From 6 April 2026, HMRC expanded three workplace benefit tax exemptions to cover employer reimbursements, not just cases where the employer arranges and pays for a benefit directly. The three areas are eye tests, flu vaccinations, and homeworking equipment. If you currently pay employees back for any of these and have been treating the reimbursement as a taxable benefit, it is worth reviewing your position.
This is general information, not tax advice. Confirm whether a specific reimbursement qualifies with your accountant or HMRC.
What changed and why it matters
Before April 2026, some of these exemptions applied only when the employer directly arranged and paid for the benefit, for example by running an on-site flu clinic or buying equipment outright. Employers who reimbursed staff for costs they incurred themselves were in a greyer position: some treated reimbursements as taxable, others did not.
The expansion of workplace benefits relief legislation, confirmed in the April 2026 Employer Bulletin, brings reimbursements clearly within the exempt category. HMRC confirmed the exemption “applies automatically where the conditions in legislation are met”, which means no payroll process change is needed for qualifying reimbursements.
1. Eye tests
Employers have long been able to provide eye tests free of income tax and National Insurance under the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations, where the employee uses a screen as a significant part of their job. From 6 April 2026, reimbursements for the cost of those tests are also exempt.
If an employee covered by the DSE Regulations pays for their own eye test and claims it back, you can reimburse them without the reimbursement being a taxable benefit. Corrective appliances (glasses or lenses) needed specifically for DSE work, and not for general use, can also qualify.
In practice, this removes a compliance headache for employers who run a claims-based eye care scheme rather than a voucher or direct-booking arrangement. Both routes are now on equal footing.
2. Flu vaccinations
Seasonal flu vaccinations were previously exempt when the employer arranged them, for instance through a workplace vaccination session or a third-party clinic scheme. From 6 April 2026, employers who reimburse staff for the cost of getting a flu jab themselves, at a pharmacy or GP, can treat that reimbursement as exempt too.
This is a small but useful change for SMEs. Organising a workplace flu clinic requires minimum headcount to be worthwhile. Smaller employers can now run a simple reimbursement scheme with no more administration than asking for a receipt, and there is no income tax or NIC consequence on either side.
3. Homeworking equipment
Equipment provided directly by the employer for home working has been exempt provided it is used mainly for work. The April 2026 legislation confirms that reimbursements for equipment the employee purchased themselves also qualify, where the equipment is needed for their duties and is used mainly for work purposes.
Practical examples include monitors, keyboards, ergonomic chairs, and desks where the employee works primarily from home. The key test is whether the item is genuinely needed to perform employment duties, not a general household purchase that happens to get used occasionally for work.
What you do not need to do
Exempt benefits do not appear on a P11D. They are not reported as benefits in kind and there is no Class 1A National Insurance to pay on them. As long as the exemption conditions are met, the administration is minimal: keep records of what was reimbursed and why it qualifies, in case HMRC asks.
How this fits with salary sacrifice
Exempt benefits and salary sacrifice solve different problems. Exempt benefits avoid income tax and NIC on specific items without requiring any change to the employee's contractual pay. Salary sacrifice reduces gross pay so that employer and employee NIC savings apply to a wider set of benefits, particularly pensions and EV car schemes.
If you have not reviewed whether your pension contributions run through salary sacrifice, our salary sacrifice calculator shows the employer NIC saving in straightforward terms. The two approaches can run alongside each other.
Where PerkIQ fits
Benefits that are genuinely exempt from tax cost you nothing extra to offer and carry real perceived value with employees. PerkIQ tracks which benefits your team has access to and scores your overall package against market benchmarks. If you have not checked whether your homeworking or wellbeing provision includes these exemptions, a free benefits healthcheck takes about five minutes.
