With the change to the employee share scheme (ESS) legislation on 1 July 2009 and the obligation being imposed on employers to report to employees and to the Australian Taxation Office, regarding ESS awards, it could be hoped that employers have their house in order.
It seems, however, that there are employers (particularly smaller employers) who have still not reviewed their share or option plans to understand how they are affected by the new rules. Employers are also making mistakes on amounts reported on ESS statements which can lead to employees paying tax on the wrong amounts.
This event focused on what should be done to comply with the new employee share scheme rules in reviewing existing plans, when preparing ESS statements or when preparing employee tax returns. Some consideration was also given to what is now "common practice' when putting together a share or option plan.