New announcement. Learn more

CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS (ICAEW)

News and advice to help make your property business a success

LANDLORDS FINANCIAL BLOG

All

Landlords Tax Property Tax Landlords Tax Returns Landlords Accounts Property Tax Return Property Accounts Landlords Financial Landlords Accountant Tax Returns Tax Chartered Accountants Online Accountant Online Bookkeeping Online Tax Returns Your Online Accountant Your Online Bookkeeper VAT Businessadvice HMRC Accounting Property Cashflow Dividends Expenses NIC PAYE Property Accountant SDLT Smallbusiness Businesstips Capital Gains Tax FHLs Furnished Holiday Lettings Ihtexemptions Income Tax Inheritance Tax Investment Property Tax Tax Relief Taxplanning Cgt Gifts Landlord Repairs Pension Property bookkeeper Property Letting Sole Trader Taxreturn VAT invoice Allowable Business Expenses Annual Exempt Amount Bad Debt Tax Relief BADR Business Expenses Business Rate Business tips Capital Allowances Capital Gains Capital gains tax property Cashbasis Child Benefit Compliance Deductibleexpenses Directors Loans Disincorporation Employment Allowance Finance Financialmanagement HMRC complaints Holiday Lets Tax ISA Lettings Making Tax Digital MakingTaxDigital Mileage Allowance Mobilephones MTD MTD Update National Insurance Overlaprelief Partnership Partnershipbusinesses Payrolling Ppr Property Company Tax Property Tax Deductible Expenses Propertyallowance Reimbursedexpenses Rent a Room Relief Rental Residence Relief Small Business Tax free income TimetoPay Working from home 60 day capital gains limit Abolitionclass2 Accrualsbasis Acquisitions ADR Advisoryfuelrates AI AirBnB Alphabet shares Amap Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings Appeal Artificial intelligence Assessment Asset disposal Associated Company Associated Company Tax Rules Autumnstatement Bad Debt Baddebts Badgesoftrade Beancounter Benefits in Kind Breakeven Point Budget Business advice Business asset deferment Business coach Business Continuity Business Entertainment Business Rates Business Rates Relief Businessgrowth Businesstypes Buy or Lease Equipment Buytolet Capital Allowances for Cars Capital Gain Capitalallowances Capitalexpenditure Car Capital Allowances Carry Back Losses Change of Tax Basis ChatGPT CIS Scheme Class 2 NIC Common Tenant Companies Expenditure Companies House Company Account Deadlines Company Account Filing Company Strike Off Company Tax Efficient Property Companyassociation Companyloanstaxfree Compulsory Strike Off Construction Industry Scheme Contacthmrc Contentmarketing Contributions Corporation Tax Losses Corporation Tax New Regime Corporation Tax Rates CorporationTax Costs Cryptocurrency Customerlistimplications Deductible Business Expenses Deductions Demerger Depreciation Development Directors Directorsloans Disallowable Business Expenses Discovery Disposals Dispute Resolution Dividend allowance Dividend Allowance Reduction Dividend Planning Dividendallowance DLA Domestic Items Tax Relief Dormantcompany EIS Employee Discount Employee management Employeecompensationpayments EmployeeOwnershipTrust Endoflifeplanning Enquiry EnterpriseResourcePlanning Entertainment Entrepreneurmindset Equity Expenses Allowed For Tax Extrabenefit Eyetests Flat Rate Scheme Flipping Furnished Holiday Lets Tax Gift Aid Gift Allowance Growthhacks Help to pay tax bills HICBC HMO Licensing Fees Holdoverrelief Holiday Lettings Tax Home responsibilities protection How to apply for a Business Loan How to Extract Profit Humour Hybrid Illegaldividends Income Income and Gains Inflationary Gains Influencers Inheritance Tax Nil Rate Band Interest Rates Interestrelief Interestrestriction Invoicing IR35 Joint Tenant Keypersoninsurance Landlords Self Assessment Late vat registration LBTT Leadgeneration Leadmagnet Leanbusinessmodel Letting Agent Disbursements Letting Agent Recharres Lettings Relief Lifetime Limit Limitedcompany Liquidation Demerger Loan Loaninterest Long Lets Tax Longservice LTT Mainresidencerelief Managed Lets Management accounting Maritalhomedivorce Marriage allowance Marriageallowance Mileage payment Minimumwage Mixedusesdlt Mortgage costs Mortgage Interest Relief New property Newcompanycarfuelrates Newnicrules NIC 2023 to 2024 NIC savings Nicdisregard Nicreduction NMW Nmwerrors Non Allowable Business Expenses Non-taxable Nudgeletter Optiontotaxvat Overpayment Relief Overseas properties Paperform Partnership schemes Parttime Patternofoccupancy PAYE by Direct Debit Payroll Penaltypoints Pension Payments Tax Relief Pensioncontributions Pensions Performance-reviews Periodofgrace Periodsofabsence Personal Expenses Personal finance Personalallowance Personalguarantees Postcessationrelief Pretradingexpenses Profit Profit-and-loss ProfitAndLoss Property Allowance Property Development Company Property Incorporation Property Investment Company Property investor accounts Property investor tax tips Property Rental Business Property Trading Propertycompany PRR R40 Recharges by Estate Agents Regularpayments Relief Rent your drive Rentaroom Research & Devolopment Residential property gains Residentialsdlt Retail stock control Retainedprofits Revenue Room for rent tax Rti SA Salary Savings SDLT changes Section 455 Tax Section455tax Selective Licences Landlords Self Assessment Self-employednic Selfemployed Selling Online Seperation Servicecharges Settlementslegislation Simplified Expenses Smallbiz Smallbusinessraterelief Software Spring Budget Staffparties Stamp duty Student Loan Deductions SuccessJourney Surplus Cash Tax Allowance on Driveways Tax Allowances Tax Break Tax Codes Tax Deadlines Tax Deductions Tax Filing Deadlines Tax Free Childcare Tax Implications Tax on Company Vans Tax position Tax Refund Tax tips for landlords Taxbillpayments Taxconsequences Taxincentives Taxposition Taxpositionassets Taxrelief Taxreliefs Taxses Terminationpayments Tips Trade professional Trading losses Training Transfer Assets Transfer Assets Between Spouses Travel Umbrellacompany Undisclosedincome Unpaid Rent VAT Bad Debt Relief VAT Deadlines VAT Disbursements VAT Penalties VAT registration VAT Reverse Charge Vatpenalties Vatregistered Vatregistrationthreshold Wellbeing

TAGS

Mobile phones – a worthwhile benefit

July 2, 2023

Mobile phones – a worthwhile benefit

The tax system contains a number of exemptions, some of which are more useful than others. One of the more valuable exemptions is that for mobile telephones. As long as the associated conditions are met, an employee can use an employer-provided mobile phone for private use without being taxed on the associated benefit. However, there are some pitfalls to avoid.

Provision of the phone

The exemption applies where an employee is provided with a mobile phone ‘without any transfer of property in it’. This means that the legal ownership of the phone must not be transferred to the employee.

The method of provision is also key. The exemption will only apply if the contract is between the mobile phone provider and the employer. If the employer chooses to purchase the handset outright, they must retain ownership of it; the airtime contract must be between the employer and the mobile phone provider.

From a tax position, the outcome is different if the employee contracts with the mobile phone company and the employer pays the bill on the employee’s behalf. Here the employer is meeting a personal bill of the employee rather than providing the employee with a mobile phone. As a result, the mobile phone exemption does not apply and the amount paid on the employee’s behalf is taxable and liable to Class 1 National Insurance.

Likewise, if the employee initially meets the cost of the phone and/or the airtime and this is later reimbursed by the employer the mobile phone exemption does not apply as the employee is not being provided with the use of a phone. The exemption for paid and reimbursed expenses does not apply either if the phone is used privately, as the employee would not be entitled to a deduction should they meet the cost personally.

Although at first sight it may seem that the same result is obtained in each case – the employee has the private use of a phone the cost of which is met by the employer – the tax consequences are very different. It is essential that the employer provides the phone and contracts with the mobile phone provider for the exemption to apply.

One phone per employee

The exemption is limited to one phone for private use per employee. Where the employee also has a phone which can only be used for business calls, the exemption remains available for a phone which can be used privately. There is no tax charge if the phone is only available for business calls and is only used for business calls --the business phone is ignored for the purposes of the exemption.

Beware salary sacrifice

The exemption does not apply where the phone is made available under a salary sacrifice or other optional remuneration arrangement.

Mobilephones

Landlords Tax

Landlords Accounts

Landlords Tax Returns

Property Tax

Property Accounts

Property Tax Return