Exempt Benefit/Income Question

Hi there,

I’m really struglling with this quesiton and wondered if you could shed any light please.

Chase has been living in the UK for 13 years, but he is domiciled in Whereatania.

On 1 September 2022, Chase’s UK employer, Spud Ltd, sent him on a three-month secondment to the Whereatanian office. Chase’s wife stayed in London for the duration of the secondment, apart from occasional trips to visit Chase in Whereatania.

Chase’s income and benefits from employment during 2022/23 included a return flight for the start and end of the secondment, plus a further flight to the UK to visit his wife costing £195 for each return ticket.

I don’t understand why his flights are exempt from his employment income calculation. I realised because he’s on secondment is the only reason he’s incurring the flights – but in that case, shouldn’t they be deducted?