For Meta employees and alumni
Planning for Meta employees, ready for the year a notice arrives.
Meta’s recent reductions reached strong performers, and its severance description ends RSU vesting on the last day on payroll. Add a trading policy that closes the window for the last two weeks of every vest month, and the plan writes itself: a reserve that assumes RSU income can stop, a sell schedule that fits the open windows, and a benefits stack used in full.
The situation
Variable pay, fixed windows
Meta reported a global workforce of 78,865 employees at December 31, 2025, with headquarters in Menlo Park. It announced performance-based cuts of about 5% of staff in January 2025, reduced its Reality Labs unit by about a tenth in January 2026, and in May 2026 notified about 8,000 employees, roughly 10% of the company, in a restructuring it tied to its AI investments, as reported by Fortune, CNBC, and NPR. Its annual report describes U.S. severance as including severance pay, remaining paid time off, restricted stock unit vesting through the last day on payroll, and certain continuing healthcare coverage. The planning consequence is simple: at Meta, RSU income is variable pay, and a strong review is not an exemption.
Selling is the only tool for reducing the position. Meta’s insider trading policy, filed with its annual report, bars hedging and pledging of its stock and closes trading for everyone it covers from market close on the last day of February, May, August, and November until market open on the second full trading day after that quarter’s earnings. RSUs vest around the 15th of those same months, so each vest leaves about two weeks to sell before the window shuts. Restricted Persons pre-clear and trade within five trading days of approval; designated persons trade only through a 10b5-1 plan, which under Meta’s policy waits 90 days after signing and runs at most two years.
The benefits stack is narrower than at some peers and carries more weight in one place. Meta’s annual report describes its share-based compensation as restricted stock units alone and mentions no employee stock purchase plan, so the 401(k) does the rest of the saving. For 2026 the elective deferral limit is $24,500, the catch-up is $8,000 from age 50 and $11,250 at ages 60 to 63, and total additions can reach $72,000. Whether Meta’s plan accepts after-tax contributions and converts them to Roth is answered by the summary plan description, since Meta files no Form 11-K.
Why it’s complex
Five Meta-specific decisions that compound
A cash reserve that assumes the RSUs stop
The severance description ends vesting on the last day on payroll, so the budget that survives a notice runs on salary alone, with RSU income funding goals and the reserve rather than fixed costs. We size the reserve in months and hold it outside META, so a notice in a closed month never forces a sale.
Financial planningSelling on a schedule, because hedging is off the table
Meta’s policy bars collars, forward sales, swaps, exchange funds, margin, and pledging on its stock, so diversifying means selling. Restricted Persons trade within five trading days of pre-clearance; designated persons trade only through a 10b5-1 plan, which under Meta’s policy waits 90 days after signing and runs at most two years.
Equity compensation and concentrated stockRSUs: four vest dates a year
Meta RSUs vest quarterly over four years on a February 15, May 15, August 15, and November 15 cycle, with a new refresher each March that was reported smaller in 2025 and again in 2026. Each vest is taxed as wages that day at flat withholding rates, so the plan tracks every open grant and trues up the tax after each date.
The full RSU guideThe benefits stack around the RSUs
With no ESPP, the 401(k) does the rest of the work. The 2026 deferral limit is $24,500 and total additions can reach $72,000; whether the plan accepts after-tax contributions and converts them to Roth is answered by the plan document, and worth asking in your first year.
Tax planningMenlo Park to Texas
California taxes RSU income by the share of workdays spent there between grant and vest, so a move mid-grant leaves a California tail on each remaining tranche. Once you are a genuine nonresident, gains on a later sale are not California’s, and Texas has no personal income tax.
Planning in AustinHypothetical illustration
What a mid-year exit does to a year of vesting income
Hypothetical illustration in round numbers, not a projection. Assume an employee whose open grants deliver $195,000 of vesting income in 2026, split evenly across the four vest dates at $48,750 each, and a separation agreement that follows the annual report’s description: RSU vesting through the last day on payroll, and nothing after. Share price held constant.
| Last day on payroll | Vest dates inside the paid period | 2026 vesting income received | Assumed in the budget, not received |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employed through December 31 | All four | $195,000 | $0 |
| November 20 | February 15, May 15, August 15, November 15 | $195,000 | $0 |
| August 1 | February 15, May 15 | $97,500 | $97,500 |
| March 31 | February 15 | $48,750 | $146,250 |
| February 1 | None | $0 | $195,000 |
Two dates drive the outcome, the last day on payroll and the next vest date, and a few weeks between them can be worth a full tranche. That is why the reserve is sized in months of a salary-only budget, and why severance pay, itself a supplemental wage withheld at the same flat rates as a vest, is treated as runway rather than windfall.
Sources: Meta 2026 proxy statement (quarterly vesting); Meta Insider Trading Policy, Exhibit 19.1; Meta 10b5-1 Trading Plan Policy, Exhibit 19.2; Meta 2025 Form 10-K. Terms vary by award; your grant agreements and plan documents govern.
Our approach
A plan built for the notice and the window
We start with two calendars: the vest dates and open windows on one side, and on the other the months a salary-only budget can run without RSU income. Then we set the rules before either calendar tests them.
Size the reserve
Months of a salary-only budget, held outside META, so a notice in any month is survivable without a forced sale in a closed window.
Set the sell rule
Decide in advance what share of each tranche is sold, what is kept, and which cash need it funds, so the decision is not remade every February.
Execute and true up
Trade inside the window or through a 10b5-1 plan, then reset withholding or estimated payments for the gap the 22% rate leaves.
Work the dates
Last day on payroll, the tranches that vest before it, the health coverage bridge, and the tax year the severance lands in.
The work
What you’ll work through with us
- A cash reserve and a salary-only budget that survive a layoff notice
- A separation-agreement read: the last day on payroll, the tranches inside it, and the tax year of the severance
- An equity map: every open grant, vest date, and tranche through 2030
- A written sell rule for each quarterly vest, sized against how much META the household holds
- 10b5-1 plan design around the 90-day wait and the two-year limit
- The withholding gap: 22% federal and California’s wage treatment against your real bracket
- 401(k) elections, including after-tax and Roth choices if the plan allows them
- Charitable gifts of appreciated shares, coordinated with your CPA
- California-to-Texas sourcing and residency, if a move is on the table
Planning at the firm is led by Theo Halbardier, CFP®, CIMA®, CAIA®, the firm’s founder. We are fee-only: no commissions, no product sales. About Theo
Questions
Common questions from Meta employees
Are you affiliated with or endorsed by Meta?
No. The Financial Sciences Company is an independent, fee-only registered investment adviser. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Meta Platforms, Inc. or its plan administrators. We work from Meta’s public SEC filings and, with your permission, your own grant and plan statements.
How should I budget around Meta RSU income?
As variable pay. Meta’s recent reductions reached employees with strong reviews, and the annual report’s severance description stops RSU vesting on the last day on payroll. We build the fixed budget on salary, direct RSU income to goals and the reserve, and re-run the vesting pipeline each March when the refresher letter arrives, setting the plan to the smaller figure.
How do Meta’s closed trading periods affect when I can sell?
The policy closes trading for everyone it covers from market close on the last day of February, May, August, and November until market open on the second full trading day after that quarter’s earnings, and RSUs vest around the 15th of those months, so each vest leaves about two weeks to sell. The vest itself and Meta’s share withholding are outside the policy; any sale of the shares you receive is inside it. A 10b5-1 plan adopted in an open window and past Meta’s 90-day wait can sell through closed periods.
Can I use a collar, a prepaid forward, or an exchange fund to reduce my META exposure?
Not while the insider trading policy covers you. It prohibits puts, calls, collars, forward sale contracts, equity swaps, exchange funds, and other arrangements designed to hedge Meta stock, and it bars holding the shares on margin or pledging them for a loan. After you leave, those tools may become available, each with its own costs, fees, and eligibility limits.
What happens to unvested RSUs if I am laid off?
Meta’s annual report describes U.S. severance as including RSU vesting through the last day on payroll, alongside severance pay, unused paid time off, and continued healthcare coverage. Tranches dated after that day are not part of that description. Your own separation agreement governs, so read it before signing and note which vest dates fall inside the paid period.
If I move to Texas, does California still tax my RSUs?
Partly. Under FTB Publication 1004, California taxes the wage income from a vest to the extent you worked in California between the grant date and the vesting date, so grants that were open when you moved carry a California share until they finish vesting. Gains on a later sale by a genuine nonresident are not California’s, and Texas has no personal income tax. Residency is judged on your closest connections, so the move needs a file behind it.
Does Meta have an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP)?
No. Meta’s annual report describes its share-based compensation as restricted stock units only and mentions no employee stock purchase plan, so Meta stock arrives only through vesting RSUs. The 401(k) does the rest of the saving work; Meta files no Form 11-K, so the match formula and any after-tax option come from the summary plan description rather than public sources. Bring it to the first meeting.
Reviewed by Theo Halbardier, CFP® · Updated September 2026 · Figures current for 2026
Bring your grant summary.
The first conversation is 30 minutes, by video. A recent equity statement helps, but no preparation is needed.
We work with clients across California from our base in Texas, meeting by video.
Meet with usMeta and its logo are trademarks of Meta Platforms, Inc. The Financial Sciences Company is an independent, fee-only registered investment adviser and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Meta Platforms, Inc. Plan details summarized here come from public sources and may change; your plan documents govern. IMPORTANT CONSUMER INFORMATION: The Financial Sciences Company, LLC is a registered investment adviser with the Texas State Securities Board. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. We may transact business in California only if we are registered there or are excluded or exempt from registration. We do not provide individualized, personalized investment advice to California residents for compensation until we have first complied with California’s requirements or confirmed that an exemption applies. We do not maintain an office in California. For information about our registration status or disciplinary history, contact your state securities regulator or visit adviserinfo.sec.gov. This page is general education, not individualized advice.