Nats dangle tax sweetener for startup employees

Tax problems can stop startup employees from taking skin in the game. (Image: Unsplash)

Fri, 15 Sep 2023

New National party policy to end so-called "ESOP angst" among employees of companies taking options in lieu of salary was likely to be “very popular in the tech space,” Mark Clare, principal at Wellington investment advisory firm Clare Capital, says.National’s tech sector policy, published Friday, identifies the tax treatment of employee share option plans (ESOPs) in startup companies as "one of the major challenges they face in attracting and retaining early employees”.“This is because taxing option...

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