Tax on side earnings paid in vouchers?

Bookworm105

Jeremy535897 said:

mybestattempt said:

It's means, as I have said, that the non transferable holiday on it's own is not moneysworth. It can't be sold for money or spent like money.

If there is an alternative which is money or moneysworth (worth measured in money) then that amount is chargeable.

I agree, but if the voucher cannot be exchanged for anything other than goods in a shop, and is non transferable, I do not believe it is taxable as miscellaneous income.

I accept that tax is based on the law, not logic, but if a shop (non cash) voucher is categorically defined as taxable income if received by an employee (EIM16040), why do you think it is non taxable if received as a "reward" for undertaking "casual/misc" income earning "activity"?

Unlike responding on the MSE forum, people doing surveys do so because they get a personal (valuable) earning rather than zero (valuable) reward .

A shop voucher has a face value that purchases saleable goods that then have a second-hand value. The voucher is not (usually) restricted to a named individual (unlike a holiday) and is thus eminently transferable. I agree there is a difference between retail price and second-hand price, but the voucher is "earnings" for doing the survey since it has a categoric money's worth value

EIM16040 - Vouchers and credit-tokens: what is a non-cash voucher? - HMRC internal manual - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Jeremy535897

mybestattempt said:

But what is a voucher other than moneysworth?

A £20 voucher has worth measured in money of £20 and can be spent like cash.

If a person buys goods (or services) which cost £50 and pays £30 with cash (or card) and the balance with the £20 voucher it's worth has been realised and transferred. 

I'm not sure how a voucher could ever be non transferable, by its very nature it's transferable in the same way as payment by cash or card.

If it's transferable, I agree it counts as miscellaneous income. As you point out, the £1,000 trading allowance also applies to miscellaneous income, although if you also have a trade, you have to apportion the trading allowance between both.