Founder equity · Free calculator
83(b) Election Deadline & Tax Savings Calculator.
Find your IRS filing deadline and estimate how an 83(b) election could affect your taxes.
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ASection A
Find your filing deadline
Answer a few questions. The deadline appears instantly, with weekend and holiday adjustments applied.
Form 15620 covers substantially nonvested property. Fully vested shares generally need no 83(b) election.
The actual date property was transferred to you — not incorporation, grant approval, or vesting start.
Your last day to file on time
Enter your transfer date to see the deadline, including weekend and holiday adjustments under IRC §7503.
Ready to file your 83(b) election?
IRS Form 15620 can be filed electronically or on paper. Either route is complete only when the IRS has it (or it's postmarked) within the 30-day window.
Can you file online? Check your share details.
Optional. The IRS online form was last reported (October 2025) to accept per-share values to 4 decimal places and up to 99,999,999.99 securities — limits subject to verification. Enter your exact figures; nothing is rounded.
File online
IRS online Form 15620. Save the IRS confirmation and a copy of the submitted form with your permanent tax records.
File by mail
Download the official Form 15620 PDF, sign it, and mail it to the IRS office where you file your return. Keep a copy and evidence of timely mailing — USPS certified mail with return receipt is the standard.
After filing
- Give a copy to the company (and any other required recipient, such as a transferee).
- Keep the confirmation or mailing receipt with the signed election.
- Tell your tax preparer — the amounts flow into your return for the year of transfer.
BSection B · optional
Estimate your tax impact
Compare estimated federal taxes with and without the election. Both paths use the same future values and sale assumptions.
Your shares
Tax rate assumptions
Federal, 0–100%. 37% is the top bracket for 2026.
Federal, 0–100%. 20% is the top bracket; 15% applies to most.
Estimated tax impact · federalIllustrative · example figures
These results use the labeled example scenario, not your shares. Replace the figures on the left to see your own estimate.
Estimated taxes with 83(b)
$199,980
$0 at transfer · $199,980 on sale
Estimated taxes without 83(b)
$242,463
$92,463 at vesting · $150,000 on sale
Potential difference under the example assumptions
$42,483
Estimated savings with the election (example)
Why the difference
With the election you report $0 of compensation income now — nothing, because you paid full value. Without it, $249,900 is treated as compensation as the shares vest and taxed at 37%. The election converts that difference into capital gain taxed at 20% on sale, and starts your holding period at transfer.
| When tax is recognized | With 83(b) | Without |
|---|---|---|
| At transferCompensation income $0 · ordinary rates | $0 | $0 |
| During vestingCompensation income $249,900 as shares vest | $0 | $92,463 |
| On saleGain $999,900 vs $750,000 · long-term rates | $199,980 | $150,000 |
| Total estimated tax | $199,980 | $242,463 |
- CheckRisk to weigh: if the shares fall in value or are forfeited after you elect, the tax you paid on the initial income is not refunded, and the forfeited income generally cannot be deducted — only what you actually paid for the shares is a loss.
- NoteNo QSBS exclusion is applied. If the shares qualify under Section 1202, part or all of the gain on sale could be excluded (50/75/100% after 3/4/5 years for stock acquired after July 4, 2025).
- NoteYour purchase price equals or exceeds the fair market value at transfer, so the election itself reports $0 of income and $0 of tax today.
Inputs
With the election
Without the election
Assumptions
Quick mode assumes a single vesting date one year after transfer and a sale more than a year after vesting, so gains are long-term in both scenarios. Income is never negative (if you paid at least FMV, no compensation income arises). Capital losses are counted as $0 tax.
Not included in these figures: any QSBS (Section 1202) exclusion, alternative minimum tax, the 3.8% net investment income tax, Social Security and Medicare taxes on compensation, loss limitations, and state taxes. This is a planning estimate under example assumptions — not tax advice, and not a prediction that your shares will appreciate.
This calculator provides estimates for planning purposes. It does not file an election, and it is not legal or tax advice. Deadline and tax rules must be confirmed against your own documents and a qualified advisor before you rely on them.
Common questions
The 83(b) election, answered
A one-page notice to the IRS saying you'd like to be taxed on restricted shares now, at their value on the day you received them, instead of later as they vest. For founders who pay fair market value on day one, that usually means reporting little or no income today — and treating all future growth as capital gain, with the holding period starting immediately.
On the date the shares are actually transferred to you — the stock purchase or exercise date, not the day the company was formed, the board approved the grant, or vesting started. The election must be filed within 30 calendar days after that date. Day zero is the transfer date itself.
Yes. Under IRC §7503, when the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday — including those observed in Washington, D.C., such as Emancipation Day — filing on the next day that isn't one of those is treated as timely. The calculator applies this rule for you. Treat it as a safety net, not a plan: file early.
The election is unavailable for those shares. There is no extension and no late-filing fix. You'd be taxed as the shares vest, at ordinary rates, on whatever they're worth then. Some founders and companies restructure — for example, cancelling and re-issuing shares — but that has its own tax and legal consequences and needs advice, not a form.
Yes, mainly through timing. The election starts your capital gains holding period — and the Section 1202 (QSBS) clock — on the transfer date rather than at each vesting date. For qualifying stock acquired after July 4, 2025, the 2025 tax law provides potential federal gain exclusions of 50% after three years, 75% after four, and 100% after five; stock acquired before that date generally remains under the prior five-year regime. The election doesn't make shares QSBS by itself — the company still has to meet the C corporation, gross-asset, and active-business tests. The calculator flags QSBS as context and does not apply any exclusion to its figures; when projected gains are large, that omission can be the biggest number on the page.
Founder equity decisions can affect your taxes for years.
An 83(b) election is only one piece of startup tax planning. Talara helps founders navigate equity compensation, QSBS, and ongoing corporate tax compliance.