If a person is engaged to carry out a particular project at a particular price they may have the choice of doing all the work themselves or engaging others to assist them. Such a choice may not generally be available to an employee.
Substitution—HMRC's approach
Guidance on the importance placed by HMRC on the right of substitution in reaching a status decision is contained within the Employment Status Manual1. If an individual undertakes to perform a task and is free to hire someone else to do it for them or to provide substantial help, it is unlikely that the individual will be an employee2. However, there are two provisos3:
- Ìý
•ÌýÌýÌýÌý the obligation or right to provide a substitute must be genuine, and
- Ìý
•ÌýÌýÌýÌý the individual must engage and pay the substitute
If the individual merely recommends another worker who the engager takes on, this is not providing a substitute.
In deciding whether the right of substitution is genuine, HMRC will look for evidence
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Web page updated on 17 Mar 2025 16:08