A tech employee holds Rs 2.4 crore of restricted stock units in his US-listed employer, vesting quarterly. Set a sell-on-vest rule and show the currency and tax points at vest and at sale.

Sell each lot as it vests and redeploy the proceeds. Every vest is Rs 30 lakh of salary, taxed at about Rs 11.7 lakh whether he holds or sells. Selling at once makes the capital gain close to zero and moves Rs 18.3 lakh a quarter, about Rs 146 lakh in two years, out of the company that already pays his salary. Holding adds a currency exposure and a second tax point at sale.

Ask the question the other way round. If Qorvane paid Vikrant Rs 18.3 lakh of cash bonus this quarter, would he use all of it to buy Qorvane shares? Almost nobody says yes. A vested share is economically the same as cash he has been paid and then used to buy his employer's stock, so holding it is an active choice to make that purchase. And his salary, bonus and future grants already depend on Qorvane doing well; holding the shares too puts his income and his savings on the same bet, like a shopkeeper whose savings are all in his own shop.

At vest, the market value of the shares is a salary perquisite. Each lot is 300 shares at $125 and Rs 80, Rs 30 lakh, taxed at an illustrative 39%, about Rs 11.7 lakh. Employers usually sell about 117 shares to cover it, leaving 183 shares worth Rs 18.3 lakh. That tax is owed on the value at vest, even if the shares fall the next day, which is why holding after vest adds risk without saving any tax. The value at vest also becomes his cost for capital gains.

If he sells on the vest date, sale price equals cost and the capital gain is close to nil. If he holds, two things move: the dollar price and the rupee. Indian tax sees only rupees, so a flat dollar price with a weaker rupee still produces a taxable gain. Holding 183 shares while the rupee moves from 80 to 84 creates a gain of about Rs 0.92 lakh with no change in the share price. The reverse is just as possible. Foreign shares also have their own holding period for long-term treatment and must be reported as foreign assets in his return; confirm both, and the exchange rate the rules require, with his tax adviser.

Simple enough to run without a decision each quarter: on every vest date, sell all remaining shares after tax and move the proceeds to his diversified portfolio. A standing rule takes the emotion out of each vest, which matters most in the quarters when the stock has just risen and holding feels clever. If he wants some exposure beyond what his future grants give him, cap it, say 10% of his liquid wealth, and keep only the shares above that cap for sale. Check the company's trading window and any insider trading rules before each sale. The limit: selling gives up any rise in Qorvane, and he should expect to feel that in a good year.