School fees

Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
Produced by Tolley in association with Philip Rutherford
Employment Tax
Guidance

School fees

Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
Produced by Tolley in association with Philip Rutherford
Employment Tax
Guidance
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The payment of a child’s school fees on behalf of an employee is an uncommon benefit. Unlike the provision of childcare, or the award of scholarships, there is no general exemption in place for the payment of school fees.

Introduction

The payment of school fees on behalf of an employee is treated as though the employer has settled a pecuniary liability of the employee. This determines the tax, NIC and reporting requirements associated with the payment. For further details on pecuniary liability, see the Contractual and pecuniary liabilities guidance note and Simon’s Taxes E4.420A.

Reimbursement of school fees

Employee pays the school fees and is reimbursed for these by the employer

The first example is where an employee pays for the school fees and the employer reimburses part of all of the fees in question.

In this case the amount reimbursed is treated as earnings.

Employee contracts with the school and the employer pays the fees

In this case, the employee enters a contract with the school directly and the employer pays either some or all of

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Philip Rutherford
Philip Rutherford

Senior Tax Director at Molson Coors Brewing Company

Phil is the Senior Tax Director for Molson Coors' European operations. He has responsibility for both direct and indirect taxes across both EU and non-EU states. Prior to this, Phil was responsible for Molson Coors UK tax affairs covering all major taxes and duties.   Phil trained at KPMG LLP, where he worked for 8 years, specialising in tax investigations across both direct and indirect tax.

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  • 23 Mar 2026 15:26

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