Choosing how to spend and save can be difficult. At Kingfisher, we want to give you the options to manage your money in the way that works best for you.

If you've decided to join one of our share plans, but you're not sure which one's best for you, here's an overview of the key facts.

In the UK, you can choose to join ShareBuild, ShareSave – or both!

 
Plan Overview
How it works

Make contributions every month. The next month, that money is used to buy you shares. You can change how much you invest – or whether you invest – at any time.

You can sell your shares at any time, too – but if you wait 5 years before selling them, you won't have to pay any tax.

Save a set amount every month for 3 or 5 years. You can then either take back your savings in full, or use them to buy shares.

But these are shares with a difference… At the start of the savings period, we offer you a 20% discount on the market price of the shares at the time. This is known as the 'option price'.

3 or 5 years later, you can make use of this 20% discount, plus any increase in the share price over that time!

Joining

Any time

Once a year, typically October

Eligibility

Min. 3 months service.

Min. 3 months service before the invitation to join.

Amount

£10 - £150 per month, up to 10% of monthly salary.

£5 - £250 per month, towards the 3 and / or the 5 year savings term each year you're invited to join, subject to a maximum of £500 per month across all ShareSave Plans you're contributing to at any one time.

Deductions

Taken from your salary before tax, so you may pay less tax.

Taken from your salary after tax.

Contribution period

Flexible – join or leave the plan, or change your contribution amount, at any time.

Save every month for 3 or 5 years. You can:

  • take a break of up to 12 months
  • leave and get your savings back
Share purchase

Your contributions are used to buy your shares every month, at the current market price. Become a shareholder from the start!

At the end of the 3 or 5 year saving period, you have 6 months to decide whether to:

  • take back your savings, or
  • buy the shares at the 20% discounted option price (no matter what the actual share price is at that time).
Dividends
(when paid by Kingfisher)
Voting at AGM
Tax Advantages
  • Taken from your salary before tax, so you pay less income tax.
  • Hold the shares with us for 5 years, and you don't pay tax when you take or sell them.
  • Keep your shares in the ShareBuild trust, and you don't have to pay capital gains tax when you sell them.

If you choose to buy the shares (exercise your options), there's no income tax on any profit you make (the difference between the option price and the market price). So if you sell your shares immediately, there's no income tax to pay at all.

The profit you make may be subject to Capital Gains Tax (CGT). There's a threshold amount, set by the UK treasury; any profit above the threshold will be subject to CGT.

Bonus

Complete a (3 and/or 5 year) savings period and get a tax-free bonus. This has been reintroduced by HMRC for 2023. Going forward, these rates are subject to change. Bonus rates haven't existed for plans since 2014 and do not apply to any plans joined pre-2023.

If you leave before your savings period ends, you won't be entitled to a bonus but, if you've been in ShareSave at least one year, you might receive some interest (2023 plan).

Taking a break or leaving the plan
Take a break

Stop, start, or change your contribution amount at any time.

Take a break of up to 12 months. This time will be added to the end of your saving period, so you can still save the full amount.

Leaving the plan

Leave at any time and sell your shares. You may need to pay tax on shares you've held for less than 5 years.

You can't access shares bought with dividends for 3 years.

You can leave the plan and take all your savings back at any time. You'll need to wait until the next enrolment window to join again.

Leaving Kingfisher
Good Leavers

You're classified as a 'good leaver' if your leave because of:

  • Redundancy
  • Retirement
  • Injury or disability
  • Your employing company leaving Kingfisher
  • Death in Service

These are the rules set out by HMRC.

What it means for you

Sell your shares, or transfer them into your own name. You won't have to pay income tax or National Insurance. You'll need to do this within one month. Otherwise, your shares will be moved to the ShareStore.

You can either:

  • Take all your savings back, or
  • Buy shares at the option price with the money you've saved so far.
  • Continue saving and take your savings back together with any applicable bonus at the end of the plan. You can see if a bonus is applicable by checking your Enrolment Task for the relevant plan in your Library on EquatePlus, or through the 'More' button in EquateMobile.

You'll need to do this within 6 months of leaving. In that time, you can also make up to 6 additional payments.

If you don't decide within 6 months, you can still request a full refund of your savings.

Other leavers

Leaving Kingfisher for any other reason, including:

  • Resignation
  • Dismissal
What it means for you

Sell your shares or transfer them into your own name. You may need to pay income tax and National Insurance on any shares you've had for less than 5 years. You may also need to pay tax on dividend shares you've had for less than 3 years.

You'll need to do this within one month. Otherwise, the plan administrator will sell enough shares to cover any income tax and National Insurance you owe, and move any remaining shares to the ShareStore.

You can either:

  • Take all your savings back when you leave Kingfisher, or
  • Continue saving and take your savings back together with any applicable bonus at the end of the plan. You can see if a bonus is applicable by checking your Enrolment Task for the relevant plan in your Library on EquatePlus, or through the 'More' button in EquateMobile.

If you leave less than three years after joining the plan, you can't use your savings to buy shares.

If you leave more than 3 years after joining the plan, you can buy shares with the money you've saved so far. You'll need to do this within 6 months of leaving Kingfisher. In that time, you can make up to 6 additional payments. Please note – you can't buy shares if you've been dismissed for misconduct.

  You can find out more about the plans, including frequently asked questions (FAQs) and explanations for some useful words and phrases (Glossary of Terms).
 
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