Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 September 2025
333. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Finance if he plans to extend the life of the Key Employment Engagement Programme which is scheduled to finish in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51925/25]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the Key Employee Engagement Programme, or KEEP, is a is a tax efficient share option scheme and is designed to facilitate the use of share-based remuneration by unquoted SME companies to attract and retain key employees.
Under KEEP, employees are given an option to acquire shares at a future date, at a fixed price. Employees who exercise KEEP options are exempt from a liability to IT, USC and PRSI on any gain arising. CGT is due on any gains arising from the subsequent disposal of shares acquired.
As with other share-based remuneration schemes, shares awarded through KEEP are exempt from employer PRSI.
KEEP is currently scheduled to expire on 31 December 2025.
The Deputy should note, that as KEEP is a notified State Aid, any amendment or extension to KEEP requires European Commission approval.
Finally, and as the Deputy will appreciate, it is a longstanding practice that the Minister for Finance does not comment, in advance of the Budget, on any tax matters that might be the subject of Budget decisions.
