For individual investors out there dabbling in publicly traded stock options for the first time, you need to know how these securities get taxed. For the uninitiated, lets start with some definitions. A call option, on the other hand, gives the holder the right to buy a security at a set price. As a holder, you can acquire your option either by paying a premium to a writer for a newly issued option or by purchasing an existing option on the open market.

If you hold options, they will either: If your option expires, you have obviously sustained a capital loss — usually short term because you held the option for one year or less. But if it was held longer, you have a long-term capital loss. If you exercise a put option by selling stock to the writer at the designated price, deduct the option cost the premium plus any transaction costs from the proceeds of your sale.

Your capital gain or loss is long term or short term depending on how long you owned the underlying stock.

Enter the gain or loss on Form , just as you would for any stock sale.

If you exercise a call option by buying stock from the writer at the designated price, add the option cost to the price paid for the shares.

This becomes your tax basis. When you sell, you will have a short-term or long-term capital gain or loss depending on how long you hold the stock.

Tax Treatment For Call & Put Options | Investopedia

That means that your holding period is reset when you exercise the option. If you sell your option, things are simple. You have a capital gain or loss that is either short term or long term, depending on your holding period. As mentioned, option writers receive premiums for their efforts. The receipt of the premium has no tax consequences for you, the option writer, until the option: When a put or call option expires, you treat the premium payment as a short-term capital gain realized on the expiration date.

This is true even if the duration of the option exceeds 12 months. Report it on Part I of Form as follows: If you wrote the option in the year before it expires, there are no tax consequences in the earlier year.

How stock options are taxed - MarketWatch

If you write a put option that gets exercised meaning you have to buy the stock , reduce the tax basis of the shares you acquire by the premium you received.

Again, your holding period starts the day after you acquire the shares.

If a LEAP option is purchased and held for more than 12 months, is the tax treatment long term?

If you write a call option that gets exercised meaning you sell the stock , add the premium to the sales proceeds. Your gain or loss is short term or long term, depending on how long you held the shares. With a closing transaction, your economic obligation under the option you wrote is offset by purchasing an equivalent option. For example, say you write a put option for 1, shares of XYZ Corp. You now have both an obligation to buy under the put option you wrote and an offsetting right to sell under the put option you bought.

For tax purposes, the purchase of the offsetting option is a closing transaction because it effectively cancels the option you wrote. Your capital gain or loss is short term by definition. The amount is the difference between the premium you received for writing the option and the premium you paid to enter into the closing transaction. Report the gain or loss in the tax year you make the closing transaction.

For purposes of deducting losses from options, the preceding rules apply to so-called naked options. Say the put option expires near the end of the year. Any excess loss is deferred until the year you sell the stock. See IRS Publication at www. This advertisement is provided by Bankrate, which compiles rate data from more than 4, financial institutions. Bankrate is paid by financial institutions whenever users click on display advertisements or on rate table listings enhanced with features like logos, navigation links, and toll free numbers.

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Tax Treatment of Selling Put Options - Budgeting Money

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My MarketWatch Watchlist Alerts Games Log In. Home Personal Finance Taxes Tax Guy Get email alerts. How stock options are taxed. Now for the tax rules. Option holders If you hold options, they will either: Option writers As mentioned, option writers receive premiums for their efforts.

Straddles For purposes of deducting losses from options, the preceding rules apply to so-called naked options. Related Topics Taxes Tax Credits Capital Gains Tax Income Tax Property Taxes. Powered by This advertisement is provided by Bankrate, which compiles rate data from more than 4, financial institutions. Other News From Our Partners.

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