Employees at some organisations, particularly many startups, may be eligible for stock options as non-cash remuneration.
Employee Stock Ownership Plans, or ESOPs, were first launched in India and have since become popular in the country. Companies utilize it as a strategy to sell stock in the firm to employees, allowing them to take on a modest stake in the company’s ownership. Employee stock ownership plans benefit firms provide to their workers. These plans entitle workers to various rights, the first of which is the right to buy stocks in the company at a fixed price at the end of a specified period. Secondly, it aids the employer in retaining the company and ensuring a high level of productivity in the workplace. The Employee Stock Ownership Plan is governed by Section 62(1)(b) of the Company Law of 2013: https://www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf and the SEBI Guidelines from 1999. SEBI provided new recommendations in 2015 after modifying them in 2014.
What Is the Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP)?
As an element of the Employee Stock Option Plan scheme tailored for private enterprises, a company motivates its staff members to acquire company shares as a form of remuneration. The price at which these shares are offered to employees is far lower than the price currently on the market. In addition to the goal of providing benefits to employees, employee stock ownership plans are designed to bring the interests of employees and shareholders close together.
The employee stock option plan is a contractual agreement that offers employees the right, but not the responsibility, to purchase or subscribe to a defined number of firm shares at a fixed price, such as the exercise price. There is no change in the exercise price even if future market prices increase. Since employees are also owners of the company, it is expected that they would pay more attention to the financial results and expansion of the business, which will raise the share price.
Taxes on Employee Stock Option Plan
The taxation of employee stock option plans in India has been subject to ongoing reform. ESOPs were taxed as a perquisite in the hands of employees on the difference between the stock’s FMV on the date of vesting and the exercise price. As a result, ESOPs created in conformity with the mandated ESOPs Guidelines received favorable treatment in tax law. Such qualified ESOPs are subject to taxation only when the shares are sold.
There are two scenarios in which an individual is required to pay income tax:
- If ESOPs are being exercised: If an employee receives money as a benefit, it is considered a perk of their job. To compute income, the employer must deduct TDS from the fair market value of each stock and divide it by the market value of that share.
- When selling ESOPs : Employee stock ownership plans or ESOPs produce capital gains for shareholders. The employee will have a capital gain equal to the difference between the price at which the asset was sold and the value at which it was initially issued to the worker. In the year when the ESOP was sold, investors were required to make the tax payment.
- Long Term: The long-term capital gains tax rate is 20% if the employee has held onto the ESOPs for more than 36 months, equivalent to three years, from the purchase date.
- Short Term: The short-term capital gains tax rate is 10% and applies when the ESOPs were held for less than 36 months or three years from the date of acquisition.
How Employee Stock Options Affect the EPS
Employee stock options allow their owners to purchase shares at a specified price at any time during a predetermined period. When options are issued, the stock’s current market value, or “strike,” is typically used as the buying price. The right to execute the options may vest all at once, or it could happen in stages over the first few years of the grant. In most cases, employee options become worthless if they are not used within the first decade after being granted.
Various methods are available for companies to supply the shares necessary for employees to exercise options. Some businesses use a stockpile of stocks that haven’t even been issued to the general public. Others use earnings to purchase back stock on the market and use them to establish reserves to meet option exercises. Exercising option rights either results in an increase in available shares or a decrease in share price and thus dilutes the value of existing shares.
Per-share or EPS refers to the amount of profit per share of stock held by a publicly-traded company, and it can be measured quarterly or annually. When the overall earnings of a corporation are divided by the outstanding number of shares, earnings per share are calculated. For example, if a corporation had one million shares of the company and 200,000 employee options were exercised, there would be 1.2 million shares of stock.
Employee stock options and convertible securities can dilute an organization’s earnings per share or EPS. As a result, the diluted EPS is favored by many analysts as the more comprehensive figure. The basic EPS of a company is almost always more significant than the diluted EPS of that company. A decrease in earnings per share will likely decrease a company’s stock price. This is because earnings per share highly impact the price of a piece of stock. When dilution is understated, earnings per share are inflated. Stock prices have the potential to be artificially inflated if buyers fail to take into account the dilution of their holdings.
Conclusion
ESOPs are beneficial for both large and small enterprises. Companies use these tools to maintain their workers and talent, while startups utilize similar tools to attract new talent and recruit more employees. After signing a contract, you will only have full access to a company’s proprietary option terms and provisions. It will help if you familiarize yourself with the conditions of your contract. ESOPs contain a schedule for the vesting of option holdings. It also includes the grant value if you use alternatives. The share price is the primary factor that decides when and how options are exercised. It is also essential that you consult with an expert Vakilsearch so that you can acquire a better grasp of all these operations.
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