If your business has issued shares, share options or other securities to employees or directors during the 2024/25 tax year, don’t forget — you’ll need to report these to HMRC by 6 July 2025.
This deadline applies whether the shares were part of a tax-advantaged scheme or not, and it’s the same date as the deadline for submitting P11D forms for employee benefits.
What needs to be reported?
If you’ve given or transferred shares, securities or options to employees or directors — including under any formal employee share schemes — you’ll need to complete an Employment-Related Securities (ERS) return.
You’ll also need to report any relevant events such as:
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Granting share options
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Share acquisitions or disposals
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Exercises of share options
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Restricted or convertible shares
Which schemes are included?
There are specific HMRC spreadsheet templates for each of the four tax-advantaged employee share schemes:
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Company Share Option Plan (CSOP)
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Enterprise Management Incentives (EMI)
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Save As You Earn (SAYE)
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Share Incentive Plans (SIP)
You’ll also need to use a separate template to report any non-tax-advantaged arrangements, such as one-off share awards or bespoke schemes.
Templates must be completed and submitted online via the HMRC ERS service. If nothing has happened during the year, a nil return may still be required for registered schemes.
How we can help
At A&C Chartered Accountants, we can support you with:
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Preparing and submitting your ERS annual return
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Understanding your reporting obligations
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Valuing the securities issued, where needed
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Ensuring compliance with HMRC guidelines
We know this area can be complex — especially for start-ups or growing businesses using share schemes to reward and retain talent. We’re here to make the process straightforward and stress-free.
Don’t leave it to the last minute
The deadline might seem a while away, but getting your ERS reporting sorted early helps avoid errors and penalties — and gives you peace of mind.
If you’d like help pulling your return together, just get in touch with your client manager or drop us a message.
Let’s get it done right, on time.