Form 1099-B - Cost Basis and Date Acquired
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The Form 1099-B you receive may only report the date of the sale and the sales proceeds amount. If it does not report the date acquired or cost basis, you must still enter that information on Schedule D and/or Form 8949. As a result, you should keep and maintain this information with your tax records. 

The cost or other basis is generally the cost you paid for the property plus purchase commissions, recording or transfer fees, and any improvements, minus depreciation, amortization, and depletion. If this information is not reported to you on Form 1099-B or a consolidated tax statement, you may obtain it from either a broker's statement or a confirmation statement received after you made the purchase. If you lost or did not keep records to determine your basis in securities, you will need to contact the broker for help in obtaining this information.

The date acquired is generally the date you acquired the asset. You will need to obtain this from either a broker's statement or a confirmation statement received after you made the purchase. For securities traded on an established securities market you should enter the trade date. Do not confuse the trade date with the settlement date, which is the date by which the stock must be delivered and payment must be made.

To enter Form 1099-B information in TaxAct®:

  1. From within your TaxAct return (Online or Desktop) click Federal. On smaller devices, click in the upper left-hand corner, then select Federal.
  2. Click Investment Income to expand the section, then click Gain or loss on the sale of investments
  3. Click Capital gain or loss (Form 1099-B) 
  4. Click +Add Form 1099-B to create a new copy of the form, or click Review to access a form already created
  5. Select Quick Entry or Step-by-Step Guidance
    1. If you select Quick Entry, the date acquired is entered in box 1b and the cost or other basis is entered in box 1e
    2. If you select Step-by-Step Guidance, the date acquired and cost or other basis is entered on the screens titled Investment Sales - Transaction Details. For additional information on the date acquired or cost basis, click the applicable icon.