Keeping fit and well at work is tax free

This is according to Ron Warren, tax expert and executive chairman of payroll software company NuQ, who says that more and more companies are introducing wellness centres and programmes into their businesses as a benefit for their employees across the wellness spectrums, for example gym training.

He explains that companies can pay gym instructors and wellness consultants to conduct training for employees in the workplace and put this through their businesses as an expense and it does not have to reflect as a taxable employee fringe benefit. "There is provision in the Fourth Schedule regarding the taxation of free or cheap services as a fringe benefit," Warren says.

"Accordingly, if the gym trainers or wellness consultants provide their services at the employees' place of work, they will have no value for fringe benefit tax purposes," he says. "However, if they are provided away from the place of work, their cost to the employer will be a taxable fringe benefit."

"Once the value of the benefit has been arrived at, that is added to the taxable renumeration received by the employee and that total is subjected to tax," he adds. "In other words, a taxable fringe benefit is just remuneration that is received in a non-cash form."