Tax saving tips for locum GPs
Practical, general habits that help locum GPs keep more of what they earn — without straying into anything that should really be a conversation with your accountant.
- tax
- self-assessment
- expenses
None of this is a substitute for proper advice — everyone’s situation is different, and an accountant who knows the details of your income will always beat a blog post. But these are the habits that tend to come up again and again when locums talk about what they wish they’d done sooner.
Claim what you’re actually entitled to — no more, no less
The biggest “saving” for most locums isn’t a clever trick, it’s simply not under-claiming. Mileage, professional subscriptions, indemnity, equipment — these are ordinary allowable costs of doing the work, not grey-area claims. Under-claiming because you’re not sure, and never checking, quietly costs people money every year.
Track everything as you go
This isn’t a tax tip so much as the thing that makes every other tax tip possible. If you’re not recording mileage and expenses in the moment, you will forget things by the time you’re filing — not because you’re careless, but because nobody remembers a Tuesday in March by the following January.
Think about pension contributions properly
Pension contributions, whether through the NHS Pension Scheme or a personal pension, can have real tax implications worth understanding rather than defaulting into. Whether to pension your locum income, and how much, is exactly the kind of decision worth a proper conversation rather than a guess.
Time large purchases deliberately
If you’re planning a significant work-related purchase — a laptop, equipment, anything substantial — timing it within the right tax year, rather than by accident, can matter. This is a “flag it to your accountant before you buy” conversation, not a DIY calculation.
Review your structure periodically, not once
Sole trader versus limited company isn’t a decision you make once and forget. As your income changes, the answer can change too. Revisiting it every year or two, rather than assuming your first-year setup is permanent, is a habit worth having.
Don’t leave money in a “too complicated to check” pile
A surprising number of missed savings aren’t complex at all — they’re just things people never got around to checking. An unclaimed professional subscription, an expense category never mentioned to an accountant because it didn’t seem worth bringing up. If in doubt, mention it. Worst case, it doesn’t qualify.
Tip: Once a year, sit down with your accountant specifically to ask “is there anything I’m doing that’s costing me money unnecessarily?” — not just “here are my numbers, file my return.” The first question invites a genuinely different conversation.
The real saving is consistency
Most of what actually helps here isn’t clever — it’s just not letting a year go by on autopilot. Log things as they happen, review periodically, and ask your accountant direct questions rather than assuming your situation is too small or too simple to be worth optimising.
This is general information, not personal tax advice. Your circumstances are your own — talk to an accountant before making decisions based on anything here.
Related articles
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A closer look at one of the most misunderstood expenses for locum GPs — when home-to-practice travel is allowable, and how to keep a record that holds up.
- Finding an accountant who actually gets locum GP work
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- Tax claims locum doctors often miss
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