20th June 2024There’s less than a month to go until the share plan reporting deadline

Employers who grant or award their UK employees or directors with equity or share incentives will likely need to submit an annual return to HMRC by 6 July.

Reportable transactions are far reaching and include not only share options and awards, but also disposals for more than market value, awards of securities and share exchanges.

There are different returns to complete depending upon the share plan that is in operation. These are:

• Company Share Option Plan
• Enterprise Management Incentives
• Save As You Earn
• Share Incentive Plan
• Other Employment Related Securities schemes

Avoid the penalties!

The relevant share plan return must be submitted to HMRC by 6 July following the end of the tax year in question. If submitted late, the employer will be subject to an automatic penalty of £100.

Further penalties of £300 will arise if the return remains outstanding for 3 months and 6 months from the original deadline.

HMRC also has the discretion to issue daily penalties of £10 per day if the return is over 9 months late.

There is also a £5,000 penalty for any returns that are submitted including material inaccuracies that are careless or not corrected without delay.

Four tips for completing your return

1. Seek professional advice – Given the wide scope of reportable events it is easy to overlook certain transactions. Professional guidance should prevent anything being missed.
2. Don’t leave it too late – Registering a share plan takes time and leaving it too late could result in penalties.
3. Submit nil returns – If an employer has an open scheme in place, then it is required to submit nil returns for years where no reportable events arise until the scheme is closed. Without submitting the employer would be subject to late filing penalties.
4. Make sure to submit all the required information – HMRC has imposed changes to the form for the year ended 5 April 2024, meaning that additional information is required to complete the return.

How we can help

HW Fisher has extensive experience assisting companies with their share plan reporting. We work with companies to identify reportable transactions and complete the necessary returns.

We can also review historic filings to ensure they are accurate and where necessary assist in bringing errors up to date. Contact Neil Maslen today for more information.