It’s mid term and don’t you know all the teachers are out having fun – maybe sunning themselves in the South of Spain or having a staycation somewhere closer to home. Well….maybe that’s what all us non-teachers think, but my sister is a teacher and in all honesty she spends most of her mid-term prepping for the coming term or even sometimes marking student’s work! Not how I would like to spend my holidays!
But, one thing they should be doing is using their few spare days to get their taxes sorted as they could be due tax refunds that they didn’t even know about – and, in fact, many of them have been missing out on. So many people assume that their payroll sorts out their taxes for them, but there are plenty of hidden little extras that you can claim – but they’re not done automatically!
So, to help put a bit of extra cash back in your pocket before the Summer hits, I’ve taken a look into the refunds teachers could be missing out on.
1. Flat Rate Expenses
This is the most common refund that teachers – and many other occupations – miss out on. The amount it’s worth varies depending on whether you are a principal, working part-time, a PE teacher, a guidance counsellor or just a usual classroom teacher. This is to recognise the additional expenses that you are likely to incur as part of your job.
For a general classroom teacher, you can claim €518 of a deduction from your taxable income – which results in a refund of either €212 (at 41% tax rate) or €103 (at 20% tax rate), depending on your annual salary. And, if you haven’t been claiming this, you can go back and claim it over the previous 4 years!
Plus, if you do additional work as a PE teacher or Guidance Counsellor for your school, you can claim an additional deduction of €126 on top of the standard rate of expenses.
It’s also worth noting that those teaching or lecturing in higher education institutions, can also claim flat rate expenses depending on their seniority or part-time status.
2. Health Expenses
You know the drill – one child comes to school with a running nose or a bit of a cough and next minute you’re chowing down cough lozenges like there’s no tomorrow. It’s a painful part of the job that you are susceptible to every little ‘dose’ that is circulating and you are bound to end up at the doctor’s at least once or twice during the year.
Well, keep those receipts – because you can claim 20% tax relief on all your allowable health expenses – and that includes GP visits and prescriptions. It may not sound like much, but if you pay €50 each time you go to the doctor, you are missing out on €10 of a refund – and after a couple of trips it definitely adds up!
3. Getting Married
Believe it or not, getting married can actually make a huge difference to your taxes as your Personal Tax Credits can be shared with your spouse to reduce the total amount of tax you pay combined. It doesn’t make a huge difference to couples on higher incomes, but for most teachers – if you are married, being jointly assessed with your spouse could result in a refund.
Use the Mid Term to Claim your Refund!
All it takes is 5 minutes to fill out an application form and then you can leave the rest up to us. Download an application form or get in touch and we’ll contact you to post out a form.
Post Written by Nerilie Watson
I’m the Marketing Manager at Red Oak Tax Refunds and although I’m no tax expert, I LOVE getting money back from taxman. My job is to translate all the complicated and confusing ‘tax speak’ that is bandied about our office into something that is understandable for all us ‘average Joe soaps’.