Benefits in kind: when are assets ‘made available’?

Employment relationships may have long evolved from the barter system but employees’ receipt of ‘in kind’ remuneration remains. At first blush it seems logical that any kind of asset provided by a company to their employees or directors should be deemed part of their remuneration for tax purposes. However the legal position is not always clear across the variety of employment relationships which might be impacted for example in close companies or owner-managed businesses where it can be difficult to identify whether an asset is being provided for personal or business use.

This article closely inspects the taxation of benefits in...