Changes to rules for community amateur sports clubs (CASCs)
The rules for CASCs change on 1 April 2015.
The changes
As a CASC you won’t pay tax on:
- trading profits if your turnover is less than £50,000 a year (£30,000 before 1 April 2015)
- income of up to £30,000 a year from renting out property (£20,000 before 1 April 2015)
Income condition
There’s no longer a limit on the amount of trading income you can earn from members. The new income condition means that CASCs can’t earn more than £100,000 a year from:
- trading with non-members
- property income
Payments to players
CASCs can pay players as long as they don’t pay more than £10,000 in total to all their players in a single year.
Membership costs
There are new limits on fees and costs associated with membership:
- Fees can’t be more than £31 a week (£1,612 a year)
- If your club’s membership fees and sporting activity costs are more than £10 a week you must provide help, for example a discount to reduce those costs to £10 a week for people who can’t pay more.
Expenses
Clubs can pay expenses for some matches and tours where players take part in and promote the club’s sport.
Participation
At least 50% of a club’s members must participate in sport at the club.
What you need to do
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has published detailed guidance explaining how the new rules work. It’s important that you read this to check whether your club meets the rules.
If you meet the new rules
You don’t have to do anything.
If you don’t meet the new rules
You have until 1 April 2016 to make changes to your club to meet them.
Your sport’s governing body may be able to help you.
If you can’t meet the new rules
If you can’t make changes to meet the rules, you can ask HMRC to take your CASC off the register.
As long as you met the rules before they changed on 1 April you won’t:
- be removed from the register until 1 April 2016
- have to pay any charges