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Financial Planning: Gifts

Articles   (Jump to FAQs)

Gifts: Save On Estate Taxes With Transferable Stock Options  This is premium content

Susan Daley
After you die, taxes may be owed on the value of your property. One pillar of estate planning is to transfer assets that are likely to appreciate in value, such as stock options, out of your control long before you die.

Charitable Remainder Trusts (CRTs) And Your Company Stock (Part 1)  This is premium content

Christopher Cline
The charitable remainder trust (CRT) is a mainstay of estate planning. Although designed for charitable giving, CRTs can play a role in financial planning for your stock grants.

The Radical Philanthropist

Quentin Hardy
Forbes, 5/1/00
Pierre Omidyar invented eBay and made billions of dollars. That turned out to be the easy part. Read how he and others who became rich from their companies' stock options during the 1990s want to give their money away and reinvent charity in the process. They are seeding a number of small causes in a style that has come to be called "venture philanthropy." (Registration is required.)

When Giving Means Getting Back: The Tax Advantages Of Donating Stock

Joan Oleck
BusinessWeek, 4/10/00
How do you donate stock, and what are the rules? What are the tax advantages of a donation? Amazingly, many people with stock options are not very sophisticated in managing their own finances.

Lending A Helping Hand -- With Stocks

Robert Barker
BusinessWeek, 11/15/99
How to be more generous with your charitable contributions by using stock.

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FAQs   (Jump to articles)

What is the tax deduction for donations of my company stock? 

The tax treatment is the same as it is for donations of any stock to a qualified charity. When you have held the stock for more than one year...

UPDATED! What is the tax treatment for gifts of company stock?  This is premium content

It's similar to the tax treatment for any gifts of stock. You may make annual gifts to any number of recipient up to the specified annual amount without any tax impact. Financial advisors often tell clients with substantial stock holding to consider making...

Can stock options be transferred or gifted to people or charities after I get them?  This is premium content

If your plan permits this and these are nonqualified stock options (NQSOs) and not incentive stock options (ISOs), transferable options raise complex issues concerning the valuation of the gift for tax purposes...

Can I put my nonqualified stock options (NQSOs) into a charitable remainder trust (CRT)?  This is premium content

As a general rule, the contribution of the stock options themselves to a CRT is rather...

Can I exercise my stock options, soon thereafter donate the shares to charity, and get a tax deduction for the stock's new higher price?  This is premium content

The charitable market-value deduction is limited to the cost of shares that are not held for more than one year...

Can I donate shares and then immediately buy the same number of shares on the open market?  This is premium content

Yes. You may donate company stock to the charity and simultaneously...

If I exercise my NQSO and immediately donate the shares to charity, do I still need to pay the taxes on the spread at exercise?  This is premium content

Yes. The option exercise and the...

Is the gifting or donation of stock that I acquired from an ISO exercise or ESPP purchase a disqualifying disposition? What is the tax treatment for early sale?  This is premium content

A disqualifying disposition occurs if you sell, transfer, exchange, gift, or donate the stock that you acquired without...

If I gift stock that has met the holding periods for Section 423 ESPPs, what is the tax treatment?  This is premium content

You can gift shares purchased from a qualified Section 423 ESPP after the holding requirements are satisfied without disqualifying consequences. However, you do not completely escape taxation...

When I gift stock from an incentive stock option exercise/hold that triggered AMT, do I get an adjustment for it on my AMT return?  This is premium content

Unlike with a stock sale, gifting ISO stock does not result in an AMT adjustment for the difference...

UPDATED! Do Rule 144 and Section 16 apply to gifts of company stock by senior executives or directors?  This is premium content

Yes, though the gift itself is not subject to Rule 144. However, recipients of shares from "affiliates" stand in the shoes of their donors...

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Featured FAQs
NEW! Are qualified dividends included in the AMT calculation? This is premium content
Qualified dividends do receive special tax treatment when they are part of your net capital gain. The amount of AMT is capped by the...
NEW! Can I sell my company stock through a blind trust as a defense against insider trading? This is premium content
Using a blind trust goes beyond the protections of Rule 10b5-1 plans, yet has more restrictions. These are irrevocable grantor trusts with...
NEW! The value of my restricted stock has fallen since vesting. Should I sell my shares at year-end to get a credit for the income tax I paid at vesting, or to net the loss against capital gains? This is premium content
The vesting and the sale are separate transactions and generate different types of income. Unless you made an 83(b) election to be taxed at grant, you were first taxed on the stock's value at vesting, which created ordinary income to you. With restricted stock units (RSUs), taxation occurs...