How should rsu sale be entered to reflect a portion traded for taxes a day after vest (and incurred a short term loss in that 1 day)? Loss not accounted for in result.

[scott_nellenbach]

See different behavior in premier 2017 rsu calc vs 2016.

[maglib · Accepted solution]

the income on vest from the sale should already be reflected in your w-2.  Your only loss should be the trading costs normally or minor lags. Your cost basis is the proceeds you recognized as income, your gain/loss should be that with only minor fluctuations for lags and trading costs.  You can recognize that by reporting the sale of the stock .  Many don't even send you a 1099B these days, if you got a 1099B, it must be reported. You don't need to enter them in the RSU section. You can just enter the trade as if you did a normal sale of stock.  The only issue is if you got a 1099B the cost basis is inaccurate, it normally will reflect $0.  The cost basis is the fair market value number used by your employer tassociated with the vesting of the shares reflected on your w-2.

Enter each trade as it was reported to you on the 1099-B (Again note that you often do not get a 1099-B which in the interview you can say no 1099B.  If you did get a 1099-B, enter the 1099-B exactly as it reads even if they reported $0 basis.  This is important.T  Check the box next to "This sale involves an employee stock plan (including ESPP) or an uncommon situation."  Click  "Start Now" button that shows up and then check something like  "Add More Details or Edit" "My 1099-B has info I know isn't right, or it has extra info I need to add."  That will allow you to add the missing amount of basis for that trade  there should be a box "CORRECTED COST BASIS"  where you will enter the w-2 earnings basis plus any trading costs and also minor lag price fluctuations if any.  The 8949 should then only reflect minor losses and income will not be double reported. 

I hope this was helpful. Please comment with any additional questions.

[TomYoung]

I assume by your statement, "See different behavior in premier 2017 rsu calc vs 2016", what you are referring to here is TurboTax's RSU step-by-step interview. 

Although it's been TurboTax's practice to change the "Stocks, Mutual Funds, Bonds, Other" interview EVERY SINGLE YEAR - sowing confusion among users - it seemed that this year TurboTax didn't change a thing in this area from 2016 to 2017.  Just to be sure I fired up 2016 TT and 2017 TT and did a side-by-side "test" sale of some stock acquired via an RSU.  I can confirm that as far as the RSU step-by-step interview is concerned, TurboTax changed nothing in this interview from last year.

I answer lots of questions in here about stock sales, particularly stock sales of employer stock.  My general recommendation is to not use the RSU step by step interview.   There's no "income tax reporting" reason to do so in the sense that you need to tell the IRS "this stock was acquired via an RSU."

I assume what's happened here is that you've received a 1099-B for this sale of stock "for taxes".  My recommendation it to simply report it as a sale of plain-vanilla "stock", correcting the basis of the stock which almost certainly is being reported on the 1099-B as $0.  Enter the 1099-B and then correct the basis.  Click on the "I'll enter additional info on my own" blue button.  On the next page enter the correct basis in the "Corrected cost basis" box.  The correct basis is (number of shares sold) x (correct per share basis, which included the compensation per share)

TurboTax will report the sale on Form 8949 "as reported by the broker" but will put an adjustment figure into column (g) of the Form, a code "B" into column (f) of the Form, and the correct amount of gain or loss which includes the adjustment.

Tom Young

NOTE: TURBOTAX CHANGES THE SECURITY SALES INTERVIEW JUST ABOUT EVERY SINGLE YEAR.  THE INSTRUCTIONS ON "HOW TO FIX" THE BASIS REFLECT THE STATE OF THE INTERVIEW FOR TAX YEARS 2016 AND 2017.