(3)     For the purposes of this section –

‘broad-based employee share plan’ of an employer means a plan in terms of which –

(a)     equity shares in that employer, or in a company that is an associated institution as defined in the Seventh Schedule in relation to the employer are acquired by employees of that employer;

[Paragraph (a) substituted by section 10(1)(b) of Act 60 of 2008, by section 9 of Act 17 of 2017 and by section 7 of Act 34 of 2019]

(b)     employees who participate in any other equity scheme of that employer or of a company that is an associated institution as defined in the Seventh Schedule in relation to that employer are not entitled to participate and where at least 80 per cent of all other employees who are employed by that employer on a permanent basis on the date of grant (and who have continuously been so employed on a full-time basis for at least one year) are entitled to participate;

(c)     the employees who acquire the equity shares as contemplated in paragraph (a) are entitled to all dividends and foreign dividends and full voting rights in relation to those equity shares; and

(d)     no restrictions have been imposed in respect of the disposal of those equity shares, other than –

(i)      a restriction imposed by legislation;

(ii)     a right of any person to acquire those equity shares from the employee or former employee who acquired the equity shares as contemplated in paragraph (a) –

(aa)   in the case where the employee or former employee is or was guilty of misconduct or poor performance, at the lower of market value on the date of grant or the market value on the date of acquisition by that employer; or

(bb)   in any other case, at market value on the date of acquisition by that person; or

(iii)    a restriction in terms of which the employee or former employee who acquired the equity shares as contemplated in paragraph (a) may not dispose of those equity shares for a period, which may not extend beyond five years from the date of grant;

“date of grant” in relation to an equity share means the date on which the granting of that equity share is approved by the directors of the employer company or some other person or body of persons with comparable authority;

‘gain’ in relation to the disposal by a person of a qualifying equity share or a right or interest in a qualifying equity share, means the amount by which any amount received by or accrued to that person from that disposal exceeds the consideration given by him or her for that qualifying equity share, right or interest (otherwise than in the form of services rendered or to be rendered or anything done or to be done or not to be done);

‘market value’ in relation to an equity share means the price which could be obtained upon the sale of that equity share between a willing buyer and a willing seller dealing freely at arm’s length in an open market and without having regard to any restrictions imposed in respect of that equity share;

‘qualifying equity share’ in relation to a person means an equity share acquired in a year of assessment in terms of a broad-based employee share plan, where the market value of all equity shares (as determined on the relevant date of grant of each equity share and excluding the market value of any qualifying equity share acquired in the circumstances contemplated in subsection (2A)), which were acquired by that person in terms of that plan in that year and the four immediately preceding years of assessment, does not in aggregate exceed R50 000.