EIM42755 - Salary sacrifice: income tax effects of salary sacrifice
Section 62 ITEPA 2003
For an explanation of what is a salary sacrifice, see
EIM42750.
For a summary of the conditions that have to be met for a
salary sacrifice to be successful, see
EIM42760.
If the employment contract is varied effectively (see
EIM42753), the employee is liable to
income tax and NICs on the elements of the new remuneration
package:
- the lower cash salary/wage is earnings within the meaning provided by s62 ITEPA 2003
- If any non-cash benefits are provided to the employee the cash equivalent is charged to income tax under the benefits code . In many salary sacrifice arrangements the benefit is likely to be wholly or partly exempt from income tax and/or NIC. This is the incentive for entering into the arrangement for both employee and employer
If a salary sacrifice is not successful the employee continues
to be liable under Section 62 on the higher level of cash
remuneration he previously received, with no cash equivalent under
the benefits code. In this case the true construction of what has
happened is that the employee continues to be entitled to the
higher level of cash remuneration. The employee has merely asked
the employer to apply part of that cash remuneration on the
employee's behalf. For an example of the tax effect of a salary
sacrifice that is not effective see
EIM42786.
For an example of the tax effect of a successful salary
sacrifice see
EIM42785.
See
NIM02330 for the NICs
position.
Heaton v Bell
Some benefits are partly or wholly exempt from charge to income
tax chargeable under the benefits code. However, if the employee is
able to give up the benefit at any time and revert to the original
(higher) cash salary, the benefit itself comes within Section 62
following the principle established in Heaton v Bell (46TC211)(see
EIM00570). The easy convertibility of
the benefit to cash was regarded as giving rise to
“money’s worth”. The doctrine of
“money’s worth” evolved through case law but was
written into the definition of earnings in Section 62(2) and (3)
ITEPA 2003. It is possible for an employee to receive a benefit
that is exempt from income tax under the benefits code but for a
charge to arise on earnings because the terms of the employment
contract allow the benefit to be given up and the former, higher
level of salary/wages to be re-instated.
The benefits listed below are not chargeable to income tax.
This is much wider than simply being exempt under the benefits
code. In these cases no charge under the earnings rules can
arise:
- Workplace car parking – Section 237 ITEPA 2003 – see EIM01030
- Provision of cycles and cyclist's safety equipment – Section 244 ITEPA 2003 – see EIM21664
- Childcare vouchers – Section 270A ITEPA 2003 – see EIM16057
- Workplace nurseries – Section 318 ITEPA 2003 – see EIM21905
- Other Childcare – Section 318A ITEPA 2003 – EIM21990
