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Travel To Work

Volume 951: debated on Tuesday 6 June 1978

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asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the advice given by Her Majesty's Inspector of Taxes, London Provincial 25, to a constituent of the hon. Member for Woking, that the cost of travelling from his house to his place of employment, if borne by his employer, constitutes an emolument of that employment and as such is chargeable to tax under Part VIII, Chapter 1 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1970 irrespective of his earnings, in the light of the Financial Secretary's reply about railway season tickets to the honourable Member for Basingstoke (Mr. Mitchell). Official Report, 30th January 1977, columns 311–2.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 26th May 1978; Vol. 950, c. 762], gave the following information:If an employer reimburses an employee the expenses of travelling from home to work or otherwise meets his pecuniary liability in respect of these expenses, there is liability to tax on the employee's part under the general rules of Schedule E, whatever his earnings. Where the employer contracts with British Rail to provide his employee with a season ticket, which cannot be converted into cash in the employee's hands, and the employee's earnings are not such as to bring him within the special legislation relating to benefits in kind, the employee is not chargeable on the value of the season ticket since it does not represent the meeting of a pecuniary liability nor can it be converted into cash.