ASML staff get €20,000 in shares if they stay until 2030

ASML staff will be given a one-off package of shares worth €20,000 each, on condition they stay with the chip machine maker until at least the start of 2030.

The Veldhoven-based company informed its roughly 44,500 employees worldwide by email, according to the Eindhovens Dagblad. Staff will not be able to sell the shares before January 1 2030, and other conditions are still being worked out.

The package is a token of appreciation for staff efforts, “but above all for the work that will be needed in the coming years”, a spokesperson told broadcaster NOS.

The gesture comes days after ASML raised its full-year forecast for the second time this year, reporting second-quarter profits of €2.9 billion on sales of €9.3 billion as AI-driven demand continues to outpace expectations.

It also follows a turbulent start to the year for the workforce. In January, ASML said it would cut 1,700 jobs, mainly in the Netherlands, despite record 2025 results. In June, the company agreed with unions that there would be no forced redundancies until at least May 2027.