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What is Legal and professional fees?
Last verified 31 October 2026
Legal and professional fees are charges from solicitors, accountants, surveyors and similar advisers. A landlord can deduct those of a revenue nature incurred for the rental business, but not those that relate to buying or improving a property.
Why it matters to landlords
HMRC's manual allows normal accountancy for the property accounts, landlord association subscriptions, insurance valuations, rent arbitration, and the cost of evicting an unsatisfactory tenant to relet. GOV.UK says legal fees are allowable for lets of one year or less, or for renewing a lease of under 50 years. A first letting for more than a year is treated as capital.
Solicitors' fees on a purchase are not deductible against rent, but they are not wasted: they can be added to the property's cost when you work out a capital gain on a later sale. Personal fees, such as preparing your own tax return or a CGT calculation, are not allowable.
Example
Tom pays £150 to a solicitor to draft a new tenancy agreement and £300 to an accountant for his property accounts. Both are deducted. When he bought the flat he paid £1,400 in conveyancing fees. That is not deducted from rent, but it is kept for any capital gains calculation on a later sale.
Allowable Expenses for Landlords (2026) →