WorkLife April 2017 | Page 14

SALARY SACRIFICE THE PERKBOX PERSPECTIVE How will these new tax laws shape our salary sacrifice perks? WHICH SCHEMES WILL BE AFFECTED? WHAT SHOULD I DO AS AN EMPLOYER? Lynda Finan, Legal Director at DLA Piper shares her advice: “Employers should determine which arrangements are affected and ensure that their payroll systems are appropriately updated. The additional costs in tax terms should be weighed against the potential impact from an HR perspective of withdrawing the arrangements. “Employers who decide to continue their arrangements should communicate the impact of the changes to employees well ahead of them taking effect. They should also provide sufficient information for employees to make an informed decision about whether they wish to continue to receive the benefit.” 14 HOW WILL THE CHANGES AFFECT ME AS A PERKBOX CUSTOMER? For Perkbox customers, the changes to salary sacrifice are limited. WHAT ABOUT THE CAR SCHEME? The car scheme is slightly more complex: any orders placed before the end of March will save tax and NI until 2021. For orders starting after April 2017, the current tax and NI saving will continue but only for cars which emit less than 75 CO2/KM (Plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles.) The following will remain unchanged: •Childcare Vouchers •Workplace nursery benefit •Pensions •Cycle-to-work •Ultra-low emission cars •Holiday buyings •Additional annual leave The following will no longer be eligible for tax savings, but still eligible for NI savings: •Car Parking •Gyms •Mobile phones •Wills •Technology