What is Save As You Earn (SAYE) or Sharesave?

SAYE, also known as Sharesave, is a tax-advantaged all-employee share option plan. Employees are granted options over shares and enter into a savings contract of three or five years, saving up to £500 a month.

At the end of the savings period they can either use their savings to buy the shares at the price fixed at the outset, or simply take their savings back. That optionality makes it a very low-risk plan from the employee’s point of view. It is most popular with larger, listed companies and does require partnership with a bank to hold employee savings.