Section 83(b) Election
Category: Investment · Related form: Section 83(b) statement
An election to include the grant-date spread on substantially nonvested property in income within 30 days of transfer, starting the capital-gains clock earlier and risking forfeiture with no refund of tax paid.
How Section 83(b) Election fits 2026 planning
Section 83(b) Election sits inside capital gains, dividends, wash-sale timing, and surtaxes such as NIIT that sit beside ordinary brackets. For tax year 2026, US Tax Tools treats year-scoped constants (brackets, contribution limits, wage bases, credit schedules) as separate datasets — so explanations of Section 83(b) Election should be read with the same year selected in any linked calculator.
Category focus: Investment. Readers usually land on this page while comparing a paycheck estimate, a credit phaseout, or a retirement contribution room figure that depends on understanding Section 83(b) Election first.
Worked example
Filing 83(b) when FMV equals the purchase price can report little income now and convert later appreciation to capital gain.
Treat the example as a teaching sketch, not a filing position. Change filing status, state residency, or mid-year events and the same definition of Section 83(b) Election can produce a different cash outcome even when the glossary text stays the same.
What to watch for
Definitions of Section 83(b) Election can differ slightly across IRS publications, SSA rules, Marketplace subsidy worksheets, and state agencies. When two programs both say “income,” confirm which modification rules apply — MAGI for one credit is not always MAGI for another.
Legislation and inflation adjustments can move the dollar thresholds around Section 83(b) Election without renaming the concept. Prefer the effective date on the primary source (Rev. Proc., SSA notice, USDA table, or state DOR bulletin) over any blog summary — including this one if a later notice supersedes it.
On a filed return, Section 83(b) Election most often surfaces around Section 83(b) statement. Read the official IRS instructions for that form for the tax year you are filing — glossary pages summarize concepts; they do not replace line-by-line worksheets.
Next step
When you are ready to model numbers, open the Section 83(b) Election related calculator on US Tax Tools. Engines keep tax-year datasets separate so a 2025 habit does not silently reuse a 2026 constant.
Related reading: Tax insights for longer 2026 explainers, Methodology for how engines store cents and traces, and Disclaimer for educational-use limits.