Approved vs non-approved share save scheme + capital gains tax

leafy211

I wondered if there is any easy way to tell if a sharesave scheme was approved or not?  I cant spot anything on any of the certificates unfortunately, but the company is a large multinational.
I also wondered if i have read correctly somewhere, that shares purchased before 2003 (or sometime around then) are not liable for capital gains tax.  Or maybe that is wishful thinking! 
Any guidance on these two points would be very much appreciated. 

Notepad_Phil

No idea on your first question other than to ask your HR department.

As to CGT unfortunately there is no such date where shares bought before it are not liable - e.g. https://www.gov.uk/capital-gains-tax/market-value says that assets owned before April 1982 use the market price of 31 March 1981.

leafy211

Darn re no CGT on old sharesave scheme shares (purchased 1997) :-). Thanks for the link, thats very much appreciated.
Ahh ok re approved/non-approved .. I left the company 20 years ago, but will see if they are able to advise. 
Thanks for your response Notepad_Phil, its been very appreciated.

leafy211

Ive just looked at the link and it seems to mention something about not paying CGT on sharesave shares unless valued over £50k when purchased .. which mine most definitely werent! :-). Or am i reading too little into this too I wonder ..

Employee shareholder shares

To be an employee shareholder, you must own shares in your employer’s company that were worth at least £2,000 when you got them.

You will not usually pay Income Tax or National Insurance on the first £2,000 worth of employee shareholder shares you get before 1 December 2016.

You will not get tax relief if you or someone you’re connected with (like a business partner, spouse or family member) have 25% or more voting rights in the company.

When you become an employee shareholder your employer must pay for an independent expert to give advice about the terms and effects of the employee shareholder agreement. This advice not count as a taxable benefit.

Selling your shares

You might not pay Capital Gains Tax when you sell shares. It depends on when you signed your employee shareholder agreement.

Before 17 March 2016

You only pay Capital Gains Tax on shares that were worth over £50,000 when you got them.

From 17 March 2016

You only pay Capital Gains Tax on gains over £100,000 that you make during your lifetime. The ‘gain’ is the profit you make when you sell shares that have increased in value.

Dead_keen

Sharesave and exempt employee shareholder shares are very different things.  If you saved monthly with a bank or building society then it will be sharesave.  If you were given some free shares and had to chat with a lawyer about giving up some of your employment rights it will be exempt employee shareholder shares.

With a sharesave there is an exemption from income tax when you exercise your option.  But you still pay CGT when you sell them.

leafy211

ahh okey dokey .. definitely sharesave though i think the employee chipped in some free shares too.  But I dont recall them being in exchange for employment rights, so CGT unavoidable by the looks of things.  Thanks so much for the clarification. 

leafy211

the employer chipped in some shares . apols for the typo above