The government has confirmed it will be "taking forward" almost all of the recommendations made by the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) addressing the taxation of employee benefits and expenses.
It confirmed that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) had already implemented nine of the 43 quick wins originally suggested by the OTS.
The statement provides further detail to the announcements in yesterday's Budget that government would consult on four of the main simplifications outlined by the OTS.
Writing in a letter to OTS chairman Michael Jack and tax director John Whiting, exchequer secretary to the Treasury David Gauke MP explained how the government was continuing to tackle the complexity of employee benefits taxation.
This includes a consultation on the tax treatment of travel and subsistence expenses which will also feature a call for evidence on the wider area of modern remuneration practices.
"I am pleased to report that HMRC will take forward almost all of your recommendations, as outlined in your final report on employee benefits and expenses," Gauke said.
"In particular the government will be consulting on the introduction of a framework to allow voluntary payrolling of benefits by employers. Your report also identified many problems with the tax treatment of travel and subsistence expenses caused by more fundamental concerns, so the government will undertake a wider review of these.
"The government recognises both the complexities you highlight in the report, and the need to reform policy to reflect our 21st century workplace and labour market, so it will also call for evidence on modern remuneration practices to inform future policy in this area.
"I am pleased to confirm that of the 43 ‘quick wins' recommended in the OTS interim report, all nine scheduled for completion by January 2014 have been delivered. A further ten quick wins will be implemented in this Parliament," he added.
Gauke also noted the positive response to the reforms around employee share schemes and confirmed further consultation into the area.
"Business has responded favourably to these changes and I want to thank you for your success in simplifying this complex area," he said.
"I would like to give further consideration to two of your other recommendations for a ‘marketable security' and an ‘employee shareholding vehicle'. We will therefore issue a discussion document later this year to collect views from businesses, employees and share scheme experts on some of the important issues raised by these far-reaching proposals," he added.
