The Council Tax Benefit (General) Regulations 1992

CHAPTER IIIEmployed Earners

Earnings of employed earners

19.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), “earnings” means in the case of employment as an employed earner, any remuneration or profit derived from that employment and includes—

(a)any bonus or commission;

(b)any payment in lieu of remuneration except any periodic sum paid to a claimant on account of the termination of his employment by reason of redundancy;

(c)any payment in lieu of notice or any lump sum payment intended as compensation for the loss of employment but only in so far as it represents loss of income;

(d)any holiday pay except any payable more than 4 weeks after termination or interruption of the employment;

(e)any payment by way of a retainer;

(f)any payment made by the claimant’s employer in respect of expenses not wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of the duties of the employment, including any payment made by the claimant’s employer in respect of—

(i)travelling expenses incurred by the claimant between his home and place of employment,

(ii)expenses incurred by the claimant under arrangements made for the care of a member of his family owing to the claimant’s absence from home;

(g)any award of compensation made under section 68(2) or 71(2)(a) of the Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act 1978(1) (remedies and compensation for unfair dismissal);

(h)any such sum as is referred to in section 112 of the Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 (certain sums to be earnings for social security purposes);

(i)any statutory sick pay under Part XI of the Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 or statutory maternity pay under Part XII of that Act.

(2) Earnings shall not include—

(a)any payment in kind;

(b)any payment in respect of expenses wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of the duties of the employment;

(c)any occupational pension.

Calculation of net earnings of employed earners

20.—(1) For the purposes of regulation 14 (average weekly earnings of employed earners), the earnings of a claimant derived or likely to be derived from employment as an employed earner to be taken into account shall, subject to paragraph (2), be his net earnings.

(2) There shall be disregarded from a claimant’s net earnings, any sum, where applicable, specified in paragraphs 1 to 12 of Schedule 3.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (1) net earnings shall, except where paragraph (4) applies, be calculated by taking into account the gross earnings of the claimant from that employment over the assessment period, less—

(a)any amount deducted from those earnings by way of—

(i)income tax,

(ii)primary Class 1 contributions under the Contributions and Benefits Act 1992; and

(b)one-half of any sum paid by the claimant by way of a contribution towards an occupational or personal pension scheme.

(4) Where the earnings of a claimant are estimated under paragraph (2) of regulation 14 (average weekly earnings of employed earners), his net earnings shall be calculated by taking into account those earnings over the assessment period, less—

(a)an amount in respect of income tax equivalent to an amount calculated by applying to those earnings the basic rate of tax in the year of assessment in which the claim was made less only the personal relief to which the claimant is entitled under sections 257(1), (6) and (7) and 259(1)(a) and (2) of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 (personal relief) as is appropriate to his circumstances but, if the assessment period is less than a year, the amount of the personal relief deductible under this sub-paragraph shall be calculated on a prorata basis;

(b)an amount in respect of primary Class 1 contributions payable under the Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 in respect of those earnings; and

(c)one-half of any sum payable by the claimant by the way of a contribution towards an occupational or personal pensions scheme.