83(b) Election Desk vs manual filing and compliance services

83(b) Election Desk is for users who already decided to file and need an operational packet before the 30-day deadline. Use the free IRS form manually if you already manage deadline, copies, and proof. Use counsel or a qualified tax professional for advice, valuation, revocation, missed deadlines, RSUs, unexercised options, non-US complexity, or complex grants.

Decision rule

Packet software is useful for logistics; professional review is required when the question is whether, what value, what legal status, or what late/remedial path.

83(b) Election Desk

Price: $49 software fee
Best for: Already-decided simple packet before day 30
Tradeoff: No advice, no valuation, no late filing, no IRS submission

Manual IRS Form 15620

Price: $0 online through an IRS Online Account; by mail, USPS Certified Mail $5.55 plus return receipt $2.91 to $4.65 and postage
Best for: Users who can assemble deadline, copies, proof, and records themselves
Tradeoff: No guided hard stops, packet checklist, or evidence passport

Stripe Atlas formation

Price: Included in the $500 Atlas setup fee, only for founders incorporating through Atlas
Best for: Founders forming a new Delaware company with Atlas
Tradeoff: Covers the founder stock issued at formation, not later grants or early exercises

Attorney or tax professional

Price: Billed hourly or inside a formation package; no neutral published rate found
Best for: Should-I-file, valuation, revocation, missed deadline, non-US, or complex grants
Tradeoff: More expensive, but appropriate when judgment is needed

Comparison of filing options, prices, best use cases, and tradeoffs
Option	Price	Best for	Tradeoff
83(b) Election Desk	$49 software fee	Already-decided simple packet before day 30	No advice, no valuation, no late filing, no IRS submission
Manual IRS Form 15620	$0 online through an IRS Online Account; by mail, USPS Certified Mail $5.55 plus return receipt $2.91 to $4.65 and postage	Users who can assemble deadline, copies, proof, and records themselves	No guided hard stops, packet checklist, or evidence passport
Stripe Atlas formation	Included in the $500 Atlas setup fee, only for founders incorporating through Atlas	Founders forming a new Delaware company with Atlas	Covers the founder stock issued at formation, not later grants or early exercises
Attorney or tax professional	Billed hourly or inside a formation package; no neutral published rate found	Should-I-file, valuation, revocation, missed deadline, non-US, or complex grants	More expensive, but appropriate when judgment is needed

Where these prices come from

IRS mobile-friendly forms: Form 15620 (Apr 2025) can be completed and submitted with an IRS Online Account · checked 2026-10-27
USPS extra services: Certified Mail $5.55, Return Receipt $4.65 (hardcopy) or $2.91 (electronic) · checked 2026-10-27
Stripe Atlas: $500 setup fee includes filing the founders' 83(b) elections · checked 2026-10-27

Which option should you use?

Already-decided restricted stock or early-exercise packet before day 30

Use: 83(b) Election Desk
Why: The product calculates the simple deadline, organizes Form 15620 facts, company copy evidence, proof checklist, and a packet passport.

Confident with the IRS form and your own proof system

Use: Manual IRS Form 15620
Why: The official form can be used directly when the user does not need a guided packet or hard-stop workflow.

Need to know whether to file, what value to use, or whether the grant qualifies

Use: Attorney or qualified tax professional
Why: Those are legal, tax, valuation, securities, compensation, equity-plan, or immigration judgment calls.

Decision matrix for choosing a filing option
Situation	Use	Why
Already-decided restricted stock or early-exercise packet before day 30	83(b) Election Desk	The product calculates the simple deadline, organizes Form 15620 facts, company copy evidence, proof checklist, and a packet passport.
Confident with the IRS form and your own proof system	Manual IRS Form 15620	The official form can be used directly when the user does not need a guided packet or hard-stop workflow.
Need to know whether to file, what value to use, or whether the grant qualifies	Attorney or qualified tax professional	Those are legal, tax, valuation, securities, compensation, equity-plan, or immigration judgment calls.

What packet software does well

It makes the operational work hard to forget: deadline, form fields, copies, company letter, proof of mailing, source links, and recordkeeping. It also stops cases that should not be sold as a simple workflow.

What manual filing does well

Manual filing is sufficient when you already understand the official instructions, know your transfer date, have value facts, can prepare copies, and can keep proof without a guided checklist.

Why professionals still matter

Professionals are the right path when the question is substantive: should I file, what is the value, did a transfer occur, does the grant qualify, what happens if I missed the deadline, or how do cross-border facts change the answer.

User has already decided to file a Section 83(b) election

Individual recipient of restricted stock, early-exercised option shares, or a simple profits-interest-like grant

Known transfer date and expected postmark date before the 30-day deadline

User already has value, amount-paid, property, and restriction facts from records or advisers

Packet-only workflow: Form 15620 guidance, company copy letter, mailing proof checklist, and passport

Comparison questions

Is this a legal service?

No. It is self-help packet software and does not provide legal, tax, valuation, securities, equity-plan, compensation, immigration, or representation services.

Why pay if Form 15620 is free?

The software fee pays for guided scope checks, deadline calculation, packet checklist, copy letter, proof checklist, and a reusable passport, not for the official form itself.

Prepare my 83(b) packet · $49