Laid off with unvested RSUs: the 90-day checklist for Indian employees

Layoffs at US tech companies have continued through 2025 and into 2026. If you're an Indian employee at Google, Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, or any of the other US multinationals that have been cutting headcount — and you have RSUs — the next 90 days are when most of the financial damage either happens or gets avoided.

This is the checklist.

Before you sign anything

The single most important rule: do not sign the severance agreement on the day you receive it.

Almost every company gives you time — typically 21 days under US law (longer for employees over 40). Use it. The document you sign determines what you keep, what you waive, and what negotiation leverage you had.

What to check before signing:

• Last vest date vs. last day of employment: if your next vest is in 3–6 weeks, ask to negotiate your official termination date to fall after it. Many companies say no. Some say yes. It costs you nothing to ask.
• Severance equity acceleration clause: does the package include any additional RSU vesting beyond your last date? This varies by company and seniority. It's negotiable.
• Post-termination window: once you're terminated, how long do you have to sell or transfer vested shares? Most RSU plans allow 90–180 days; some allow longer. Confirm with HR.
• Release of claims: you're typically releasing legal claims against the company. Understand what you're releasing, especially if you believe the termination was wrongful.

Day 1–7: the immediate actions

Confirm your vested RSU count

Log into your equity platform — E*Trade, Fidelity NetBenefits, Morgan Stanley StockPlan Connect, or Rovia. Get a precise count of:

• Shares already vested and in your account
• Shares with a vest date before your last working day (these vest; you keep them)
• Shares with a vest date after your last working day (these cancel unless there's acceleration)

Download the transaction history. You'll need it for ITR-2 filing.

Understand your perquisite tax on the last vest

If any RSUs vest on or before your last day, they're taxed as perquisite income. Your employer withholds tax (TDS) at the time of vest. The shares deposited into your account are post-tax shares.

Confirm with your HR/payroll team:

• Was TDS correctly deducted on the last vest?
• Will you receive Form 16 including the perquisite amount?
• What was the SBI TTBR rate used for the perquisite calculation?

The perquisite amount = (FMV on vest date in USD × SBI TTBR rate on vest date) × number of shares vested. This is the cost basis for your capital gains calculation later.

Update your brokerage account details

Once your employment ends, your employer-linked equity platform account stays open but becomes a "retail" account. Some platforms force you to migrate:

• E*Trade: continues as-is; employment link is removed
• Fidelity NetBenefits: you may need to move to a Fidelity retail brokerage account
• Morgan Stanley / Rovia: check plan terms; typically migrates to personal account
• Shareworks / Solium: similar migration process

Update your address and contact details immediately. Outdated details mean you miss important notices.

Day 8–30: negotiations and decisions

Negotiate equity acceleration

If the company offers severance, acceleration of unvested RSUs is the most valuable thing you can ask for beyond base salary continuation.

What to ask:

Frame it as: "Given my contributions to [project/team], I'd like to discuss equity treatment in the severance package."

Decide whether to hold or sell immediately

You now have vested shares from your former employer sitting in your account. Three things changed:

1. No more information advantage: you no longer work there
2. No new grants coming: this is the full position you'll ever have
3. Concentration risk: the stock may represent a large share of your net worth

For most Indian employees in the current market: the right answer is a planned sell-down over 6–12 months, not an immediate panic sale or a decision to hold everything indefinitely.

The plan: if you have shares that have been held >24 months from vest, they qualify for LTCG at 12.5%. Calculate how much you can sell at LTCG rates. Sell those first. For shares held <24 months, weigh STCG (slab rate, likely 30%) against your expected holding period.

Consider the income timing

If your layoff happens mid-year, your total income for FY 2026-27 drops significantly (no salary from the layoff date). If you were planning to harvest RSU gains, this is the year to do it — lower total income may reduce your slab-rate liability on any STCG.

Run the numbers before year-end. A financial year with 6 months of salary instead of 12 may put you in a different tax slab.

Day 31–60: compliance setup

Schedule FA

You are required to file Schedule FA in ITR-2 for every year in which you held any foreign asset at any point during the calendar year (January 1–December 31). Layoff doesn't change this obligation.

If you still hold the vested shares after your layoff, Schedule FA disclosure continues. If you've sold all shares, you still need to file Schedule FA for the calendar year in which you held them (up to the sale date).

The Schedule FA step-by-step guide covers exactly what to disclose and which fields to fill.

Form 16 and tax reconciliation

After your last payroll, you'll receive a revised Form 16 from your employer. It should include:

• Regular salary (up to last day)
• Perquisite value of RSUs that vested
• TDS deducted on both

Check this carefully. If the perquisite amount looks wrong (wrong exchange rate, wrong share count), flag it immediately with HR. A wrong Form 16 means a wrong ITR — and a wrong ITR means a notice.

Advance tax planning

If you've already sold RSU shares in the current financial year and have capital gains, check your advance tax liability. Advance tax is due on 15 September, 15 December, and 15 March.

Capital gains you realise after a layoff don't have TDS (the employer already withheld on the perquisite at vest). You're responsible for paying advance tax on the capital gain yourself.

Miss the deadline and Section 234C interest applies at 1% per month.

Day 61–90: post-layoff portfolio restructuring

Bring the concentration down

Former employer stock should not be your largest holding 90 days after the layoff. Set a target: no more than 15–20% of investable assets in any single stock.

Sell plan: divide into tranches based on tax efficiency.

Repatriate or redeploy

Once you sell, the USD proceeds sit in your former-employer brokerage. Two options:

1. Redeploy in the same brokerage: buy broad US ETFs (VTI, VOO, CSPX) to maintain dollar exposure without single-stock risk
2. Repatriate to India: SWIFT inward transfer to your NRE or resident savings account; no TCS on inbound transfers; capital gains tax already applicable

The repatriation guide covers the mechanics in detail: How to repatriate US stock sale proceeds to India.

W-8BEN status

Your W-8BEN with the old employer's broker remains valid for 3 years unless your circumstances change. If you're still a resident Indian, no action needed. If you're moving abroad or your residency status changes, update it.

The thing most people get wrong

The most common mistake after a layoff is paralysis. People don't read the severance agreement carefully, don't negotiate, don't update brokerage details, and don't think about tax timing — and then discover 18 months later that they left ₹20–30 lakh on the table.

The second most common mistake is panic-selling everything at STCG rates when patience of 3–6 months would have qualified the same shares for LTCG.

Both are fixable. They're just easier to fix if you act in the first 90 days.

Summary checklist

Before signing severance:

• Check last vest date vs. last day of employment
• Ask for equity acceleration in severance
• Understand post-termination window for share sales

Day 1–7:

• Download transaction history from equity platform
• Confirm perquisite TDS on last vest
• Update brokerage account details

Day 8–30:

• Negotiate severance terms if applicable
• Identify which shares are LTCG-eligible (>24 months)
• Model capital gains in a lower-income year

Day 31–60:

• Confirm Schedule FA obligations for the year
• Review Form 16 for accuracy
• Check advance tax deadlines

Day 61–90:

• Sell down concentration per tax-efficient tranche plan
• Decide: redeploy in USD or repatriate to India
• Set calendar reminder for next Schedule FA deadline