Understanding the cost basis for your old Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) in E*TRADE is absolutely crucial for accurate tax reporting and managing your investment gains or losses. Without this vital piece of information, you could end up paying more in taxes than you owe, or worse, facing issues with the IRS. Let's embark on this journey together to demystify RSU cost basis and find those elusive numbers!
How to Find Cost Basis for Old RSUs in E*TRADE: A Step-by-Step Guide
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| How To Find Cost Basis For Old Rsu In Etrade |
Step 1: Engage with Your E*TRADE Account – Your Primary Source!
Before we dive into the nitty-gritty, let's start with the most direct approach. Have you already logged into your ETRADE account recently? If not, that's your first port of call! ETRADE, now part of Morgan Stanley, is generally quite good at providing cost basis information for investments held on their platform, especially for company stock plans like RSUs.
Action Item: Go to the E*TRADE website (us.etrade.com) and log in with your credentials. If you haven't logged in for a while, you might need to reset your password or go through security verification. Don't worry, it's a common and necessary process.
Step 2: Navigate to Your Stock Plan Section
RSUs are typically managed under a dedicated "Stock Plan" or "Equity Compensation" section within your brokerage account. This is where your company's specific RSU grants and vesting schedules are tracked.
Sub-heading 2.1: Locating the Stock Plan Tab Once logged in, look for a prominent tab or menu option like:
"Stock Plans"
"Morgan Stanley at Work Stock Plan Account"
"Equity Compensation"
"Company Stock"
Click on this tab. This will usually lead you to a separate portal or dashboard for your RSU activity.
Sub-heading 2.2: Identifying Your RSU Grants Within the Stock Plan section, you should see a list of your RSU grants. Each grant represents a specific award of RSUs from your employer. They will often be categorized by the grant date.
Pay close attention to the grant dates as you'll likely have multiple grants over your employment period, and each will have its own vesting schedule and associated cost basis.
Step 3: Accessing Historical Transactions and Statements
Tip: Stop when confused — clarity comes with patience.
The core of finding your cost basis lies in reviewing the historical records of your RSU vesting events and any subsequent sales.
Sub-heading 3.1: Checking Your Transaction History Look for options like:
"Activity"
"Transactions"
"History"
"Statements"
Select the relevant time period. Since you're looking for old RSUs, you might need to go back several years. E*TRADE typically allows you to filter by year.
What to look for: You're looking for records of when your RSUs vested. When RSUs vest, the fair market value (FMV) of the shares on that vesting date becomes your cost basis for tax purposes. This is because the value of vested RSUs is considered ordinary income and is reported on your W-2 for that year.
It's crucial to understand: Your cost basis for RSUs is not $0, even if you didn't "buy" them. The value at vesting is what's added to your taxable income, and thus, that becomes your basis.
Sub-heading 3.2: Reviewing Tax Documents (Form 1099-B and Supplemental Statements) E*TRADE provides tax documents annually. These are incredibly important for cost basis information.
Navigate to the "Tax Documents" or "Statements & Documents" section.
Look for Form 1099-B, Proceeds From Broker and Barter Exchange Transactions. This form reports the proceeds from any sales of your stock.
Crucially, also look for any supplemental statements E*TRADE provides alongside your 1099-B, especially for RSUs. Many brokerages initially report a cost basis of $0 on the 1099-B for employer-granted stock like RSUs, as they don't know what was included in your W-2. The supplemental statement is where they often provide the adjusted cost basis that reflects the income you recognized at vesting.
Important Note: If your 1099-B shows a cost basis of $0 for RSU sales, do not panic. This is common. The supplemental statement or your own records of vesting dates and FMV are what you'll use to properly adjust the cost basis when filing your taxes.
Step 4: Reconciling with Your W-2 and Pay Stubs (If Necessary)
For older RSUs, especially if the digital records on E*TRADE are incomplete, you might need to cross-reference with your personal employment records.
Sub-heading 4.1: Reviewing Your W-2 Forms The value of your vested RSUs is typically included in your W-2 as ordinary income for the year they vested.
Find the W-2 forms for the years your RSUs vested.
Look for the amount added to your taxable wages related to your RSU vesting. This amount, divided by the number of shares vested, should align with the fair market value per share on the vesting date.
Sub-heading 4.2: Examining Pay Stubs and Company Communications Sometimes, detailed information about RSU vesting, including the number of shares and the fair market value on the vesting date, can be found on your pay stubs or in specific communications from your company's HR or stock plan administrator.
Dig through your old files (physical or digital) for these documents. They can serve as valuable backup.
Step 5: Calculating or Adjusting Your Cost Basis
Once you have the vesting dates and the fair market value (FMV) on those dates, you can determine your cost basis.
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Sub-heading 5.1: Understanding the RSU Cost Basis Principle For RSUs, your cost basis per share is generally the fair market value (FMV) of the stock on the date it vested. This value was already reported as ordinary income on your W-2.
Example: If 100 shares of RSU vested on January 15, 2018, when the stock price was $50 per share, your cost basis for those 100 shares is $5,000 (100 shares * $50/share).
Sub-heading 5.2: Handling "Sell-to-Cover" Transactions Many companies use a "sell-to-cover" mechanism to automatically withhold shares to cover the taxes due at vesting. Even though you never received those shares, their value at vesting contributes to your reported income and thus their cost basis is established. When these shares are sold to cover taxes, their cost basis is essentially the selling price (the FMV at vesting), resulting in no capital gain or loss on those specific shares.
If E*TRADE's 1099-B or supplemental statement doesn't clearly reflect the adjusted basis for all shares, you'll need to calculate it yourself for tax reporting.
Step 6: When All Else Fails: Contact E*TRADE Support
If you've exhausted all options within your online account and personal records, don't hesitate to reach out to E*TRADE directly.
Tip: Don’t just scroll to the end — the middle counts too.
Sub-heading 6.1: Preparing for the Call Before you call, gather as much information as possible:
Your account number
The approximate grant dates of the RSUs you're inquiring about
Any partial information you've already found
Sub-heading 6.2: Asking for Specific Assistance Clearly explain that you need the cost basis for your old RSU shares that vested on specific dates. Ask if they can provide historical statements or a detailed transaction report that includes vesting details and associated FMV. Be patient, as retrieving very old records might take some time.
10 Related FAQ Questions
How to calculate cost basis for RSUs if I sold immediately after vesting?
If you sold your RSUs immediately after they vested, your cost basis is typically the fair market value (FMV) of the shares on the vesting date. Since you likely sold at or very close to that price, your capital gain or loss will be minimal, if any.
How to adjust cost basis for RSUs on my tax return?
You typically adjust the cost basis on Form 8949 (Sales and Other Dispositions of Capital Assets) when filing your taxes. If your 1099-B reports a $0 basis, you'll report the incorrect basis from the 1099-B in column (e) and then make an adjustment in column (g) with code "B" (for "basis not reported to IRS") to increase it to the fair market value at vesting.
How to find the fair market value (FMV) of my RSUs on their vesting date?
QuickTip: Focus on what feels most relevant.
You can find the FMV on your vesting date by checking your E*TRADE transaction history for the vesting event, reviewing your company's stock plan portal, or by looking up historical stock prices for that specific date on financial websites.
How to handle stock splits or corporate actions when determining RSU cost basis?
Stock splits (or reverse splits) adjust your per-share cost basis but not your total cost basis. If you had a 2-for-1 split, your original per-share cost basis would be halved, and your number of shares would double. E*TRADE usually adjusts this automatically in their reporting.
How to differentiate between RSU vesting and RSU sale on E*TRADE?
Vesting is the event where the restricted units convert into actual shares you own. A sale is when you then decide to sell those owned shares. E*TRADE's activity statements will typically show separate entries for "Vesting" and "Sale."
How to get old E*TRADE statements for RSU history?
You can usually access old statements digitally within your ETRADE account under the "Documents" or "Statements & Documents" section. You might need to select specific years from a dropdown menu. If not available online, contact ETRADE customer service.
QuickTip: Read a little, pause, then continue.
How to avoid double taxation on RSUs?
Avoid double taxation by accurately reporting your cost basis. The value of vested RSUs is taxed as ordinary income on your W-2. When you sell, you only owe capital gains tax on the difference between your selling price and the cost basis (FMV at vesting).
How to determine if my E*TRADE 1099-B includes the adjusted cost basis for RSUs?
Look for a supplemental statement accompanying your 1099-B that specifically addresses RSU or employee stock plan dispositions. This supplemental statement often provides the "adjusted" or "correct" cost basis, which reflects the income already reported on your W-2.
How to use tax software to report RSU sales with an adjusted cost basis?
Most tax software (like TurboTax, H&R Block) will ask if the cost basis was reported to the IRS. If it was reported as $0 or incorrect, you'll typically select an option to "adjust cost basis" and manually enter the correct FMV at vesting, often with a specific code.
How to find RSU information if my company changed stock plan administrators from E*TRADE to another provider?
If your company switched administrators, ETRADE would only have records up to the transfer date. You'll need to contact the new stock plan administrator for information on any RSUs that vested after the transfer. For RSUs vested before the transfer, ETRADE should still have the historical data.
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