If you still apply the ‘old’ system of tax-free reimbursements and allowances, you can give or give fitness to your staff untaxed under certain conditions. From 1 January 2015, however, you will be obliged to apply the work-related costs scheme and different conditions will apply to untaxed reimbursement or provision of fitness.
Fitness in the workplace (company fitness)
For the provision of fitness in the workplace (company fitness) is subject to a nil valuation under the work-related costs scheme. This means that your staff can use workplace fitness facilities untaxed. The workplace is the place, in the broad sense, where employees work and for which the employer bears responsibility under the Working Conditions Act.
Because a fee for fitness in the workplace is less conceivable, the legislator did not want to include an exemption for this. A workplace fitness allowance is therefore taxed, unless you choose to place it in the free space.
Fitness outside the workplace
Fitness outside the workplace is taxed insofar as it is non-work-related fitness (see below). However, the tax-free allowance can be used for fitness outside the workplace.
Work-related fitness
Work-related fitness exists if you see risks to the health of your employees and want to eliminate these risks with a targeted fitness programme in your health and safety policy plan. For example, consider fitness for maintaining fitness required for your staff to perform their duties. Workplace-related fitness is targeted exempt. This means that your staff can use this fitness untaxed but you can also provide untaxed compensation for it.
For the exemption, it does not matter whether the workplace-related fitness takes place at the workplace or outside the workplace. In both cases, the fitness is untaxed.