Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003

322 Suggestion awards: “the permitted maximum”

(1) The permitted maximum for an encouragement award for the purposes of section 321 (suggestion awards) is £25.

(2) The permitted maximum for a financial benefit award where no such award for the suggestion has been made before is—

(a) if only one such award is made for the suggestion, the suggestion maximum, and

(b) if two or more such awards are made on the same occasion to different persons for the suggestion, the appropriate proportion of the suggestion maximum.

(3) If on a later occasion or occasions one or more further such awards are made for the same suggestion, the permitted maximum for each is—

(a) if only one such award is made for the suggestion on that occasion, the residue of the suggestion maximum, and

(b) if two or more such awards are made on the same occasion to different persons for the suggestion, the appropriate proportion of that residue.

(4) The suggestion maximum for a financial benefit award is the financial benefit share or £5000 if that is less.

(5) In subsection (4) “the financial benefit share” means the greater of—

(a) half the financial benefit reasonably expected to result from the adoption of the suggestion for the first year after its adoption, and

(b) one-tenth of the financial benefit reasonably expected to result from its adoption for the first 5 years after its adoption.

(6) In this section—

• “the appropriate proportion” means such proportion as the award bears to the total of the financial benefit awards made on the same occasion for the suggestion,

• “the residue of the suggestion maximum” means the suggestion maximum less the total previous exemption, and

• “the total previous exemption” means the total of the amounts exempted from income tax under section 321 in respect of financial benefit awards for the suggestion made on previous occasions.