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A self-employed bricklayer can claim tools, blades, mixer hire, protective gear, van costs and travel to temporary sites. In 2026-27, each £100 of expenses can mean £26 more CIS back (basic rate, outside Scotland).
Most bricklayers work for builders and main contractors under the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS), so tax comes off their pay before they see it. Expenses do not change what is deducted each month. They change your profit at the year end, and that decides how much of the deducted money you get back. The rules below follow GOV.UK and HMRC's Business Income Manual as checked on 16 October 2026.
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What a bricklayer can and cannot claim
| Cost | Can you claim? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Trowels, levels, jointers, lines and pins | Yes | Tools you keep are an expense on the cash basis |
| Disc cutter, diamond blades, mixer you buy | Yes | Blades that wear out are running costs |
| Mixer or saw hire for a job | Yes | Plant hire on your invoice is also free of CIS deduction |
| Bricks, sand and cement you pay for | Yes | Labour-only work has none to claim |
| Hod carrier or labourer you pay | Yes | You may need to register as a CIS contractor too |
| Van running costs, or 55p a mile for the first 10,000 business miles | Yes | One method per van |
| Travel from home to temporary sites | Usually | See below |
| Safety boots, hard hat, hi-vis, knee pads, gloves | Yes | Protective clothing |
| Public liability and tool insurance | Yes | |
| Health and safety or skills courses for your trade | Yes | Not courses to start a different business |
| Jeans, T-shirts and ordinary jackets | No | Everyday clothing, even if worn only on site |
| Your lunch and brews on site | No | Ordinary food is a private cost |
| CIS deductions | No | They are tax already paid, not a cost |
Travel to sites: the bricklayer case
GOV.UK says travel between home and work cannot be claimed. Bricklayers are the exception HMRC's manual is built on. In Horton v Young, a bricklayer worked at sites up to 55 miles from home, about three weeks at each, and kept his tools and books at home. The court held that his trade was itinerant, so travel between home and those temporary sites was a business cost. HMRC's manual (BIM37620) now says to allow it where your base is your home and each site is temporary.
The rule rests on each site being temporary: HMRC describes an itinerant trader as one who goes to each place for the purely temporary purpose of completing a job, then moves on. Keep a log of each site and how long you were there.
Materials, hire and CIS
If you work labour-only, the contractor supplies bricks and mortar, and you have no materials to claim. If you buy materials yourself, they are an expense, and GOV.UK says the contractor must not take CIS from the cost of materials, plant hire or consumables shown on your invoice. Keep receipts, because the contractor may ask for evidence. Our guide on claiming tools covers mixers and saws in more detail, and work clothes and PPE covers what to wear.
What this means for you
A made-up example: a bricklayer outside Scotland is paid £42,000 for labour in 2026-27, with £8,400 deducted under CIS at 20%. Their costs are:
| Cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| Van: 7,000 business miles at 55p | £3,850 |
| Hand tools, blades and a new mixer | £850 |
| Safety gear | £250 |
| Insurance | £450 |
| Business share of phone | £360 |
| Training | £240 |
| Total | £6,000 |
Profit is £36,000. Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance come to £6,091.80, so £2,308.20 of the £8,400 comes back. Without the expenses, the bill on £42,000 would be £7,651.80 and only £748.20 would come back. The £6,000 of costs is worth £1,560 to this bricklayer. This is an example only.
Before you join Making Tax Digital (MTD), over-deducted CIS is claimed back through your Self Assessment tax return. Once you are in MTD, HMRC adds your CIS deductions to your tax return, and any refund is requested separately through HMRC online services. Either way, the sooner after 5 April the return is filed, the sooner HMRC can repay you.
Steps to claim your bricklaying expenses
- Keep every monthly CIS statement your contractors give you.
- Keep receipts for tools, blades, hire and safety gear, as photos if easier.
- Log every site: address, dates and miles from home.
- Choose mileage or actual costs for your van, and stick with it.
- Put CIS deductions in their own box, never in expenses.
- File soon after 5 April so any refund can start sooner.
More trade costs are in our guides for builders and all tradespeople. The free MTD check shows when MTD starts for you, and the trades section has more on CIS.
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More for bricklayers: what CIS covers, the costs you can claim and when Making Tax Digital starts.
Questions people ask
Can a bricklayer claim travel from home to site?
Often, yes. HMRC's manual allows home-to-site travel for an itinerant trader who works at a series of temporary sites from a base at home, and the leading case, Horton v Young, was about a bricklayer.
Are my CIS deductions an expense?
No. CIS deductions are advance payments towards your tax and National Insurance. They go in their own box on your tax return and are taken off your bill, not off your profit.
Can I claim the hod carrier or labourer I pay?
Yes, payments to subcontractors are an allowable cost. If you pay them for construction work, you may also need to register for CIS as a contractor as well as a subcontractor.
Can I claim a cement mixer?
Yes. Under the cash basis, a mixer you buy to keep is claimed as an expense when you pay for it. Hiring one for a job is a running cost.
Do expenses make my CIS refund bigger?
They can. Expenses lower your profit, so the tax worked out on it is lower. If the CIS taken from your pay is more than that tax, the difference comes back to you from HMRC.
Sources
- Expenses if you're self-employed (GOV.UK)
- BIM37620: Travel costs to and between sites (HMRC Business Income Manual)
- What you must do as a CIS subcontractor (GOV.UK)
- What you must do as a CIS subcontractor: Get paid (GOV.UK)
- Construction Industry Scheme: a guide for contractors and subcontractors, CIS 340 (GOV.UK)
- Expenses if you're self-employed: Car, van and travel expenses (GOV.UK)
- Expenses if you're self-employed: Clothing expenses (GOV.UK)
- BIM37920: Food and drink (HMRC Business Income Manual)
- Cash basis (GOV.UK)
- Simplified expenses if you're self-employed: Vehicles (GOV.UK)
- Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances (GOV.UK)
- Self-employed National Insurance rates (GOV.UK)
- Send your tax return under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (GOV.UK)
This is general information to help you understand the rules. It isn't tailored to your circumstances, so check your own position before acting on it.
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