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83(b) election template

The short answer

An 83(b) election template with every field explained, a cover letter for the IRS and the checklist that keeps your proof of filing. The deadline is 30 days from the date the stock was transferred.
  • 30 days, no extensions, no fix afterwards
  • The cover letter that gets you a stamped receipt
  • What to keep, because the IRS sends no confirmation
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See it before you download it

Preview of the 83(b) election template, marked SAMPLE
Both pages of the 83(b) election pack. The download has no watermark.

What you get

PDF: the election, a cover letter and the filing checklist
  • The electionevery line with a plain-English note on what goes in it
  • Cover letterthe request for a stamped receipt back from the IRS
  • Checklistsigned in time, certified mail, receipt kept, copy to the company
  • What it doestaxed on today's value instead of the value as it vests

Get the 83(b) pack

The election, the cover letter and the checklist arrive by email, and you can download them here now.

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The rules that matter

30 days from the transfer

Not from when you signed, not from when you remembered. A weekend or a holiday deadline does not move, and a late election cannot be fixed.

It applies to restricted stock

Founder stock with a repurchase right, and early-exercised options. Ordinary unvested options need no election because there is nothing yet to elect on.

Certified mail, return receipt

The IRS does not confirm receipt. Your certified mail receipt and the stamped copy are the only evidence you filed, so keep them with the signed election.

Form 15620 is the alternative

The IRS has its own form for making the election. Either the form or a statement like this one works, as long as it carries the required information and is filed in time.

What happens if you miss it

Tax as it vests

You owe ordinary income tax on the spread as each tranche vests, at whatever the shares are worth then. On a company that does well, that is tax on gains you cannot sell.

The clock restarts

Long-term capital gains treatment runs from vesting instead of from the transfer, so a sale a year after the grant may be short-term.

No retroactive fix

There is no late election. The only paths afterwards involve counsel and are neither cheap nor certain.

Questions

When is the 83(b) deadline?+

30 days from the date the property was transferred to you, which for founder stock is usually the date you bought it. The IRS does not grant extensions and a missed election cannot be filed late.

Do I need an 83(b) for stock options?+

Not for ordinary unvested options. You need one if you early exercise, because then you hold restricted stock, and you need one for restricted stock awards.

Where do I mail it?+

To the IRS service center where you file your personal federal return. Send it by certified mail with return receipt requested, and keep the receipt.

Does Capable file it for me?+

Capable pre-fills the election from the grant, counts down the 30 days and reminds the holder until it is marked filed. The filing itself is the taxpayer's, and we are not tax advisers.

Keep reading

Keep it right after the download

Import what you have and Capable reconciles it against your own file before anything is saved. 14-day free trial, no card, unlimited stakeholders.

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