Published 13 November 2023 by Victoria Lancefield, Global Tax Specialist
If you are an employee of your limited company, you can expense the cost of a health assessment provided by your company without incurring income tax liability. You can only expense one health-screening assessment or medical check-up provided by your limited company in a tax year. The assessment or check-up must be conducted by a health professional and should be solely for the purpose of determining your state of health.
The Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 (IT(E&P)A 2003) addresses the provision of health-screening assessments and medical check-ups for employees by their employers in the UK. According to this section:
1. There is no liability to income tax in respect of the provision, on behalf of an employer, of a health-screening assessment or a medical check-up for an employee.
2. However, there are limitations on the number of assessments provided:
(a) No more than one health-screening assessment can be provided in a tax year by any one employer or by any combination of employers of the employee at the same time.
(b) Similarly, no more than one medical check-up can be provided.
3. The section provides definitions for “health-screening assessment” and “medical check-up.” A health-screening assessment is an evaluation designed to identify employees who might be at particular risk of ill-health. A medical check-up is a physical examination conducted by a health professional solely for determining the employee’s state of health.
As per the HMRC guidance note, you don’t have to report anything to HMRC or pay tax and National Insurance on the health-screening benefit.