Cycling wannabie!!

carddub

Hi,

I wanna cycle and was thinking the 'bike to work scheme' would be the perfect solution to getting a decent bike.
However my employer is only offering the scheme to some employees, is this legal??

Beasty

No - scheme must be available to all employees/directors

Are you sure everyone works for the same employer?

Pishogue

I doubt if that's legal. It's certainly not ethical. I'd be marching into your HR department and asking questions. It's seriously good discount if you are paying the top rate of tax.

carddub

Hi Beastie, yeah we all work for the same employer but some people are on a new contract which they signed last year and I didn't sign so their saying I can't do the bike to work scheme?

anoble66

they are talking BS - you either work for the company on a permanent basis or you dont. Cant see how a difference in contract would come in to it. They cannot just offer the scheme to just some of their employees - I would call that discrimination and be kicking up a storm. Ask to speak to the person who is in charge of administering the scheme in your company.

anoble66

here you go:- (email them this) from the terms of the scheme

Participation in the scheme is voluntary for employers. However, when an employer agrees to participate, he or she must make the scheme generally available, on an equal basis, to all employees requesting it.

helimachoptor

Op, I'd suggest you quote them from revenue.ie the part that says if they offer it to one employee then it must be offered to all.

Beasty

s118(5G) TCA 1997:

"...The exemption only applies where bicycles/safety equipment are made available by the employer generally to all of its directors and employees. The exemption does not apply where the employer provides a bicycle and/or bicycle safety equipment for selected employees or selected directors..."

Basically if they don't offer it to all employees/directors the scheme does not qualify (and those who have bought bikes lose the tax benefits)

When they offered new contracts, was there a different employer named?

paulieb2006

Can you qualify for the scheme if you have a company car? Work for an Alarm company and we all have vans or cars, cant really cycle to work but wouldnt mind getting someting from it.

kenmc

Could you not leave the car in the office sometimes and cycle to the office (putting the bike into the van if need be)? In theory at least, it has to be used for commuting. It doesn't say how often or how far it has to be used for commuting.
"I use it every morning to cycle to the gatehouse, where Jeeves awaits me with the Bentley to bring me through all that nasty traffic that pater warned me against" must surely be allowed too no?

carddub

No it's the same employer name beasty?Where did you get that quote?I wouldn't mind having a copy and paste session and send it to all my colleagues!!

Beasty

paulieb2006 wrote: »

Can you qualify for the scheme if you have a company car? Work for an Alarm company and we all have vans or cars, cant really cycle to work but wouldnt mind getting someting from it.

Yes - company car/bus pass etc makes no difference - you simply need to intend to use the bike mainly for commuting.

Beasty

carddub wrote: »

No it's the same employer name beasty?Where did you get that quote?I wouldn't mind having a copy and paste session and send it to all my colleagues!!

http://www.revenue.ie/en/about/foi/s16/income-tax-capital-gains-tax-and-corporation-tax/part-05/05-04-08.pdf

There's a guidance document also:
http://www.revenue.ie/en/practitioner/law/bik-exemption-for-bicycles.pdf

Hungrycol

Don't go shooting off an email to all in the company quoting the Revenue about it not being offered to all. Could p1ss off the boss who could scrap it for everyone. Discuss your finding reasonablly with the person saying you can't have it.

Beasty

Hungrycol wrote: »

Don't go shooting off an email to all in the company quoting the Revenue about it not being offered to all. Could p1ss off the boss who could scrap it for everyone. Discuss your finding reasonablly with the person saying you can't have it.

I would agree with this approach - however if you employer does withdraw the scheme, and has never operated it properly, any tax benefits to those who have participated are lost, and I would expect the employer is likely to have to foot the bill. Hence it would certainly not be in their interests to "withdraw" (if they bothered to work it out, although I admit this may be a big assumption)

Lumen

Beasty wrote: »

if you employer does withdraw the scheme, and has never operated it properly, any tax benefits to those who have participated are lost, and I would expect the employer is likely to have to foot the bill.

Why? Surely once a bike has purchased it's all done and dusted.

Beasty

Lumen wrote: »

Why? Surely once a bike has purchased it's all done and dusted.

If the scheme is not made available to all employees, it does not qualify. No tax benefits are available. However in my view this is the employer's issue. If it happened to me, as an employee, I would require my employer to pay over any tax and PRSI on a grossed up basis, leaving me with the correct overall result (on the basis the employer has not delivered a tax-free bike, as they had agreed to).

Obviously this requires the company to volunteer they have not operated the scheme correctly, or the Revenue to establish it themselves (either through audit, or perhaps a disgruntled employee notifying them)