The issue of employed v self-employed across a range of sectors will continue to be a focus of Revenue, the Department of Social and Family Affairs and the National Employment Rights Authority for the foreseeable future. The focus of recent was on the tax treatment of individual's described as ‘locums’. Tax Briefing 82 sets out Revenue's position on the tax status of ‘locums’ in the areas of medicine, health care and pharmacy.

Tax Briefing 82 confirms that Revenue will continue to have regard to the Code of Practice for Determining Employment or Self-employment Status of Individuals and relevant case law when examining cases involving ‘locums’. However, it is important that the job as a whole is looked at and the overriding consideration or test will always be whether the person performing the work does so ‘as a person in business on their own account’.

Tax Briefing 82 also sets out Revenue's views on issues such as:

• The tax treatment of payments to a ‘locum’
• Contracts of engagement which specifically state that the individual is not an employee
• Individuals who state that they will only work if engaged as self employed
• The tax treatment of agency workers
• Position as regards an individual who works only a few hours per week

The Code of Practice is available on the Revenue website at http://www.revenue.ie/en/practitioner/codes-practice.html

Tax Briefing 82 is available below at 2.01.