Quite an impressive title but a ‘Troncmaster’ is a slightly more mundane. The troncmaster is an employee appointed to over see the distribution of gratuities, ie look after the tips. The troncmaster cannot be an employer or somebody that can be shown to respond to the employers wishes, the troncmaster must be independent. There is much more information and advice on the appointment of a troncmaster on the HMRC website.
The gratuities handled in this way are subject to tax, but usually not national insurance. Not all gratuities are managed by troncmasters and there is a lot of HMRC guidance as to when tax and NIC are applicable for all of the different scheme variations. What seems simple at the outset can quickly become very complicated, consider the difference between a gratuity and a service charge for instance, but it is probably worthwhile.
We think ‘tronc’ is derived from the French for ‘collecting box’. So the sun is shining, we are eating and drinking at the bars and cafes, but if you leave a tip will it be managed by a troncmaster?
