Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003

Introduction U.K.

201 Employment-related benefits U.K.

(1) This Chapter applies to employment-related benefits.

(2) In this Chapter—

• “benefit” means a benefit or facility of any kind;

• “employment-related benefit” means a benefit, other than an excluded benefit, which is provided in a tax year—

  (a)

  for an employee, or

  (b)

  for a member of an employee’s family or household,

  by reason of the employment. For the definition of “excluded benefit” see section 202.

(3) A benefit provided by an employer is to be regarded as provided by reason of the employment unless—

(a) the employer is an individual, and

(b) the provision is made in the normal course of the employer’s domestic, family or personal relationships.

(4) For the purposes of this Chapter it does not matter whether the employment is held at the time when the benefit is provided so long as it is held at some point in the tax year in which the benefit is provided.

(5) References in this Chapter to an employee accordingly include a prospective or former employee.

202 Excluded benefits U.K.

(1) A benefit is an “excluded benefit” for the purposes of this Chapter if—

(a) any of Chapters 3 to 9 of the benefits code applies to the benefit,

(b) any of those Chapters would apply to the benefit but for an exception, or

(c) the benefit consists in the right to receive, or the prospect of receiving, sums treated as earnings under section 221 (payments where employee absent because of sickness or disability).

[F1 (1A) But a benefit provided to an employee or member of an employee's family or household is to be taken not to be an excluded benefit by virtue of subsection (1)(c) so far as it is provided under optional remuneration arrangements.]

(2) In this section “exception”, in relation to the application of a Chapter of the benefits code to a benefit, means any enactment in the Chapter which provides that the Chapter does not apply to the benefit.

But for this purpose section 86 (transport vouchers under pre-26th March 1982 arrangements) is not an exception.

Textual Amendments

F1 S. 202(1A) inserted (with effect in accordance with Sch. 2 para. 62 of the amending Act) by Finance Act 2017 (c. 10), Sch. 2 para. 47