An 83(b) election strategy built around Form 15620 means filing a signed Section 83(b) election with the Internal Revenue Service no later than 30 calendar days after Section 83 property transfers to you—now most employees can do that online through the IRS mobile-friendly forms portal using IRS Form 15620, after authenticating with ID.me. You complete the form in the browser, submit electronically (the IRS-preferred path as of July 2025), download the IRS confirmation and filed PDF, furnish a copy to your employer, and retain duplicates for your Form 1040 attachment. Use one channel only—online or Certified Mail—not both for the same transfer.
July 2025IRS electronic Form 15620 submission enabled on mobile-friendly portalVerified against IRS practitioner alerts (Mintz, Goodwin, Sidley) and Form 15620 instructions (April 2025), accessed 15 August 2026.
Strategy and break-even math live in Section 83(b): a strategic tax decision. This page is how to execute Form 15620 online once you and your CPA have locked transfer date, restrictions, and 409A fair market value.
Who should file Form 15620 online (and who should mail)
| Award / fact pattern | Online Form 15620? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Restricted stock at issuance with vesting | Yes—if within 30 days of transfer | Confirm transfer date with Stock Administration in writing |
| Early exercise with unvested shares issued | Often yes | Clock starts at share transfer, not exercise request click |
| Classic RSUs (no stock at grant) | Usually no | See RSU ineligibility guide |
| Penny-par value private stock (e.g. $0.0001/share) | Yes after Oct 2025 portal update | Portal supports four decimal prices per Sidley practitioner testing1 |
| ITIN pending / no SSN | Often mail + cover letter | Portal TIN fields may not fit “Applied for ITIN”—counsel often prefers paper |
Section 83(b) election is your irrevocable choice (once valid) to include restricted property in gross income at transfer instead of at vesting under Section 83(a). Form 15620 is the IRS-published format (April 2025 revision); Treasury Regulation §1.83-2 still governs copies, content, and return attachment.
Can I file Form 15620 online for an 83(b) election?
Yes. As of July 2025 the IRS accepts electronic submission of Form 15620 through the mobile-friendly forms portal after ID.me sign-in. You must still file within 30 calendar days of the Section 83 transfer date, furnish a copy to your employer, and retain confirmation plus a duplicate for your federal return for the transfer year. Do not submit online and by mail for the same transfer.
Step-by-step: file Form 15620 online
Methodology: We walked the published IRS portal entry path, Carta’s August 2025 employee guide, and three law-firm alerts (Goodwin July 2025, Mintz July 2025, Sidley August–October 2025) on 15 August 2026, then ordered steps by dependency (identity before form fields).
Step 1 — Confirm the Section 83 transfer date
Email Stock Administration for the legal transfer date of the property—not your board approval date, Carta exercise click, or offer letter. For restricted stock awards, the clock often starts at certificate issuance. For early exercise, practitioners generally anchor on the date unvested shares are transferred to you.
| Source employees confuse with transfer date | Usually not the clock |
|---|---|
| Grant / board approval email | No |
| Exercise request submitted in portal | No—wait for share issuance |
| RSU “grant date” on award letter | No for classic RSUs |
| Stock certificate / cap-table line dated | Often yes for restricted stock |
Step 2 — Create or sign in to ID.me
- Go to IRS mobile-friendly forms.
- Search Form 15620 or open About Form 15620.
- Choose the online workflow (not “download PDF only”).
- Sign in with ID.me—the IRS’s identity partner—or create an account.
Where I'm less sure—how long ID.me video verification takes on a Friday evening varies; anecdotally we see 24–48 hours for first-time accounts in employee forums, so do not treat “same-day signup” as guaranteed on day 29.
Step 3 — Complete Form 15620 fields
Map your cap-table facts to the form boxes (aligned with Treas. Reg. §1.83-2):
| Form 15620 field | What to enter | Common error |
|---|---|---|
| Taxpayer name, TIN, address | Legal name matching W-2 / cap table | Nickname vs legal entity name |
| Property description (Box 2) | Class, quantity, issuer legal name | Wrong share class |
| Date transferred (Box 3) | Section 83 transfer date | Exercise click date |
| Taxable year (Box 4) | Calendar year containing Box 3 | Wrong year when transfer is late December |
| Restrictions (Box 5) | Vesting, repurchase, forfeiture narrative | Copy-paste from wrong grant |
| FMV at transfer (Box 6) | Per-share FMV without regard to restrictions × shares | Using strike price instead of 409A |
| Amount paid (Box 7) | Exercise/purchase price aggregate | Forgetting par value paid |
| Income amount (Box 8) | Box 6 minus Box 7 | Arithmetic drift from rounding |
| Service recipient (Box 9) | Employer legal name | Parent vs subsidiary mismatch |
Critical Warning: FMV must match your company’s 409A report (private) or market close (public). Stock Administration and your CPA should sign off before you click Submit.
Step 4 — Confirm single-filing method and submit
The online workflow asks you to confirm you have not already mailed a Section 83(b) election for this property. Answer accurately—duplicate filings for the same transfer create processing confusion.
- Submit electronically when fields reflect your facts (IRS-preferred).
- Download PDF only if you intend to mail—then follow Certified Mail step-by-step.
After successful electronic submission, download:
- IRS confirmation screen or email receipt (if offered)
- PDF copy of the filed Form 15620
Store both in a tax folder within 24 hours.
Step 5 — Employer copy and Form 1040 attachment
| Copy | Recipient | When |
|---|---|---|
| IRS submission | Internal Revenue Service (electronic) | ≤ 30 days from transfer |
| Duplicate | Employer / service recipient | Same week as IRS filing2 |
| Duplicate | Your records + CPA | Same day |
| Duplicate | Attached to Form 1040 for transfer year | Tax season |
Upload the employer copy to Carta, Shareworks, or your company’s equity portal when available—save a timestamp screenshot.
Online vs mail: which channel to choose
IRS Form 15620 filing channel comparison — online portal vs Certified Mail
Compared for U.S. tech employees filing a Section 83(b) election on Form 15620 as of August 2026, after the IRS enabled electronic submission through the mobile-friendly forms portal.
| Attribute | IRS online Form 15620 portal | USPS Certified Mail | Counsel-prepared letter election |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timely-filing proof | Instant IRS confirmation PDF + submission timestamp | PS Form 3800 acceptance date (IRC §7502 postmark analysis) | Same as mail—Certified Mail receipt |
| ID.me / setup lead time | 1–2 days if new ID.me account | Same-day post office trip | Depends on counsel turnaround |
| Penny-stock / high-share-count quirks | Portal allows 4-decimal FMV and up to ~99.99M shares (Oct 2025 update) | No field rounding limits on paper | No portal rounding limits |
| Duplicate-submission risk | Portal asks you to confirm mail not already sent | Do not also e-file same transfer | Single channel only |
| Our default recommendation (Aug 2026) | Yes for most employees with ID.me ready | When portal facts distort numbers or ID.me blocked | Complex cap-table or non-standard property |
Form 15620 filing channel — quick comparison
Recommended: IRS online portal
| Feature | IRS online portal | USPS Certified Mail |
|---|---|---|
| Proof of timely filing | IRS submission timestamp + confirmation PDF | PS Form 3800 + IRC §7502 postmark analysis |
| Setup lead time | ID.me account (plan 1–2 days if new) | Post office visit same day |
| IRS preference (2025–2026) | Electronic submit preferred per IRS alerts | Still fully valid |
| Best when | ID.me ready; clean 409A FMV; standard cap-table facts | Day 28+; ITIN pending; portal limits distort numbers |
Original research: online portal readiness checklist
We scored eight readiness items practitioners cite before recommending online Form 15620 versus Certified Mail (1 = optional, 5 = gate for online default). Compiled 15 August 2026 from IRS Form 15620 instructions, Carta’s IRS portal guide (August 2025), and four law-firm client alerts (Goodwin, Mintz, Sidley, Startup Law Blog).
| # | Readiness item | Priority (1–5) | Online gate? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Written transfer date from Stock Administration | 5 | Yes |
| 2 | ID.me sign-in working before day 25 | 5 | Yes |
| 3 | 409A or public FMV matches Form 15620 Box 6 | 5 | Yes |
| 4 | Share count & class verified on cap table | 5 | Yes |
| 5 | Restrictions narrative matches grant agreement | 4 | Yes |
| 6 | Employer legal name matches Box 9 / portal | 4 | Yes |
| 7 | Cash for estimated tax if income > $10k | 3 | No—but plan payments |
| 8 | Counsel review if income > $50k or expat facts | 4 | Often mail instead |
Composite rule: If items 1–6 are green by transfer day + 7, online filing is the default we recommend for U.S. residents with straightforward facts. If 2 is red on day 25, switch to Certified Mail immediately—do not gamble on ID.me overnight.
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Dataset",
"name": "Form 15620 online filing readiness checklist — 8 items (August 2026)",
"description": "Priority scoring of identity, FMV, and documentation gates before recommending IRS online Form 15620 submission versus Certified Mail for Section 83(b) elections.",
"creator": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "VestingStrategy.com Research" },
"datePublished": "2026-08-15",
"license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
"isAccessibleForFree": true,
"url": "https://www.vestingstrategy.com/guides/how-to-file-form-15620-online-irs-83b-election/#dataset-form-15620-online-readiness"
}
Worked example: Marcus, early exercise at Databricks (hypothetical)
Facts: Marcus, a senior engineer at Databricks (hypothetical cap-table facts), early-exercises 40,000 unvested shares on 1 August 2026. Unvested shares transfer on 5 August 2026. 409A FMV = $4.25/share; exercise price $0.50/share. Marcus has ID.me from prior IRS account use.
| Step | Marcus’s action |
|---|---|
| Transfer confirm | Stock Admin email: 5 Aug 2026 |
| Last filing day | 4 Sep 2026 (30 calendar days) |
| Day 8 | Signs into ID.me; opens Form 15620 online |
| Box 6 / 8 | FMV $170,000; income $150,000 |
| Submit | Electronic submit 12 Aug 2026; saves confirmation PDF |
| Employer | Uploads filed PDF to company portal 13 Aug 2026 |
Verdict for Marcus: Online filing beats a post office trip—his bottleneck is estimated tax on $150,000 of accelerated income, not portal mechanics. Pair with estimated tax payments for equity.
Worked example: Priya, founder restricted stock at par
Facts: Priya, a founder of HelioGrid, Inc. (hypothetical), receives 8,000,000 restricted shares on 10 August 2026 at $0.0001/share FMV (409A). Amount paid $800. She has no ID.me account yet on day 22.
| Item | Priya’s choice |
|---|---|
| Portal limits | Oct 2025 update allows four-decimal FMV and high share counts1 |
| Identity risk | ID.me not verified by day 25 |
| Channel | Certified Mail to Ogden (California resident, 1040 no-payment table) |
| Proof | PS Form 3800; does not also e-file |
Where I'm less sure—whether Priya’s Delaware C-corp vs California residency changes campus ZIP is a preparer question; she should not copy a Texas founder’s Austin envelope.
Verdict for Priya: 83(b) election strategy here is “file timely first, optimize channel second”—mail beats a failed ID.me sprint on day 30.
Steel-man: “I’ll only mail—online isn’t ‘official’”
Best case for mail-only: Your counsel has mailed hundreds of §83(b) elections, your preparer trusts IRC §7502 postmark case law, and your company’s white-glove program couriers the envelope for you. Paper is battle-tested in audit folders.
Why mail-only is overcautious in 2026: The IRS published Form 15620 for electronic submission and practitioner alerts from Goodwin and Mintz (July 2025) describe online submit as preferred. An IRS confirmation PDF is contemporaneous proof you filed—not a Slack upload to HR.
Our position: Treat online Form 15620 as co-equal with mail for most employees with ID.me ready. Keep Certified Mail as the deadline rescue path, not the default superstition.
“The IRS has made good on its promise and now permits electronic filing of Form 15620… This change eases the administrative burden of having to physically mail the Section 83(b) Election.”
Verdict
For 83(b) election strategy centered on Form 15620 in August 2026: confirm transfer date, verify ID.me early, complete Form 15620 online with 409A-backed FMV, submit electronically, save IRS confirmation, furnish the employer copy, and attach a duplicate to your Form 1040. If identity setup or portal constraints threaten day 30, pivot to Certified Mail using our step-by-step mailing guide—one channel per transfer, no duplicates.
Related guides
| Need | Article |
|---|---|
| Mail fallback + cover letter | How to file an 83(b) election step-by-step |
| Official Form 15620 + campuses | How to file an official Section 83(b) with the IRS |
| 30-day rule deep dive | IRS 83(b) 30-day rule official guide |
| Mailing addresses | Where to mail your 83(b) election |
| Draft language tool | IRS 83(b) form generator & checklist |
| Should you elect? | Section 83(b) strategic overview |
Primary sources
| Authority | Link |
|---|---|
| IRC §83(b) | 26 U.S.C. §83 |
| Treas. Reg. §1.83-2 | 26 CFR §1.83-2 |
| IRS Form 15620 (Apr 2025) | |
| IRS About Form 15620 | IRS.gov |
| IRS mobile-friendly forms | Portal |
| IRC §7503 | 26 U.S.C. §7503 |
Footnotes
Disclaimer: This article is educational only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Section 83(b) elections are irrevocable and can increase current-year tax. Confirm transfer dates, FMV, filing method, and payment obligations with a qualified CPA, enrolled agent, or tax attorney before submitting Form 15620 online or by mail.