A ‘retention payment’ to an employee following the acquisition of his employer by another organisation was taxable in the tax year of receipt and not over the ‘retention period’, which stretched over three tax years.    
 
The appellant was non-UK resident in the tax year 2013/14, returned during 2014/15 and was resident in the UK for 2015/16. 
 
The appellant was an employee of a business (B) that was the subject of an acquisition offer by another organisation. A $50 million staff retention pool (SRP) was to be set aside and paid out over time to encourage B’s top talent to stay with them. To be eligible to participate in the SRP, an individual must have been an active permanent employee of B on 31 December 2013. 
 
The appellant’s potential entitlement under the SRP was 30% of his annual base salary at 31 December 2013. This resulted in a