Expenses can feel overwhelming at the best of times but add in different categories of allowable expenses and things can start to get even more confusing. It’s not all about the major purchases though, and all those sundry expenses can soon add up, so it’s essential to keep on top of them.

We’ll go over what qualifies as a sundry expense, and how to record them correctly in your bookkeeping.

What are sundry expenses?

In accounting terms, sundry expenses are small one-off costs. Sometimes referred to as ‘miscellaneous expenses’ they tend to be low in value, and fairly random.

Their ad hoc nature means they don’t tend to fit neatly under your other expense categories, so grouping them together as sundry expenses makes it easier to stay organised rather than having lots of categories with one transaction each.

They can vary from one business to the next, but examples might include one off Christmas decorations for the office, donations, or sponsorship costs.

Is it worth recording my sundry expenses?

Absolutely! Businesses can claim tax relief on their allowable expenses, so they pay tax on their profits, not their total income. Recording your sundry expenses correctly means you can then include them as part of your claim for tax relief.

Although sundry expenses are small, infrequent, and impromptu by nature, that doesn’t mean you should leave them out of your financial accounts. In order to ensure you’re paying the right amount of tax and claiming the appropriate relief, it’s essential to record every expense, large or small.

You might feel that one single sundry expense by itself isn’t worth bothering with, but these can add up to something significant over the course of a year.