Are share schemes only for large companies?

No, share schemes can be tailored to suit businesses of all sizes, from startups to multinational corporations.

How do share schemes affect company control?

While employees gain ownership, the impact on company control can be managed through careful scheme design and implementation.

What are the tax benefits of share schemes?

Many share schemes offer tax advantages, such as reduced income tax or capital gains tax for employees and potential corporation tax relief for employers.

What is employee share scheme advice and why is it important?

Employee share scheme advice provides tailored guidance on the design, implementation, and management of share schemes to ensure they are compliant, tax-efficient, and aligned with both company and employee goals. At David Craddock Consultancy Services, we help businesses navigate this complex area with confidence.

Which types of employee share schemes do you advise on?

We advise on all HMRC-approved and unapproved share schemes, including EMI, CSOP, SIP, and growth shares, as well as bespoke arrangements for private and listed companies.

Why is Employee Share Scheme Advice important for SMEs?

Employee Share Scheme Advice is crucial for SMEs because smaller businesses often have limited resources and need to balance rewarding staff with maintaining cash flow. With expert advice, SMEs can implement tax-efficient schemes such as EMI (Enterprise Management Incentives), which help attract and retain talent without placing unnecessary strain on the business. Proper advice ensures the scheme is structured to meet both HMRC requirements and the company’s long-term growth strategy.

What type of Employee Share Scheme Advice does HMRC recommend?

HMRC does not provide direct business consultancy, but it sets out strict rules for approved share schemes such as EMI, CSOP, SIP, and SAYE. The right Employee Share Scheme Advice helps businesses interpret HMRC guidance, ensuring their chosen scheme qualifies for the available tax reliefs. Professional advice is essential to design and implement a compliant plan that takes full advantage of HMRC-approved benefits while avoiding pitfalls that could lead to unexpected tax liabilities.

Can Employee Share Scheme Advice reduce tax liabilities?

Yes. Tailored Employee Share Scheme Advice can significantly reduce tax liabilities for both employers and employees. For example, EMI schemes allow gains to be taxed under Capital Gains Tax rather than Income Tax, often at a much lower rate. Employers may also benefit from corporation tax relief on the costs of providing the scheme. Without proper advice, businesses risk missing out on these reliefs or inadvertently triggering higher tax charges.

Expert Share Scheme Tax Advice | Employee Share Plans UK

Expert Employee Share Scheme Advice & Share Scheme Tax Guidance

Looking to reward staff, retain top talent, and drive growth? Employee share schemes offer UK businesses a tax-efficient way to align employees with company success, improve retention, and enhance motivation. Whether you’re a start-up, SME, or established organisation, we provide specialist employee share scheme advice to help you design, implement, and manage compliant and effective share plans tailored to your business goals.

Understanding the tax implications of share schemes is crucial. With expert share scheme tax advice, businesses can unlock significant tax efficiencies while rewarding employees and building a culture of ownership.

Employee ownership enables staff to hold a real stake in the company, creating alignment between employees and shareholders — a proven driver of productivity, loyalty, and innovation.

At David Craddock Consultancy Services, we offer comprehensive employee share scheme advice that ensures your plan is tax-efficient, compliant, and strategically aligned with your long-term business objectives.

📞 Get in touch today to explore how we can transform your business through the proper tax-efficient share schemes!

Why Seek Professional Share Scheme Advice?

With over 30 years of experience advising both quoted and unquoted companies, David Craddock helps businesses:

✔️ Maximise employee engagement through bespoke share incentive plans.
✔️ Optimise tax efficiency with strategic share scheme tax advice.
✔️ Restructure share capital to support growth and succession.
✔️ Ensure full HMRC compliance across all approved and unapproved schemes.
✔️ Manage and maintain schemes effectively for ongoing success.

Our strategic, results-driven approach ensures your employee share schemes not only comply with HMRC rules but deliver measurable benefits, improving motivation, retention, and performance.

Considering a Management Buyout or Succession Plan?

We can help structure your scheme, often in conjunction with an employee share trust (ESOT or ESOP), to enable tax-efficient share sales under the Capital Gains Tax regime.

📞 Get in touch today for expert employee share scheme advice tailored to your goals.

What Are Employee Share Schemes?

Employee share schemes, sometimes called employee share ownership plans, allow employees to own part of the business they help build. This creates loyalty, increases engagement, and aligns personal success with company performance.

But with so many structures available, expert share scheme advice ensures you choose the most tax-efficient option for your business and workforce.

Approved vs. Unapproved Share Schemes: What’s the Difference?

Some share schemes come with tax advantages under HMRC rules, while others offer more flexibility.

Approved Share Schemes are those that meet the conditions set out by HMRC, offering tax advantages to both employees and employers. These schemes are typically more structured and involve regulatory compliance to ensure the tax benefits are granted. Examples include the Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) and Save As You Earn (SAYE) schemes.

Unapproved Schemes, on the other hand, are more flexible and do not qualify for the tax reliefs available to approved schemes. However, they allow businesses to design share schemes tailored to their specific needs without the strict requirements set by HMRC. While employees may face higher tax liabilities on shares awarded through unapproved schemes, they can be an excellent option when flexibility is paramount.

Tax Benefits Explained — With Professional Employee Share Scheme Advice

Choosing and implementing the right scheme is complex. That’s why tailored employee share scheme advice is essential to ensure compliance, maximise tax efficiency, and align with your long-term business goals.

Key Advantages Include:

✔️ Capital Gains Tax relief under EMI and other approved schemes.
✔️ Reduced Income Tax & NICs for employees meeting HMRC conditions.
✔️ Corporation Tax relief for employers contributing shares or cash.
✔️ Enhanced employee retention and motivation through ownership alignment.

Eligibility Criteria for Approved Schemes:

✔️ Companies must meet certain size and structure conditions, with restrictions on the value of shares that can be offered under EMI, for example.

✔️ Employees must be working for the company at least 25 hours per week and have a qualifying role.

✔️ Company restrictions may limit shareholding percentages for certain schemes (e.g., SIP, SAYE).

Tax Benefits of Employee Share Schemes (For Employers & Employees):

✔️ Capital Gains Tax Relief: Under EMI, shares can qualify for CGT relief, allowing employees to sell shares and pay less tax.

✔️ Income Tax & NICs: Employees in schemes like SAYE may not face Income Tax or NICs if the options are exercised after a specific holding period.

Best Share Schemes for Small Businesses

The Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) scheme is a top choice, offering tax benefits while allowing business owners to decide who participates and when.

Share Schemes for Large Companies

A SAYE (Save As You Earn) or SIP (Share Incentive Plan) ensures all employees have access to ownership opportunities, fostering a culture of collaboration and reward.

📞 Contact Us for Personalised Share Scheme Tax Advice.

The Importance of Share Scheme Tax Advice

Tax treatment can make or break a scheme’s success. Our share scheme tax advice service ensures your company benefits from all available reliefs while avoiding costly errors or HMRC pitfalls. We help with:

✔️ EMI and CSOP qualification checks.

✔️ Structuring growth share and option arrangements.

✔️ Ensuring CGT vs. Income Tax optimisation.

✔️ Ongoing tax reporting and compliance.

📞 Contact us for personalised share scheme advice, and discover how the right structure can transform your business.

Why Introduce an Employee Share Scheme?

Introducing an employee share scheme or employee share trust can:

✔️ Motivate and retain key employees.

✔️ Support succession and management buyouts.

✔️ Expand reward structures beyond salary and bonuses.

✔️ Align employees and shareholders for long-term growth.

✔️ Deliver tax efficiency for both company and staff.

Employee Share Option Schemes

An Employee Share Option Scheme is a popular way for businesses to reward and retain staff by giving them the right to buy company shares at a fixed price in the future. Unlike receiving shares outright, options allow employees to benefit if the company’s value increases, creating a powerful incentive to help drive growth and long-term success.

In the UK, schemes such as Enterprise Management Incentives (EMIs) and Company Share Option Plans (CSOPs) are widely used, offering significant tax advantages for both employers and employees. With flexible structures and the potential for real financial reward, share option schemes are an effective way to align employees’ interests with the success of the business.

Having The Correct Share Incentive Plans Can Help:

✔️ Improve employee retention & productivity
✔️ Provide valuable tax benefits
✔️ Align employees with business growth

Get Expert Share Scheme Tax Advice from David Craddock

📞 Let’s find the perfect fit for you. Get in touch today to explore the best employee share plan for your business!

Why Introduce a Share Scheme? Key Benefits for Employers
Why introduce an Employee Share Trust?

Below is a list of reasons why companies and their advisers should consider introducing an employee ownership arrangement.

Please note that none of these reasons are mutually exclusive. The company can choose to operate an employee share plan for all, or any combination, of these reasons

To provide a basis for employee motivation and incentive.

To enable the company to meet its recruitment requirements.

To act as a retention tool for quality employees.

To expand the basis on which employees are rewarded for their work.

To encourage consensus between shareholders, management and employees.

To enable employees to think like shareholders.

To encourage interest in the business from within the workforce.

To assist in succession planning where a proprietor is planning to retire.

To facilitate a management buy-out.

To secure tax efficiencies for the purchase or sale of shares.

Below is a list of reasons why companies and their advisers should consider the introduction of an employee share trust arrangement.

Please note that none of these reasons are mutually exclusive of each other. The company can choose to operate an employee share trust for all, or any combination of these reasons.

To create a market for the shares in the absence of a recognised stock exchange.

To support the operation of employee share scheme arrangements.

To avoid dilution by recycling existing shares for employee share schemes.

To secure the capital gains tax treatment on the sale of the shares.

To enable shareholders to diversify their investment portfolio.

To hedge on the purchase of shares when share prices are low.

To warehouse shares in a secure and safe environment.

To budget for the cost of share purchases for employee share schemes.

To cap the initial outlay required to fund phantom liabilities.

To support long-term incentive arrangements.

To create a market for subsidiary company shares.

To facilitate a management buy-out.

To assist in succession planning where a proprietor is planning to retire.

To buy-out dissident shareholders.

To enable outside investors to withdraw their investment.

To enable the personal representative of an estate to dispose of shares.

To allow flexibility in share pricing for sales.

To operate a share market offshore with a view to achieving tax efficiencies.

To operate a share scheme as part of a pension arrangement.

To give employees security that their scheme shares are ring-fenced for employees

Employee Share Scheme FAQs

Q: Are share schemes only for large companies?
A: No, share schemes can be tailored to suit businesses of all sizes, from startups to multinational corporations.
Q: How do share schemes affect company control?
A: While employees gain ownership, the impact on company control can be managed through careful scheme design and implementation.
Q: What are the tax benefits of share schemes?
A: Many share schemes offer tax advantages, such as reduced income tax or capital gains tax for employees and potential corporation tax relief for employers.
Q: What is employee share scheme advice and why is it important?
A: Employee share scheme advice provides tailored guidance on the design, implementation, and management of share schemes to ensure they are compliant, tax-efficient, and aligned with both company and employee goals. At David Craddock Consultancy Services, we help businesses navigate this complex area with confidence.
Q: Which types of employee share schemes do you advise on?
A: We advise on all HMRC-approved and unapproved share schemes, including EMI, CSOP, SIP, and growth shares, as well as bespoke arrangements for private and listed companies.
Q: Why is Employee Share Scheme Advice important for SMEs?
A: Employee Share Scheme Advice is crucial for SMEs because smaller businesses often have limited resources and need to balance rewarding staff with maintaining cash flow. With expert advice, SMEs can implement tax-efficient schemes such as EMI (Enterprise Management Incentives), which help attract and retain talent without placing unnecessary strain on the business.Proper advice ensures the scheme is structured to meet both HMRC requirements and the company’s long-term growth strategy.
Q: What type of Employee Share Scheme Advice does HMRC recommend?
A: HMRC does not provide direct business consultancy, but it sets out strict rules for approved share schemes such as EMI, CSOP, SIP, and SAYE. The right Employee Share Scheme Advice helps businesses interpret HMRC guidance, ensuring their chosen scheme qualifies for the available tax reliefs.Professional advice is essential to design and implement a compliant plan that takes full advantage of HMRC-approved benefits while avoiding pitfalls that could lead to unexpected tax liabilities.
Q: Can Employee Share Scheme Advice reduce tax liabilities?
A: Yes. Tailored Employee Share Scheme Advice can significantly reduce tax liabilities for both employers and employees. For example, EMI schemes allow gains to be taxed under Capital Gains Tax rather than Income Tax, often at a much lower rate.Employers may also benefit from corporation tax relief on the costs of providing the scheme. Without proper advice, businesses risk missing out on these reliefs or inadvertently triggering higher tax charges.

📞 Contact Us for Personalised Share Scheme Advice.

Employee Share Schemes