What is the difference between short-term and long-term capital gains?
A short-term capital gain is a profit on an asset held 12 months or less — taxed as ordinary income at your regular federal rate. A long-term capital gain is a profit on an asset held more than 12 months — taxed at preferential rates of 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your taxable income. For most investors, the long-term rate is significantly lower than their ordinary income rate. Source: IRS Topic 409.
Do I owe tax on dividends I reinvested?
Yes. Dividends are taxable in the year they are paid, even if you reinvested them through a dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP) rather than receiving cash. Your brokerage will report them on Form 1099-DIV. The good news: reinvested dividends increase your cost basis in the shares, which reduces the capital gain when you eventually sell. Qualified dividends receive preferential rates; ordinary dividends are taxed as regular income. Source: IRS Publication 550.
What is the Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT)?
The NIIT is an additional 3.8% tax on net investment income — dividends, interest, capital gains, and certain passive income — that applies when your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) exceeds $200,000 (single) or $250,000 (married filing jointly). It does not apply to wages or active business income, and it does not apply inside tax-advantaged accounts like an IRA or 401(k). You calculate it on Form 8960. Source: IRS Topic 559.
What is a wash sale?
A wash sale occurs when you sell a security at a loss and buy a substantially identical security within 30 days before or after the sale — a 61-day window total. The IRS disallows the loss for tax purposes, but the loss is not gone permanently: it is added to the cost basis of the replacement shares, so you'll recognize it when you eventually sell those. Wash-sale rules make tax-loss harvesting more complex than it appears; a CPA can help you navigate the 30-day replacement window correctly. Source: IRS Publication 550.
Do I owe taxes on stocks inside my IRA or 401(k)?
No — not while the money stays inside the account. Gains, dividends, and interest inside a traditional IRA or 401(k) compound tax-deferred. You owe ordinary income tax when you take distributions in retirement. Inside a Roth IRA or Roth 401(k), qualified distributions in retirement are tax-free. The tax advantage of these accounts is precisely that capital gains and dividend taxes do not apply year to year inside the account. Source: IRS Retirement Plans.
What are the 2026 long-term capital gains tax rates?
Long-term capital gains rates for 2026 are 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on taxable income. The 0% rate applies up to $49,450 for single filers and $98,900 for married filing jointly. The 15% rate applies for most middle-income investors above those thresholds, up to $545,500 single ($613,700 married filing jointly). The 20% rate applies to high earners above those upper thresholds. Additionally, taxpayers with MAGI above $200,000 (single) or $250,000 (married) owe an extra 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax on investment gains. Short-term gains (assets held 12 months or less) are always taxed at ordinary income rates. Source: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32; IRS Topic 409.
When do I owe capital gains tax — when I sell or when the gain accrues?
You owe capital gains tax in the tax year you sell (or otherwise dispose of) the asset — not when the gain accrues on paper. An unrealized gain (a stock that has increased in value but you haven't sold) generates no tax liability. The 'realization' trigger is the sale or exchange of the asset. This is why long-term investing in taxable accounts is tax-efficient: gains compound tax-free until you choose to sell, and the eventual tax rate is typically lower than ordinary income rates. Source: IRS Topic 409 at irs.gov.
What is Form 1099-B and when will I receive one?
Form 1099-B is issued by your brokerage or mutual fund company and reports proceeds from sales of stocks, bonds, and other securities during the tax year. Brokers are required to send 1099-Bs by February 15. The form reports the sale proceeds, the cost basis (what you originally paid), the holding period (short- or long-term), and any wash sale adjustments. You use Form 1099-B to complete Schedule D and Form 8949, which calculate your net capital gain or loss for the year. If your cost basis is missing or incorrect in Box 1e, contact your broker before filing. Source: IRS Form 1099-B instructions at irs.gov.
Can capital losses offset capital gains on my taxes?
Yes. Capital losses directly offset capital gains dollar for dollar — reducing the net taxable gain. Short-term losses first offset short-term gains; long-term losses first offset long-term gains. Remaining losses after offsetting same-type gains then cross over to offset the opposite type. If losses exceed all gains in the year, up to $3,000 of net capital losses can offset ordinary income (wages, interest) annually. Any unused losses beyond $3,000 carry forward to future tax years indefinitely. Source: IRS Topic 409; IRS Publication 550 at irs.gov.
How does tax-loss harvesting work?
Tax-loss harvesting is the practice of intentionally selling investments at a loss to realize a capital loss that offsets taxable gains elsewhere in your portfolio. For example: if you have a $10,000 gain on one stock and a $4,000 loss on another, selling the losing position reduces your net taxable gain to $6,000. The key constraint is the wash-sale rule: you cannot buy back a substantially identical security within 30 days before or after the sale, or the IRS disallows the loss. After the 30-day window, you can repurchase the same or a similar position. Tax-loss harvesting is most effective in taxable brokerage accounts — it provides no benefit inside IRAs or 401(k)s because those accounts don't generate annual capital gains taxes. Source: IRS Publication 550; IRS Topic 409.
