Company Share Option Plans

There are a number of government approved share schemes which offer tax advantages to employees. One of these schemes is known as the Company Share Option Plans (CSOP). Under a CSOP, employees do not pay Income Tax or NICs provided the qualifying conditions are met. This applies to a qualifying

Tax-free trivial benefits

There is a benefit in kind (BiK) trivial exemption that applies to small non-cash benefits like a bottle of wine, or a bouquet of flowers given occasionally to employees or any other BiK classed as ‘trivial’ that falls within the exemption. By taking advantage of the exemption employers can simplify

Claiming for mobile phones

When an employer incurs costs for the provision of mobile phones to employees it is important to understand the correct tax treatment of these expenses. This includes costs for phones provided to employees and reimbursement of employee’s own phone costs.

As a general rule, the provision of one

PAYE settlement agreements

A PAYE Settlement Agreement (PSA) allows employers to make one annual payment to cover all the tax and National Insurance due on small or irregular taxable expenses or benefits for their employees.

The expenses or benefits included in a PSA must belong to one of the following categories;

minor –

On your bike – cycle to work exemption

The Cycle to Work scheme was introduced over 20 years ago to help promote the use of healthy ways to commute to work using an environmentally friendly mode of transport.

The scheme allows employers to provide bicycles and cyclists’ safety equipment to employees as a tax-free benefit. The scheme

Exempt loans to employees

An employee can obtain a benefit when provided with an employment-related cheap or interest-free loan. The benefit is the difference between the interest the employee pays, if any, and the commercial rate the employee would have to pay on a loan obtained elsewhere. These types of loans are referred

Car fuel benefits for employees

The car fuel benefit rules only apply to company cars that attract a car benefit tax charge. This means the rules do not apply to fuel provided for use in an employee’s own car.

However, employers can pay up to 45p per mile for company related trips in an employee’s own car. If these journeys clock

A reminder of trivial benefit rules

We wanted to remind readers of the trivial benefits in kind (BiK) rules. The BiK exemption applies to small non-cash benefits like a bottle of wine, a bouquet of flowers given occasionally to employees, or any other benefit in kind classed as ‘trivial’ that falls within the exemption. By taking

Tax treatment of incentive scheme awards

Some companies use incentive award schemes to encourage their employees in various ways. For example, to sell more of their own goods and services. The award can include cash-based, vouchers or other gifts.

Where an employer meets the tax payable on a non-cash incentive award given to a direct

Make the most of tax-free trivial benefits

The trivial benefits in kind (BiK) exemption applies to small non-cash benefits, for example a bottle of wine or a bouquet of flowers, given occasionally to employees.

Although the benefit is defined as ‘trivial’, employers should remember that this can be an efficient way to provide small rewards