FRINGE BENEFITS Available to Purchase

Nineteen eighty‐nine is the year of fringe benefits. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 introduced a series of rules that have forced employers to adopt fringe benefit regimes that do not discriminate in favor of highly compensated employees if the benefits are to remain exempt from federal income tax. Recent regulations require compliance by the end of calendar year 1989. The test for non‐discrimination applies to health, retirement, dependent care, and educational benefits, among others.