Saturday 30 March 2013

International rugby players will have to pay up…......

The UK Government recently announced a special exemption from UK income tax for non-resident athletes and footballers coming to the UK to appear at such events as the London Anniversary Games in 2013, the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014 or the Champions League Cup Final at Wembley in 2013, following discussions with the governing bodies of these sports.

However, the IRB (International Rugby Board) made no similar request for exemption from UK income tax for those non-resident players coming to the UK for the Rugby World Cup in 2015. As a result, all the non-resident players attending the RWC will be taxed on a proportion of their worldwide earnings – appearance fees, sponsorship receipts and prize money, apportioned according to the number of days spent in the UK for pre-tournament training and the RWC, itself.