EMI Case Study 1
An Overview of the Statutory Requirements The highly tax-efficient and highly-commercially flexible EMI was first introduced through Finance Act 2000 and has the potential to benefit any company that meets the criteria for a Qualifying Company and whose employee participants meet the criteria for an Eligible Employee. To be a Qualifying Company, the company: (1) must be independent throughout the life of the options, (2) must have gross assets that do not exceed £30 million at the date of grant and (3) must not have its trading involved in certain trades for 20% or more of its activities for the life of the options. To be an Eligible Employee, an individual: (1) must be an employee within the company or the company’s group, (2) must give “committed time” to the company that amounts to at least 25 hours a week or, if less, for at least 75% of his/her “working time” and (3) must not at the date of grant have a material interest (more than 30%) in the company. The maximum initial market v ...