Expenses

Track every business expense to maximise your tax deductions. Clarth makes expense tracking effortless with AI receipt scanning, mileage logging, and automatic categorisation.

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Recording Expenses

Quick Expense Entry

1. Click + in the top navigation
2. Select Expense
3. Fill in:
   • Description — What you purchased
   • Amount — Total cost (inc VAT if applicable)
   • Date — When the expense was incurred
   • Category — Select from your chart of accounts
   • Payment method — Card, cash, bank transfer
4. Click Save

Detailed Expense Entry

For more control:

• Supplier — Who you paid
• Invoice number — Supplier's reference
• VAT amount — Separate VAT for reclaim
• Receipt — Upload a photo or PDF
• Notes — Additional context
• Reimbursable — Mark for employee reimbursement

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Receipt Capture

AI Receipt Scanning

1. Go to Expenses > Receipts
2. Click Scan Receipt
3. Upload a photo (mobile or desktop)
4. Clarth's AI automatically extracts:
   • Supplier name
   • Date
   • Total amount
   • VAT amount
   • Line items (when available)
5. Review and confirm the details
6. The receipt is attached to the expense entry

Email Receipts

Forward receipts to your unique Clarth email address:

1. Each account gets a unique address: [email protected]
2. Forward supplier emails with receipts attached
3. Clarth processes and creates expense entries
4. You receive a confirmation to review

Bulk Upload

1. Go to Expenses > Receipts
2. Click Upload Receipts
3. Select multiple files (PDF, JPG, PNG)
4. Clarth processes each receipt
5. Review all entries in the processing queue

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Expense Categories

Pre-built categories for UK businesses:

Office

• Office supplies
• Stationery and printing
• Software and subscriptions
• Telephone and internet

Travel

• Train and rail
• Bus and tram
• Fuel
• Parking
• Tolls
• Accommodation
• Meals (business travel)

Professional

• Accountancy fees
• Legal fees
• Consultancy
• Professional subscriptions

Marketing

• Advertising
• Website hosting
• Domain names
• Print materials

Premises

• Rent
• Rates
• Utilities
• Insurance
• Repairs and maintenance

Custom Categories

1. Go to Accounting > Chart of Accounts
2. Click Add Category
3. Enter the expense category details
4. Set a default VAT rate for the category

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Mileage Tracking

Manual Entry

1. Go to Expenses > Mileage
2. Click Log Journey
3. Enter:
   • Date — When the journey was made
   • From — Starting address
   • To — Destination address
   • Purpose — Business reason
   • Miles — Distance (auto-calculated or manual)
4. Clarth calculates the claim:
   • 45p per mile — First 10,000 miles
   • 25p per mile — Over 10,000 miles

Route Calculator

1. Enter start and end addresses
2. Clarth uses mapping to calculate distance
3. Adjust if the actual route differs
4. Save the journey

Mileage Reports

• Total miles by period
• Mileage by purpose/project
• Tax relief calculations
• Export for HMRC claims

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Expense Rules

Automate repetitive expense entry:

1. Go to Expenses > Rules
2. Click Create Rule
3. Set conditions:
   • Description contains — e.g., "Uber", "Starbucks"
   • Amount equals — Exact amount match
   • Amount between — Range match
   • Merchant equals — Specific supplier
4. Set actions:
   • Assign category — Auto-categorise
   • Set VAT rate — Apply correct VAT
   • Mark as recurring — Flag regular expenses

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Employee Expenses

Track expenses claimed by employees:

Submitting Claims

1. Employee logs into Clarth
2. Goes to Expenses > My Claims
3. Adds expense items with receipts
4. Submits for approval

Approving Claims

1. Manager reviews in Expenses > Approvals
2. Checks receipts and amounts
3. Approves or rejects with comments
4. Approved expenses are reimbursed via payroll or bank transfer

Expense Policies

Set spending limits and rules:

• Daily limits — Maximum per day by category
• Receipt thresholds — Receipt required above £25
• Approval workflow — Single or multi-level approval
• Prohibited items — Flag non-allowable expenses

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VAT on Expenses

Reclaimable VAT

For VAT-registered businesses:

1. Record expenses with VAT
2. Clarth tracks input VAT separately
3. VAT is included in your VAT return automatically
4. Review VAT on Expenses report before submitting

Partial Exemption

If you make both taxable and exempt supplies:

1. Go to Tax > VAT > Partial Exemption
2. Calculate the proportion of input VAT you can reclaim
3. Clarth applies the standard method automatically
4. Adjust if using the special method

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Expense Reports

Standard Reports

• Expense Summary — Total by category and period
• Expense by Project — Costs per project or client
• Expense by Client — Billable expenses
• Mileage Report — Total claims and tax relief
• VAT on Expenses — Input VAT for VAT returns
• Unreceipted Expenses — Items without receipts

Custom Reports

1. Go to Reports > Custom
2. Select expense fields
3. Set filters (date, category, amount)
4. Group by any field
5. Save and schedule for automatic delivery

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Mobile Expense Tracking

iOS & Android Apps

• Camera capture — Snap receipts on the go
• GPS mileage — Automatic journey tracking
• Quick add — Record expenses in seconds
• Offline mode — Work without internet, sync later

Sync

All mobile entries sync instantly with your Clarth account across all devices.

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