SideLedger › Guides › Reseller expenses

Reseller Expenses UK: Stock, Postage, Fees and Mileage

Checked 30 Oct 2026 against GOV.UK · General information, not tax advice

How expenses work

If you're self-employed (a sole trader), you deduct allowable expenses from your turnover to get your taxable profit. GOV.UK's example: £40,000 turnover and £10,000 of allowable expenses means Income Tax on £30,000 (GOV.UK). Allowable expenses don't include money taken from the business for personal use.

GOV.UK also says: "You cannot claim expenses if you use your £1,000 tax-free 'trading allowance'." Which is better depends on your costs: see trading allowance vs expenses.

What resellers can usually claim

Source: GOV.UK: expenses if you're self-employed (all sections), checked 30 October 2026.

Platform fees and packaging. GOV.UK's lists are examples ("including…"), and they don't name selling-platform fees, payment-processing fees or packaging specifically. GOV.UK's advice if you're not sure whether a business cost is allowable is to contact HMRC. We haven't made a claim either way beyond that.

Things used partly for personal reasons, like your phone: you can only claim the business part. GOV.UK's example is £200 of phone bills with £70 of business calls, so you claim £70.

What you can't claim

• Goods or materials bought for private use.
• Everyday clothing, such as suits, shirts, dresses or ordinary shoes, even if you wear them for work.
• Non-business driving or travel, and travel between home and work.
• Fines or penalty charges.
• The cost of preparing and submitting your Self Assessment tax return.

Source: GOV.UK. If you're unsure about a cost, GOV.UK says to contact HMRC.

Mileage: the simplified flat rates

Driving to car boot sales, charity shops or the post office for the business? Instead of working out the actual cost of buying and running your car, you can use a flat rate per business mile (GOV.UK: simplified expenses – vehicles):

• Example (illustrative): 1,200 business miles in 2026 to 2027 at 55p is £660.
• You can claim parking and other travel, such as train fares, on top.
• You can't use the flat rate for a vehicle you've already claimed capital allowances for, and once you use flat rates for a vehicle you must keep doing so while you use it for the business.
• Budget 2026: the rate for business mileage above 10,000 miles is due to rise from 25p to 35p from 6 April 2027 (GOV.UK: Budget 2026 overview, section 2.7). It only affects business miles above 10,000 in a tax year.

Keep a simple log of the date, where you went and the business miles.

Working from home: flat rates

If you work 25 hours or more a month from home (photographing, listing, packing), GOV.UK's simplified expenses let you claim a flat rate instead of splitting your bills (GOV.UK: simplified expenses – working from home):

The flat rate doesn't include phone or internet: you can claim the business share of those separately, using actual costs.

Expenses or the £1,000 allowance?

If your stock and other costs come to more than £1,000 for the year, claiming expenses usually gives a lower taxable profit than the allowance. If they're small, the allowance may be simpler and better. Our trading allowance vs expenses guide has worked examples, and the side hustle tax calculator compares both.

For the 2025 to 2026 and 2026 to 2027 tax years the trading allowance is £1,000. At Budget 2026 (28 October 2026) the government announced that the trading allowance, and the Self Assessment reporting threshold for trading income, will rise to £3,000 from 6 April 2027 (the 2027 to 2028 tax year), subject to Finance Bill 2026-27 (GOV.UK: Budget 2026 overview of tax legislation and rates, section 1.5). Read more about the trading allowance rising to £3,000.

Keep the records

Keep receipts for stock, postage and other costs, and your mileage log. Our free profit tracker records the cost of each item against its sale price. When you're ready to file, see the 31 January 2027 deadline.

Quick answers

Can resellers claim the cost of stock?

Yes. GOV.UK's list of allowable expenses for the self-employed includes things you buy to sell on, such as stock, and its reselling goods section lists goods for resale. You can't claim for goods bought for private use.

Can I claim postage as a business expense?

GOV.UK lists postage among the office and stationery costs self-employed people can claim as allowable expenses, along with phone and internet bills and printing.

What is the mileage rate for self-employed people in 2026-27?

Using simplified expenses, GOV.UK gives 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles in a car or van and 25p after that, and 24p for motorcycles, for the 2026 to 2027 tax year. Before 6 April 2026 the first 10,000 miles rate was 45p.

Can I claim expenses and the £1,000 trading allowance?

No. GOV.UK says you can't claim expenses if you use the £1,000 tax-free trading allowance. You use one or the other.

Can I claim for working from home?

You may be able to claim a proportion of costs such as heating, electricity and internet, using a reasonable way of splitting them. Or, if you work 25 hours or more a month from home, GOV.UK's simplified expenses flat rates are £10, £18 or £26 a month depending on hours.

Not sure where you stand?

• Use HMRC's free tool: Check if you need to tell HMRC about additional income.
• Read GOV.UK's guide to telling HMRC about income from online platforms.
• Speak to an accountant or tax adviser. If you're on a low income, the charity TaxAid gives free tax help.

Sources

• GOV.UK: Expenses if you're self-employed
• GOV.UK: Expenses if you're self-employed – printable version (office, travel, clothing, reselling goods, legal and financial costs)
• GOV.UK: Simplified expenses if you're self-employed
• GOV.UK: Simplified expenses – vehicles (2026 to 2027 rates)
• GOV.UK: Simplified expenses – working from home
• GOV.UK: Tax-free allowances on property and trading income
• GOV.UK: Budget 2026 overview of tax legislation and rates (sections 1.5 and 2.7)

More guides for UK online sellers

• Do You Pay Tax on Vinted? UK Rules & HMRC Limits 2026 – Own clothes vs reselling, the £1,000 allowance and the 30-sale reporting rule, in plain English.
• Vinted HMRC Form & NI Number Request: What to Do – Why Vinted is asking for your National Insurance number, the end-of-year deadline, and why it doesn't mean you owe tax.
• Vinted Tax Calculator UK: Free HMRC Limit Checker – Check your sales against the 30-sale / ~£1,700 reporting rule and the trading allowance, with a 2026/27 or 2027/28 tax-year switch. It checks limits, not your tax bill.
• eBay HMRC Reporting Threshold 2026: £1,707 or 30 Sales – What eBay counts towards £1,707, what it reports, and why a report isn't a tax bill.
• Got an HMRC Letter About Vinted or eBay Sales? What to Do – A calm step-by-step: check it's genuine, work out if you were trading, and reply on time.
• Free Vinted & eBay Profit Tracker Spreadsheet (UK) – A free download with tax-year tabs, profit per item and a check against the HMRC limits.
• Trading Allowance vs Expenses: Which Should Resellers Use? – The £1,000 allowance or your real costs? Why resellers who track stock costs often come out ahead with expenses.
• Do Resellers Need to Register for Self Assessment? – When reselling counts as trading, the £1,000 rule, and the 5 October and 31 January deadlines.
• Depop HMRC Reporting: Do You Pay Tax on Depop Sales? – What Depop reports, what it asks you for, and Depop's own example of being reported but owing no tax.
• Etsy UK Tax: HMRC Reporting Rules for Sellers 2026 – When Etsy reports you to HMRC, and why things you make to sell usually count as trading.
• Trading Allowance Rises to £3,000: What Budget 2026 Changed – The trading allowance is due to rise from £1,000 to £3,000 from 6 April 2027, subject to Finance Bill. When it starts, who it helps, and why £1,000 still applies until then.
• Why Is eBay Asking for My National Insurance Number? – Why eBay wants your NI number, what happens if you don't give it, and why giving it doesn't mean you owe tax.
• Selling Personal Items on eBay: Do You Pay Tax? (UK) – Clear-outs vs trading, the £6,000 Capital Gains Tax rule for valuable items, and why eBay may still report you.
• Facebook Marketplace & HMRC: Do They Report You? – What we could and couldn't confirm about Facebook Marketplace reporting, what Gumtree says, and why the tax rules are the same either way.
• Am I Trading? HMRC's Badges of Trade for Resellers – HMRC's nine badges of trade with Vinted and eBay examples, plus car boot sales: when selling becomes trading.
• Vinted Pro vs Personal Account: Does It Change Tax? – What Vinted says about Pro and standard accounts, what HMRC actually looks at, and why switching account type isn't what decides tax.
• Side Hustle Tax Calculator UK: How Much Tax Will I Pay? – A rough estimate of the extra Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance on your reselling profit, comparing the trading allowance with your real costs. England, Wales and NI.
• Telling HMRC About Past Online Sales: Disclosure Guide – Realised you should have declared past reselling income? The routes GOV.UK describes, step by step, and how far back it goes.
• MTD for Resellers: Do eBay & Vinted Sellers Need It? – Most sellers won't need Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. The £50,000, £30,000 and £20,000 thresholds, and why they count sales, not profit.
• Whatnot UK Tax: Do Sellers Pay Tax and Does It Tell HMRC? – How Whatnot reports UK sellers to HMRC via Ireland, when live-selling income is taxable, Whatnot's fees as expenses, and the £90,000 VAT line.
• TikTok Shop UK Tax: When Sellers Pay and What HMRC Sees – TikTok Shop's 30 orders or €2,000 reporting rule, where to find your MRDP report, and why being reported isn't the same as owing tax.
• Self Assessment Deadline 2027: A Guide for Vinted Sellers – Your 2025 to 2026 return and tax are due online by 31 January 2027. Which sales it covers, the 30 December tax-code option and how to pay.
• Payments on Account Explained for Side Hustles (UK) – Why a first January tax bill can be 1.5 times what you expected, when you don't have to make payments on account, and how to reduce them.