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Do I need to pay tax on the StarBucks share option scheme after selling??

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stonecold | 22:27 Wed 14th Nov 2012 | Business & Finance
6 Answers
Hi! i work in Starbucks and i have an employee share option scheme. Every year in the middle of november i can excise and sell my shares. I want to sell my shares, but worying about tax implications because Starbucks is USA company and i'm a permanent residence in UK so little confused how tax implication apply on me. My question is if i sell my shares do i need to pay tax? do i need to inform my employee Starbucksthat i sold it or whether i'm exempt from tax due to employee stock option scheme?
Thanks for your help!
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I would suggest that you take some advice from Starbucks,who appear to be experts in not paying tax in the UK.
Just read all about them in the national press in the last 7 days.
That is a good bit of satire that I also thought of mentioning when I saw the question but i decided it didn't really help the original poster as it was not relevant. Employees of Starbucks do pay tax in the same way as any other employee here does.
I don't immediately know the answer but I'm sure the answer can be found either from the HMRC site or from the Starbucks HR department. There is probably also some reference to tax issues on the share documents that stonecold received
I am pretty sure that you don't need to tell Starbucks (they are your shares, not theirs) but that there will be tax implications on any profit. Ask your tax office.
Any sale of shares at a price above that which they were bought (or exercised) is counted by HMRC as a capital gain. As such, it is potentially liable to capital gains tax but each individual gets an allowance of about £10k each year on which no CGT is payable. The fact that these are USA-traded shares does not (as far as I am aware) change this. It is the net GAIN, not the value of the sale that is key.

Unless you have other shares or investments (and it seems unlikely that you do from your question) or unless the gain made is exceptional, you have no tax to pay, however you must complete a tax return to declare the transaction. For this reason you should contact your local office of HMRC, as Boxtops advises.
Oh God havent Abers heard of Capital Gains Tax ?
My take on this (without charge) is that CGT would be payable but it is probably zero. You aren't a director are you ? Oh and it would be payable in the UK

anyway google capital gains tax employee share options

and the first three are:

Employee share and security schemes and Capital Gains Tax
www.hmrc.gov.uk/helpsheets/hs287.pdf
File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Quick View
company, you may also need Helpsheet 284 Shares and Capital Gains Tax, which explains the ... acquired by exercising an employee share option. Finance Act ...
Tax and National Insurance on employee share schemes
www.hmrc.gov.uk/working/bens-shares-tips/shar
eschemes.htm

Jump to Company Share Option Plan‎: An approved Company Share Option Plan gives you a right ... to pay Capital Gains Tax when you sell the shares.
HM Revenue & Customs: Tax on the sale of shares
www.hmrc.gov.uk › Tax on savings and investments
Jump to Special rules for working out gains on shares‎: Shares through an employee share scheme. Special Capital Gains Tax rules apply to shares bought or ... You Earn schemes, Company Share Option Plans and Enterprise ..
Err.........yes, Peter.

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