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The Global Insight

How do you offset capital gains on the sale of a business?

Author

James Olson

Updated on March 10, 2026

It is possible to reduce tax costs by taking advantage of deductions that offset the gain.

  1. Deduct the basis in stock from the proceeds.
  2. Defer taxes by purchasing qualified small business stock.
  3. Deduct the basis in assets from the proceeds.
  4. Avoid structuring the transaction to include payments for services.

How are proceeds from the sale of a business taxed?

Your proceeds from the sale generally means the total sales price, plus any additional liabilities the buyer takes over from you. You want to do that because proceeds from the sale of a capital asset , including business property or your entire business, are taxed as capital gains.

Do you pay capital gains tax when you sell a business?

Capital Gains Tax You may have made a ‘capital gain’ when selling the company (for example the money you get from the sale, or assets from it that you keep). If this means you need to pay Capital Gains Tax, you may be able to reduce the amount by claiming Entrepreneurs’ Relief.

Do you have to pay capital gains tax when you sell a business?

When you sell a business, you will almost always have to pay a capital gains tax. Do not confuse this tax with the corporate income tax which is based on the profits of the business itself. Capital gains tax is a tax on the company’s capital assets that you sell and make money on.

What does it mean to allocate your income?

Allocation, in this case, means to assign income to the state you were living in when you earned it. We’ll either ask you to separate the income you earned or to verify the allocation amounts we already calculated for you. Allocating your income shouldn’t be too difficult, but it can involve some math.

How to allocate income to your new state?

Multiply the total income from that job by .33 to obtain the allocation for your former state. The remainder gets allocated to your new state. Method 3: This method is the most accurate, but it also assumes your income is more or less the same from paycheck to paycheck.

What do you mean by allocation and apportionment?

Allocation refers to the assignment of nonbusiness income to a particular state. Nonbusiness income is all income other than business income. to help you calculate nonbusiness income. Use the form locator

What is allocation of purchase price in asset sale?

When selling a business, it’s important to allocate a purchase price for the business’s assets. Allocating a purchase price occurs with both stock sales and non-stock sales. In most cases, selling a business either involves selling the business’s stock or selling the assets of the corporation.