NAVIGATION

What is Qualified Small Business Stock?

Definition

Qualified Small Business Stock

Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) is a US tax provision (Section 1202) that allows early startup investors and employees to exclude up to 100% of capital gains from federal taxes upon sale.

Why It Matters for Startups

Directly dictates the cap table and dilution structure during fundraising; understanding Qualified Small Business Stock helps founders model equity distributions when structuring rounds for tax optimization on startup exits.

Detailed Deep Dive

Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) is a US tax provision (Section 1202) that allows early startup investors and employees to exclude up to 100% of capital gains from federal taxes upon exit.

Advertisement

Frequently Asked Questions

Q:What are the main requirements for QSBS?

The company's gross assets must not exceed $50M at the time of stock issuance, and the shares must be held for at least 5 years.

Q:How much tax can be excluded under QSBS?

Up to $10 million in capital gains, or 10 times the taxpayer's basis in the stock (whichever is greater).

Quick Facts

  • CategoryFunding
  • Key ApplicationTax optimization on startup exits

Coverage Trend12 Weeks

12w agoToday

Cite This Term

Reference this definition in your articles, research, or documentation to credit this source:

[Qualified Small Business Stock | SPIDITS Glossary](https://spidits.com/startup-glossary/qsbs)

Qualified Small Business Stock Media Coverage & Intelligence

No Direct Qualified Small Business Stock News Today

We currently have no direct coverage articles matching "Qualified Small Business Stock". Explore trending global startup topics below instead.

Trending Startup Stories

GitHub BlogAug 14, 2026

How to bring your software delivery workflow into GitHub with agent apps

See how four GitHub agent apps can help you scope, secure, roll out, and ship a feature across the SDLC-all without leaving GitHub. The post How to bring...

arXiv AIAug 14, 2026

Don't Want Your LLM to Recommend Nuclear Strike? Try Asking It in Japanese

Large language models are increasingly used in strategic and advisory contexts, yet their safety alignment is typically evaluated in English only. We test...

NVIDIA BlogAug 14, 2026

Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indosat and NVIDIA Open Indonesia's First University AI Center to Develop Local AI Talent

Indonesia is taking charge of its AI future. This week, the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Komdigi), Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (Indosat or...