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How to report sale of Employee Stock Purchase Plan shares on taxes (NOT options)?

Last year I participated in my employer's stock purchase plan. This is NOT a stock option, just simply buying a set amount of stock via regular payroll deduction. I did sell some of this stock last year and I'm not sure what date to put as "date acquired" on my taxes since I acquired it...well, gradually. Any helpful info is appreciated.

Public Comments

1. You will put various on the date acquired. When you figure the basis it is first in first out. This means the basis for the stock that you sell is what the cost was for the first stock that you purchased. Keep a record of the ones that you sell so when you sell more you will be able to figure the cost. Christine- EA Master Tax Adviser Check out my profile **This advice was prepared based on our understanding of the tax law in effect at the time it was written as it applies to the facts that you have provided.
2. Unless you can specifically identify the stock sold it is on a first in first out (FIFO) basis. So, you will need to determine if the sale is long term or short term or perhaps both. To do this start with your first purchase and total them until you get to the amount of shares you sold. This will give you your basis in the stock. Next, determine if the total amount of shares was held for more than one year, if not you need two different totals one for more than a year and one for a year or less. When you actually fill out the Schedule D (or enter it into a program) put various into the purchase date. If you are in a low tax bracket and not effected by the cap on capital gains you might just want to claim it all as a short term gain or loss instead of doing the extra accounting work. Hope this helps.