As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 30, 2016

Registration No. 333-            

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

FORTIVE CORPORATION

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

6920 Seaway Blvd

Everett, WA 98203

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip code)

FORTIVE CORPORATION RETIREMENT SAVINGS PLAN

FORTIVE CORPORATION UNION RETIREMENT SAVINGS PLAN

(Full title of the plans)

Copy to:

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Registration Statement on Form S-8 is being filed by Fortive Corporation (the “Registrant,” “Fortive,” “us,” “our,” or “we”) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) for the purpose of registering an indeterminate number of plan interests pursuant to the Fortive Corporation Retirement Savings Plan and the Fortive Corporation Union Retirement Savings Plan (collectively, the “Plans”) and 5,000,000 shares of Fortive’s Common Stock, $0.01 par value per share (the “Common Stock”), to be issued pursuant to the Plans.

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PART I

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS

The documents containing the information specified in Part I will be sent or given to employees and other participants in the Plans as specified by Rule 428(b)(1) under the Securities Act. In accordance with the instructions to Part I of Form S-8, such documents will not be filed with the Commission either as part of this Registration Statement or as prospectuses or prospectus supplements pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act. These documents and the documents incorporated by reference pursuant to Item 3 of Part II of this Registration Statement, taken together, constitute a prospectus that meets the requirements of Section 10(a) of the Securities Act.

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PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

Item. 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference

The following documents filed by us with the Commission (File Number 001-37654) are hereby incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement:

In addition, all documents filed by the Registrant with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, subsequent to the date of this Registration Statement and prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement which indicates that all securities offered have been sold or which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents. Any statement contained in any document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement contained herein, or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein, modifies or supersedes such statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this Registration Statement.

Item 4. Description of Securities

Not applicable

Item 5. Interests of Named Expert and Counsel

The validity of the securities has been passed upon by Daniel B. Kim, our Associate General Counsel. Mr. Kim will be eligible to participate in the Plans.

Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers

Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”) permits a corporation to indemnify any person who is or has been a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation or who is or has been serving as director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise at the request of the corporation, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines, penalties, and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred in connection with any civil, criminal, administrative or investigative action, suit or proceeding (other than an action by or in the right of the corporation) in which such person is involved by reason of the fact that he or she served or is serving in these capacities, if such person acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interest of the corporation and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful. In the case of an action or suit made or brought by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor, the corporation shall not indemnify such person in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person has been adjudged to be liable to the corporation, except for such expenses as the court may allow. To the extent that such person has been successful on the merits or otherwise in defending any such action, suit or proceeding referred to above or any claim, issue or matter therein, he or she is entitled to indemnification for expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection therewith.

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Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL provides that a corporation may eliminate or limit the personal liability of a director to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, provided that such provision shall not eliminate or limit the liability of a director (i) for any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to the corporation or its stockholders, (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (iii) under Section 174 of the DGCL or (iv) for any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit. No such provision shall eliminate or limit the liability of a director for any act or omission occurring prior to the date when such provision becomes effective.

Pursuant to Article VII of its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”) and Article VII of its Amended and Restated Bylaws (the “Bylaws”), the Registrant will indemnify and hold harmless directors and officers who were or are made or are threatened to be made a party or are otherwise involved in any action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law as it presently exists or is amended.

The Registrant has entered into agreements with directors and officers requiring it to indemnify such persons to the fullest extent permitted by the Bylaws. The Registrant also maintains insurance coverage relating to certain liabilities of directors and officers.

The foregoing is only a general summary of certain aspects of the DGCL and our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws dealing with indemnification of directors and officers and does not purport to be complete. It is qualified entirely by reference to the detailed provisions of those sections of the DGCL referenced above and our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws.

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, the Registrant has been informed that in the opinion of the Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is therefore unenforceable.

Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed

Not applicable

Item 8. Exhibits

The following exhibits are filed with this Registration Statement:

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The Plans are intended to be tax qualified plans under the Internal Revenue Code. The Registrant hereby undertakes to submit the Plans to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) in a timely manner and to make all changes required by the IRS in order to maintain the tax qualifications of the Plans.

Item 9. Undertakings

(a) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:

Provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not apply if the Registration Statement is on Form S-8, and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement;

(b) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a new Registration Statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers, and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such

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liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question of whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the city of Everett, Washington, on this 30th day of June, 2016.

POWER OF ATTORNEY

Each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints James A. Lico, his true and lawful attorney-in-fact, with full power of substitution, for him and his name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments (including post-effective amendments) to this Registration Statement, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the Commission, granting unto said attorney-in-fact and agent with full power and authority to do so and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorney-in-fact, or his or their substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this Registration Statement was signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates stated:

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Index to Exhibits

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