We’ll guide you through every detail of employee share schemes, helping you foster a thriving business with a driven team.

Without a dedicated and loyal workforce, even the best products or services won't guarantee business success. Share schemes have become a popular solution to this issue – with good reason.  

Put simply, these arrangements and incentives allow your employees to own shares in your company. Beyond significant tax advantages, share schemes offer a host of evidence-backed benefits. They improve job satisfaction, foster personal investment in your company, and drive deeper engagement across your team. What’s more, they’ll showcase you as a progressive employer, helping you attract and retain top talent. 

However, given the regulatory, tax, and administrative hurdles, setting up share schemes can be daunting. That’s where we come in. Our experts will assist you in crafting effective incentive programs centred around share ownership and bonuses. Such programmes not only motivate and reward your team, but serve as a smart way to buy out existing shareholders in private companies (a viable alternative to traditional sales or management buy-outs).  

Our team brings a wealth of expertise to this area, encompassing both HMRC-approved and unapproved options. We’ll provide clear, straightforward assistance throughout the process. Whether that's tailoring arrangements to key members of your organisation, or implementing broader schemes for all employees. 

We never use a one-size-fits-all approach. Our lawyers will work closely with you to understand your business as if it were their own. We'll advise you on what share options are best suited, steer you through the legal process, and ensure your business complies with all applicable regulations. 

What share options are available for my business?

Whether family or management-led, we’ll craft share option schemes that match your ownership model. These schemes can also be used as flexible, tax-efficient succession tools. Collaborating with seasoned tax advisors, we bring our focused expertise to companies big and small, covering everything from HMRC-approved plans to bespoke share option schemes. 

We advise on: 

 

  • Enterprise Management Incentives 

  • Company Share Option Plans 

  • Employee Share Ownership Plans 

  • Savings Related Share Option Schemes 

  • Share Incentive Plans 

  • Share Options for executives and employees 

  • Performance-linked cash and/or share rewards 

  • Phantom share schemes 

  • Schemes for shares or cash rewards upon significant business milestones 

 

We also specialise in: 

 

  • Navigating employee share scheme aspects of mergers and acquisitions 

  • Addressing share scheme issues for companies eyeing a flotation 

  • Utilising Employee Benefit Trusts for share trading in private companies 

  • Employing trusts as storage for shares, enhancing scheme effectiveness 

 

Whatever the industry, we’ll make share schemes work for you, ensuring clarity and efficiency throughout.  

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