EIM13010 - Termination payments and benefits: section 401 ITEPA 2003: scope of the charge

Section 401(1) ITEPA 2003

For a payment or other benefit to be chargeable under section 401 ITEPA 2003 it must be received (as defined in EIM13110) in connection with (as defined in EIM13012):

• the termination of an office or employment, or
• a change in the duties or earnings from an office or employment (see EIM00680)

and

• not be chargeable under any other section (see EIM12810)

The scope includes a payment made for giving up rights in a redundancy scheme even though no termination occurs when it is paid (as confirmed by the Upper Tax Tribunal in the case of HMRC v Colquhoun).

A commutation is within the scope (see EIM13000).

The section includes payments and benefits made in many circumstances, see EIM13020 for details.

See EIM13030 for details of benefits chargeable under section 401 ITEPA 2003.

The most common section 401 ITEPA 2003 payments and benefits are set out in the table at EIM13005.

With effect from 6 April 2018, an element of all payments made on termination of an office, or employment are chargeable as general earnings rather than under section 401 ITEPA 2003 (see EIM13874).