HMRC v Professional Game Match Officials Ltd [2021] EWCA Civ 1370

Facts

  • Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) manages referees for English professional football leagues.
  • HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) contended that referees under PGMOL contracts should be considered employees for tax purposes, impacting their liability for National Insurance and income tax.
  • PGMOL maintained that referees were self-employed.
  • The Court of Appeal examined the nature of the relationships, including PGMOL’s control over referees’ work, training, evaluation, and disciplinary measures.
  • The court also analyzed obligations (if any) between matches, and contract terms related to availability and substitution rights for referees.

Issues

  1. Whether referees engaged by PGMOL should be classified as employees for tax purposes, based on the nature of their contractual relationships.
  2. Whether the degree of control exercised by PGMOL and the existence (or absence) of continuous mutual obligations indicated employment.
  3. Whether the referees’ requirement to perform work personally, and the contractual possibility of substitution, affected their employment status.

Decision

  • The Court of Appeal affirmed prior rulings that referees were not employees for tax purposes.
  • It found that PGMOL exercised significant control during matches but there were limited or no obligations outside of specific match assignments.
  • The presence of contractual substitution clauses, though rarely exercised, weighed against an employment relationship.
  • The lack of continuity and guaranteed work between assignments supported referees’ self-employed status.

Legal Principles

  • Evaluation of employment status for tax purposes depends on the totality of the contractual relationship, not only control exercised during work.
  • Continuous mutual obligations between the parties are a key indicator of employment.
  • The ability for a worker to substitute someone else, even if infrequently used, can undermine an employment classification.
  • Assessment in industries with irregular or project-based work schedules requires consideration of obligations outside specific assignments.

Conclusion

The Court of Appeal determined that PGMOL referees were not employees for tax purposes due to the absence of continuous mutual obligations and the presence of substitution rights, emphasizing a comprehensive analysis of the working relationship in project-based contexts.

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