ESM11005 - Check Employment Status For Tax - Introduction

ESM11005 – Introduction

What is in this guidance?

  • What is Check Employment Status for Tax?

  • Why do you need to know the employment status for tax and National Insurance contributions?

  • Who can use CEST? ESM11006

  • Will HMRC stand by the results of CEST? ESM11010

  • Does HMRC keep records of when you use CEST? ESM11010

  • Do you have to use CEST? ESM11015

  • What CEST should not be used for ESM11015

  • CEST glossary ESM11020


What is Check Employment Status for Tax?

The online CEST (Check Employment Status for Tax) tool helps you determine a worker’s employment status for tax and National Insurance contribution (NIC) purposes.

It gives you HMRC’s view of a worker’s employment status based on the information you have provided.

It can also be used to check if changes to the contractual or working arrangements alter the employment status.



Why do you need to know the employment status for tax and NICs?

A worker’s employment status will determine who is responsible for working out the tax and NICs due and paying it to HMRC.  

Employment status is not a choice; it is determined by several factors. CEST is specifically designed to help you work out a worker’s status based on those factors.

CEST Testing

The Check Employment Status for Tax (CEST) tool  was rigorously tested during development in conjunction with HMRC’s lawyers against live and settled cases and reflects employment status case law.

Since the tool’s launch in 2017 we have been committed to continuous testing of CEST against emerging employment status case law. A list of settled cases which the tool has been tested against can be found here.  This will be updated routinely.

The CEST matrix is the logic the tool uses to make determinations. This is tested for consistency with settled caselaw. This can be found here