Can I claim gym, medical and health costs as a sole trader?

Mostly no. In 2026-27, gym membership, private medical cover, dental bills, glasses and income protection for yourself are not business expenses. Protective kit such as safety glasses usually is, and so is health cover for staff you employ.

The rules below follow GOV.UK, HM Revenue and Customs' Business Income Manual (BIM) and the legislation, checked on 17 October 2026.

Why your own health counts as personal

A business cost has to be wholly and exclusively for the trade. HMRC's manual (BIM37900) lists "wishing to enjoy good health" among the kinds of spending the courts treat as having a private purpose by their very nature, alongside everyday clothing and food. The best-known case is Mallalieu v Drummond, on clothing, covered in our guide to work clothes and PPE.

On health itself, BIM37940 says "medical expenditure on ensuring or restoring good health is not generally allowable". In Norman v Golder, a court shorthand writer said his illness came from working in poor conditions. The court still refused his doctor's bills, because they were laid out partly for his benefit "as a living human being". So an injury picked up at work does not, on its own, make the treatment a business cost.

The narrow exception

BIM37947 describes Parsons (2010), where a self-employed stunt performer was allowed private knee surgery, chiropractor and massage costs, and dental work after a stunt injury. The tribunal found the knee operation was "of a special character dictated by the occupation": he would have waited for the NHS but for the demands of stunt work. His general fitness costs were still refused, and the tribunal stressed the decision rested on its own facts.

In our reading, few tradespeople will fit this exception.

What counts and what does not

GOV.UK lets you claim protective clothing needed for your work, such as safety boots or hard hats. It does not name eyewear, but in our reading eye and ear protection belongs with them. Prescription safety glasses also correct your sight, which is personal. Section 34 of the Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005 allows an identifiable part of a cost that is wholly for the trade, so in our reading only the safety part, such as the extra over an ordinary pair, can be claimed.

Income protection and sickness cover

BIM45560 says premiums a sole trader pays for life, accident or sickness cover for themselves are not allowable. The other side is that payouts are not trading income, and the manual says they are generally tax-free. Section 735 of the Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005 sets the conditions: no part of any premium can have been deductible, and the policy must meet further conditions in sections 737 to 740.

Site and licence medicals

None of the HMRC manual pages above covers a medical or fitness test a client requires before you work on their site, or the D4 medical GOV.UK says you need to renew a lorry or bus licence at 45 or over, which the doctor will normally charge for. The test it gives for medical costs is whether they are of "a special character dictated by the occupation" (BIM37947). In our reading, a check you would not have had but for the contract, or to keep a licence you use in the business, has a better case than a routine check-up, but it is not settled. If you are not sure, GOV.UK says to contact HMRC.

Staff you employ

Employees are different. GOV.UK lists staff salaries and benefits among allowable expenses, and HMRC's manual (BIM47060) says an employer can deduct the cost of providing health care to those who work for them, as long as it is wholly and exclusively for the trade and not capital.

The benefit can be taxable for the employee. GOV.UK says that if you arrange and pay the provider directly, you report medical or dental treatment or insurance on form P11D and pay Class 1A National Insurance on its value. Some things are exempt, including one health screening a year, eye tests and glasses needed for screen work, and treatment for injuries caused by the work. If the employee is your partner or a relative, see paying your partner a wage.

A worked example

A self-employed electrician with one employee pays these in 2026-27:

Because the electrician pays the insurer directly, the employee's £600 cover goes on form P11D, with Class 1A National Insurance on it. This is an example only.

What this means for you

Pay for your own gym, medical cover, dentist, glasses and income protection personally, and keep them out of the books. Claim the protective kit the work needs, and treat health cover for staff as a staff cost.

Steps to sort your health costs

1. Go through your business account for gym, medical, dental, optician and insurance payments.
2. Mark your own health costs as private, or pay them from your personal account.
3. Keep receipts for safety glasses, ear defenders and other protective kit, naming each item.
4. For a site medical a client requires, or a licence medical, keep the written requirement or the licence details with the receipt.
5. Record health benefits for employees as staff costs, and report them on form P11D where needed.
6. Keep your income protection policy papers with your personal records, not the business ones.

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