Many sole traders use their phone every day for business. Calls, customer messages, emails, quotes, supplier updates and social media enquiries can all run through the same device.
The short answer is yes — sole traders can usually claim the business part of their phone bill. However, if the phone is also used personally, you should only claim a reasonable business proportion.
When is a phone bill claimable?
A phone bill may be partly claimable if you use it for business tasks such as:
- Calling customers
- Sending quotes
- Speaking to suppliers
- Managing bookings
- Taking business photos
- Replying to emails
- Running business social media
- Using accounting or job management apps
- Taking card payments
- Using maps for business journeys
The cost needs to relate to your trade. Personal use should not be treated as a business expense.
Can you claim the full phone bill?
You should only claim the full phone bill if the phone is used wholly and exclusively for business.
For many sole traders, the same phone is used for both business and personal use. In that case, you should work out a fair business percentage and only claim that amount.
For example, if around half of your phone use is for business, you may claim a reasonable business proportion rather than the full bill.
What about buying a phone?
If you buy a phone mainly for business use, some or all of the cost may be claimable, depending on how it is used.
If the phone is used personally as well, the claim should usually be adjusted to reflect the business use.
Keep the purchase invoice and make a note of how the phone is used for the business.
What records should you keep?
You should keep:
- Phone bills
- Purchase receipts
- Contract details
- Evidence of business use
- A note of how you calculated the business percentage
- Records of any business-only number or device
The calculation does not need to be overcomplicated, but it should be reasonable and explainable.
Common mistakes
Common mistakes include:
- Claiming the full bill when the phone is partly personal
- Not keeping phone bills
- Guessing the business percentage without reason
- Forgetting to claim genuine business use
- Claiming family phone contracts as business costs
- Not separating business and personal use where possible
HMRC expects expense claims to be fair and supported by records.
Should you get a separate business phone?
A separate business phone or SIM can make things clearer.
It gives you a cleaner record of business use and makes the expense easier to support. It can also help keep customer calls and messages separate from your personal life.
This is not essential for every sole trader, but it can be useful as the business grows.
Final thoughts
Sole traders can usually claim the business part of their phone bill, but the claim should reflect actual business use.
If your phone is used for both personal and business purposes, keep the claim reasonable and retain evidence to support it.
If you are unsure how much of your phone bill you can claim, Merranti Accounting can help you keep your expenses accurate and tax-ready.
Written by Steve Watts
