HMRC has published its final Employer Bulletin for 2018. The Bulletin is used to tell employers about new products and changes which may affect them and gives access to further information.
This edition, the first since the Budget on 29 October, gives more details and links to some of the measures announced. It also includes more detail around the Finance Bill.
Of particular note are the changes around company cars and vans. From 6 April 2019, the multiplier for the car fuel benefit charge and the flat rate van fuel benefit charges will increase by the September 2018 Retail Price Index to £24,100 and £655 respectively.
The flat rate van benefit charge will be increased by the September 2018 Consumer Prices Index to £3,430.
The change will have effect on and after 6 April 2019.
As part of the Finance Bill 2018/19, legislative changes will be made to widen the scope of an existing tax exemption for premiums paid by employers for an employee into life assurance products or certain overseas pension schemes, where the beneficiary is the employee or a member of the employee’s family or household.
The changes will allow an employee to nominate any individual or a charity as a beneficiary without being liable to Income Tax as a Benefit-in-Kind on the contributions paid by an employer.
The changes will also apply from 6 April 2019.
A further change worthy of note in the Finance Bill is the abolition of the receipt checking requirement for benchmark scale rates. This legislation means that employers will no longer be required by HMRC to check details of employee expenditure (receipts) when paying or reimbursing expenses at or below the published benchmark scale rates for allowable travel expenses.
Employers will only be required to ensure that employees are undertaking qualifying business travel on the occasions on which payments or reimbursements are made. This legislation does not prevent employers checking employee receipts when reimbursing in this way for their own purposes. This legislation does not apply to payments or reimbursements made under bespoke scale rate payments or industry-wide rates.
The changes apply from 6 April 2019 – guidance will be updated to reflect the changes.
Other topics covered in this edition of the Employer Bulletin include:
- employers choosing to reimburse their staff for the cost of the EU Settled Status scheme
- important information about Visa Costs being met by UK employers
- employer-provided living accommodation – the ‘customary’ test under s99(2) ITEPA 2003
- toolkits – helping to reduce errors
- basic PAYE tools for 2019-2020
- company car tax diesel supplement
- new entitlement to Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay
- paying HMRC
- RTI payroll submissions
- student loans – 6 April 2019 changes
- top 10 mistakes employers make when paying the National Minimum Wage
- payrolling BiKs
- HMRC taxes helpline
- Disability Confident
- agency doctors update
- termination payments and income from sporting testimonials
- statutory payment rates 2019-2020
- an update on UK traders EU exit preparations.
