Changes to the capital gains inclusion rate and the employee stock option deduction rate (as proposed in Budget 2024) will apply to stock options exercised and shares sold on or after 25 June 2024. The new measure reduces the stock option deduction and capital gains tax exemption from 1/2 of the taxable amount to 1/3 of the taxable amount, if an individual’s annual combined limit of CAD 250,000 has been exceeded. The individual taxpayer can choose how to allocate the preferential tax treatment between the stock option income and capital gains to the extent the combined limit has been exceeded.

Vietnam is becoming an increasingly important market for talent, and we have witnessed growing demand for the offering of share-based awards to employees in Vietnam in recent years. Due to currency control restrictions imposed by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), including the requirement that each plan be registered with the SBV, it has traditionally been challenging to implement a share plan in Vietnam. Since the adoption of Circular 10 in 2016, the SBV registration process has been clarified and a growing number of companies have successfully registered their plans with the SBV.

Our matrix summarizes the key issues for employee share and cash awards and covers tax, securities, exchange control, labor law and data privacy considerations for such awards in 50 countries.