2026 update on filing the 83(b) election
The current filing and proof rules for an 83(b) election, including the IRS's official Form 15620. The 30-day clock has not budged.
Restricted stock · Strategies
What has actually changed about filing an 83(b) election, and what has not? The thing people hope changed, the 30-day deadline, has not moved. The thing that changed is the paperwork: the IRS now offers an official form for the election, Form 15620, alongside the written statement founders have always used. Useful to know, but it does not loosen the clock by a single day.
What is the same
The core rules are the ones founders have always lived with.
The 30-day window is unchanged
You still have 30 days from the date the stock is transferred to you, and there is still no general procedure to file late. This is the rule that the whole 83(b) decision revolves around.
You still file it with the IRS, with proof
The election still goes to the IRS service center where you file your return, with a copy generally going to your company. Whether you use the new Form 15620 or a written statement, treat it as a real filing with tracked proof, not an afterthought.
Proof of timely mailing still matters most
Because a late election usually cannot be saved, the evidence that you mailed it inside the window is the thing that protects you. Keep it.
What is new
The notable development is the IRS’s official form for the 83(b) election, Form 15620, so you no longer have to write the statement from scratch. The form is genuinely helpful, since the old letter approach let people leave out a required field and not realize it. The filing checklist shows those required fields, and Form 15620 mostly just turns that same checklist into boxes. A written statement is still accepted.
Check the current method before you file
Because the paperwork is the part that has been shifting, the safest move is to follow the IRS’s current instructions for filing the 83(b) election, whether you use Form 15620 or a written statement and however it is sent, and keep proof you filed on time. The 30-day window is firm either way.
Why the form does not change the strategy
A cleaner form is a convenience, not a reprieve. The reason 83(b) is high-leverage has nothing to do with the paperwork and everything to do with timing: filing inside 30 days lets you be taxed on near-zero value now and turn future growth into capital gain instead of ordinary income. A better form makes the filing slightly less error-prone. It does not change why you file or when.
The failure mode is also unchanged. People still miss the deadline, and a friendlier form will not rescue an election that went out on day 31.
What this means for you
If you are filing in 2026, do two things. Confirm the current method, because a form may now be the expected route rather than a freeform letter, and confirm the address and proof requirements against live IRS guidance. Then ignore the noise about the paperwork and respect the one thing that has not changed: the clock. Start the filing checklist the same week you get your stock, and if the numbers could ever be large, get a fast read before the 30 days run out.
More in Restricted stock
- A founder's restricted stock, start to exit →
- How restricted stock is taxed (and how 83(b) flips it) →
- How to file an 83(b) election, step by step →
- Missing the 30-day 83(b) deadline (and skipping it on purpose) →
- Restricted stock awards (RSAs): the complete guide →
- Should you file an 83(b) election? The decision and the breakeven →
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