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Original poster

Uc and share scheme please help!

14 replies

Cubic · 02/07/2025 10:08

Hi, dh has been offered shares at work instead of salary increase if he takes on a new role. The shares are offered at 27.5p, he will pay 1p and owe te company 26.5p per share. He can buy upto £100 worth. He can only sell them when he leaves the organisation. For the first three years if he leaves he will only be able to get back the 1p value (£100).

There hasn't been a calculation of market value since somebody left few years ago. The shares won't be worth what they were then.

Does anyone know how this works with uc please or where i can find info? For the first three years will they be classed as being worth 1p or£100 capital or will they be worth market value if so how do we find that out please?

We don't have much savings so at present not over the £6000.

I've asked on the journal but they haven't replied. Tried cab too but they're not sure.

I'd really appreciate any help please even if it's just sign posting to where I could find out.

OP posts:
Bromptotoo · 02/07/2025 11:10

Universal Credit would use the market value of the shares for purposes of capital calculations.

Is there actually a market for them though? If he's not allowed to sell them, or would only get a nugatory amount, it's arguable the market value is nil or next to nil.

Original poster
Cubic · 02/07/2025 11:32

Bromptotoo · 02/07/2025 11:10

Universal Credit would use the market value of the shares for purposes of capital calculations.

Is there actually a market for them though? If he's not allowed to sell them, or would only get a nugatory amount, it's arguable the market value is nil or next to nil.

Thank you, how would we show that to uc please?

I don't think there is a market. You can only buy them if they are offered to you and the company isn't doing very well atm.... hopefully it will do regardless of the shares but for £100 if we can buy them I'd take te gamble.

OP posts:
Loveduppenguin · 02/07/2025 15:14

To be honest…I wouldnt bother.

Original poster
Cubic · 02/07/2025 15:38

Loveduppenguin · 02/07/2025 15:14

To be honest…I wouldnt bother.

Sorry, do you mean wouldn't bother to tell them or buy them please?

OP posts:
Loveduppenguin · 02/07/2025 15:40

Cubic · 02/07/2025 15:38

Sorry, do you mean wouldn't bother to tell them or buy them please?

Show quote history

Wouldn’t bother to buy them, if the company is doing well, that’s precisely why they want people to plough money into them to be honest. So it probably won’t work… you won’t make anything from it it’s only £100. I know that seems like an insignificant man to take a gamble on. But I wouldn’t see the benefit for you in this.

Original poster
Cubic · 02/07/2025 16:13

Loveduppenguin · 02/07/2025 15:40

Wouldn’t bother to buy them, if the company is doing well, that’s precisely why they want people to plough money into them to be honest. So it probably won’t work… you won’t make anything from it it’s only £100. I know that seems like an insignificant man to take a gamble on. But I wouldn’t see the benefit for you in this.

Show quote history

Thank you for your honesty with this.

OP posts:
OhamIreally · 03/07/2025 04:59

Agreed it’s not worth bothering. He should push for a salary increase. The shares are just “jam tomorrow”.

simsbustinoutmimi · 03/07/2025 05:01

Wouldn’t bother putting money into shares. I would push for a salary increase instead.

Loveduppenguin · 03/07/2025 07:48

The company I work for gives us 8% of salary worth of shares each year so quite a few thousand at least. It also gives us a 4.5-5% pay rise each year.

our shares are tax free if we leave them in for three years, would this be the case for him? To be honest, even if it was tax-free after three years…100 quid is not that much.

DoristheBoris · 03/07/2025 07:54

Worthless shares in place of a salary increase for a new role? Nah. I would be looking to be salaried appropriately.

Bromptotoo · 03/07/2025 08:29

Is there even an intuitive feel for what the market value of these shares might be?

yeesh · 03/07/2025 08:32

Owning shares while claiming UC is going to cause you more trouble than they are worth. He should ask for a payrise instead.

AirborneElephant · 07/07/2025 13:38

Are these options rather than shares? Ie what he is actually doing is paying 1p to buy the option to buy a share in the company for 26.5p? If so it could be worthwhile if the company does really well. He would have 10,000 options, so if the shares went up to say £1 they would be worth £10,000 and he would have to pay £2650, so a gain of £7350. These are quite common in start-ups, the hope is the company will sell for many multiples of the current price.

If they are options they are only chargeable to tax when they vest - in other words when he becomes able to sell them. I’m not sure when they would start counting as capital for savings purposes but it could well be the same as until then he has no access to or rights to the money. You’d have to ask a specialist.

Original poster
Cubic · 07/07/2025 16:21

AirborneElephant · 07/07/2025 13:38

Are these options rather than shares? Ie what he is actually doing is paying 1p to buy the option to buy a share in the company for 26.5p? If so it could be worthwhile if the company does really well. He would have 10,000 options, so if the shares went up to say £1 they would be worth £10,000 and he would have to pay £2650, so a gain of £7350. These are quite common in start-ups, the hope is the company will sell for many multiples of the current price.

If they are options they are only chargeable to tax when they vest - in other words when he becomes able to sell them. I’m not sure when they would start counting as capital for savings purposes but it could well be the same as until then he has no access to or rights to the money. You’d have to ask a specialist.

Thank you very much for this.

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