Tax for photographers and videographers

Weddings, portraits, content, commercial shoots — photography is kit-heavy and often a mix of income streams, which makes claiming your costs properly really worth it.

Most photographers and videographers are self-employed for their shoot work, even alongside an employed job. Once your self-employed earnings pass £1,000 in the year, you'll file a return and pay tax on your profit after costs.

How much tax will you actually pay?

You're taxed on your profit — your income after allowable costs — not on everything you take. For the 2026/27 tax year:

• The first £12,570 is tax-free (your personal allowance).
• 20% income tax on profit between £12,570 and £50,270.
• 6% Class 4 National Insurance on that same slice — Class 2 is treated as paid automatically.
• Above £50,270 it steps up to 40% tax and 2% National Insurance.

A worked example. Say your profit after kit, software and travel is £20,000, and it's your only income. Nothing on the first £12,570, then 20% tax on the £7,430 above it (£1,486) and 6% Class 4 NI (£446) — about £1,932 for the year. A big kit purchase can cut this further in the year you make it.

If you also have an employed job, that salary usually uses your personal allowance first, so more of your self-employed profit is taxed — we work out both sides together. Our how-much-tax guide has the full breakdown.

Costs you can usually claim

• Kit — cameras, lenses, lighting, drones, audio and computers — usually claimed via capital allowances — plus repairs and memory cards.
• Software and subscriptions — editing suites, cloud storage, stock music and licences.
• Studio costs — hire, or a share of your home if you edit and store gear there.
• Travel to shoots — 55p per mile for the first 10,000 miles and 25p after, or actual costs; plus accommodation when you're away.
• Website, portfolio and marketing.
• Second shooters, assistants and props.
• Insurance for your gear and public liability.

How to file, step by step

• 1. Register with HMRC for Self Assessment by 5 October after the tax year you started. You'll get a UTR (Unique Taxpayer Reference). Here's how →
• 2. Keep records through the year — what you earned, and receipts for what you spent.
• 3. File your return online by 31 January (or on paper by 31 October). The dates that matter →
• 4. Pay what you owe by 31 January.

Making Tax Digital

Making Tax Digital is already here: since 6 April 2026 it applies if your gross self-employment and property income — your turnover, before expenses — was over £50,000. The threshold drops to £30,000 in April 2027 and £20,000 in April 2028. It means keeping digital records and sending HMRC a short update every quarter — 7 August, 7 November, 7 February and 7 May — on top of your year-end return. We keep the records and file them so you can stay on the shoot.

Common questions

Do photographers pay tax on shoots? Yes — most photographers and videographers are self-employed, so once your earnings top £1,000 in a year you file a Self Assessment return and pay tax on your profit.

What can photographers claim as expenses? Cameras, lenses, lighting and computers (usually via capital allowances), editing software and subscriptions, studio hire or a share of home, travel to shoots, website and marketing, assistants and props, and insurance.

How much tax will I pay? No tax on the first £12,570, then 20% tax and 6% Class 4 National Insurance on profit above it. On £20,000 of profit that's about £1,932 for the year, though big kit purchases can reduce it.

This guide is general information, not personal tax advice. Figures are for the 2026/27 tax year and can change at each Budget — always confirm the current numbers on GOV.UK or ask us to check your situation.