If I receive stock shares for free, do I need to report them as income? If so, which form?

[CMB67]

If I receive shares from my company but the shares are not publicly traded and cannot be publicly traded per the by-laws of the company do I have to pay taxes when I receive them?  

[hendra-widjaya]

Robinhood gives me 3 free stocks in 2021. They are not reported in 1099, based on this thread, it must be reported in other income section using the actual $ value on the day when stocks were received. My question is, do I need to report these stocks individually or combined (total 3 stocks amount)? If the answer was the latter, when I sell this stock, how can I prove what the cost basis was? Thank you.

[ThomasM125]

You can combine them into one entry. Keep documentation supporting your calculation of the amount you entered as income on your tax return as support for the cost basis you will enter when you sell the securities.