’s tighter evidence rules.

What counts as a temporary workplace?

Broadly, somewhere you attend for a limited time or temporary purpose rather than your regular base. The detailed time limits are where it gets technical, so it is worth having your situation assessed.

Working away from base? Check your claim

If you pay for your own meals, travel or accommodation while working away, there may be tax relief waiting, across several years at once.

Start your claim with TaxPro and we will check your travel, food and accommodation costs together and claim what you are owed, 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.