companies, demonstrating the increasingly prominent role gift cards can play in businesses’ incentive and loyalty programmes.
The in-depth research, which surveyed more than 2,000 UK shoppers, C-suite executives and gift card managers on their perceptions, attitudes and habits towards gift cards, demonstrates that gift cards could be leveraged as a key tool for businesses to engage their staff, as well as customers. However, more needs to be done to secure senior buy-in if this market growth is to continue. While more than four in five (85%) gift card managers believe gift cards to be an important area of growth for their business, this figure drops to just under two thirds (65%) of professionals at C-suite level. This is likely due to the fact that almost half of senior-level employees (45%) reported having minimal visibility of the results driven by gift cards, and more than a third (35%) reported little to no awareness of the opportunities they can present.
Gail Cohen, director general of the UKGCVA, commented:
“The right reward scheme can have a hugely positive influence on employee (and customer) loyalty, particularly when used as part of an ongoing incentive and reward programme. However, if retailers are to capitalise on the opportunities presented by the growing B2B gift card market, it is imperative that gift card managers and the C-suite are on the same page, requiring greater education and clearer lines of reporting throughout the business around the positive effects gift card programmes can have.”
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Voluntary office-holders: payments in respect of expenses 12 July 2019
The 2019-20 Finance Bill introduces a new income tax exemption for voluntary office holders who are paid or reimbursed reasonable private expenses incurred in carrying out the duties of the office.
The new provision (originally announced at Budget 2018) places the existing concessionary treatment for payments or reimbursements of reasonable private expenses made to voluntary office holders on a statutory basis and will have effect from 6 April 2020. Background Most individuals who do unpaid voluntary work for an organisation, such as a charity or local society, are not office holders or employees. This means the reimbursement of any expenses incurred by these individuals in doing the work of the organisation will not give rise to a liability to tax. Similarly, these individuals are not liable to tax on the reimbursement of the extra cost they might incur, such as the travel between home and the place the work is done. However, a person who has been appointed to a position by an organisation and does voluntary unpaid work for that organisation may be an office holder. Voluntary office holders include, for example, magistrates and special constables. HMRC’s long standing practice is that no tax charge arises on expenses provided to voluntary office holders, as long as they do not receive any reward for carrying out the duties of their office and any payments or reimbursements do no more than meet the expenses they incurred. This means voluntary office holders are in a similar position to volunteers in the treatment of their private expenses paid or reimbursed by the organisation. However, this treatment is concessionary and the measure creates a statutory tax exemption. From 6 April 2020 The new measure ‘Income Tax and the treatment of expenses for voluntary office holders’ ensures that reasonable out-of-pocket private expenses paid or reimbursed to voluntary office holders and which are linked to the duties of the office remain tax exempt. This recognises the role of voluntary office holders, ensures that the tax treatment of their private expenses continues to be comparable to those of volunteers, and provides certainty by placing the treatment on a statutory footing.
The payments will also not be subject to National Insurance contributions (NICs). A Class 1 NICs disregard will be introduced through regulations after Royal Assent to Finance Bill 2019-20.
The Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals
Payroll: need to know
cipp.org.uk
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