The NIC status of payments by an employer to a third party, such as a pension fund or insurance company, for an employee’s benefit has been litigated for over a decade and produced widely divergent judicial opinions. With the Supreme Court judgment in HMRC v Forde and McHugh Ltd, we now at last have clarity, say Dan Pipe and Nigel Doran
The facts in Forde and McHugh [2014] UKSC 14 were as follows. In 2002 the appellant company (FML) established by trust deed an unapproved pension scheme for its employees. The main purpose of the trust was to pay scheme members a pension or other relevant benefits on their retirement. At the same time William McHugh a shareholder and director of FML became the only member of the scheme.
