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The Daily Insight

Is selling goodwill a capital gain?

Author

Henry Morales

Published Feb 25, 2026

A sale of personal goodwill, if respected by the IRS, creates long-term capital gain to the shareholder, taxable at up to 23.8% (maximum capital gain rate of 20%, plus the 3.8% net investment income tax) rather than ordinary income to the target corporation, taxable at up to 35% plus an additional tax of up to 23.8% on …

Is sale of goodwill subject to NIIT?

Because gain from the sale of personal goodwill is income from a personally developed intangible asset that is not passive income, and, generally, income from personal service activities is not passive, the gain from the sale of personal goodwill should not be subject to the net investment income tax.

How is the sale of personal goodwill taxed?

Tax Implications However, if the sale is allocated to a personal asset, such as personal goodwill, the seller is only taxed once (at the individual level when the proceeds are distributed to the individual), because the employee’s personal relationships are not considered corporate assets.

Is goodwill a capital or 1231 sale?

This is important to you because your goodwill is a Section 1231 asset rather than a capital asset. Section 1231 property is depreciable property used in a trade or business or any real property (i.e., even land) used in a trade or business.

How much tax do you pay when you sell a business?

If you sell an asset that you’ve held for more than 12 months, the proceeds will be treated as long-term capital gains. The maximum tax rate on capital gains for most taxpayers is 15%. Proceeds treated as ordinary income are taxed at the taxpayer’s individual rate.

Is the sale of goodwill ordinary income?

If the shareholder sells the personal goodwill to the s-corporation and in return gets paid in the future for services provided to the s-corporation as a result of the goodwill, then those earnings will be ordinary income to the shareholder.

What was the sale of goodwill with S Corp?

S CORPORATION SALE OF ASSETS AS FOLLOWS. GOODWILL 100000. Sold SCorp. Closing statement Purchase Price paid to Seller Sold SCorp. Closing statement Purchase Price paid to Seller Office equip, 22,940 Patient Recors 7,060 Corporate Goodwill 20,000Shareholder … read more

Is the sale of goodwill a business or personal asset?

Traditionally, goodwill is considered a business asset. However, it has been declared a personal asset in several recent Tax Court decisions. This allows a sale of goodwill assets to be declared a capital gain and taxed only once and at a lower rate. Do not confuse goodwill with going-concern value. These are two different elements of a business.

When to recognize capital gain on sale of goodwill?

June 6, 2019 5:53 AM IT DEPENDS. If the goodwill asset is considered personal goodwill from one of the shareholders, the shareholder recognizes capital gain on the sale of the asset.

When is it time to sell your goodwill?

Without the key individual (s), the business may have little value. In other words, the goodwill goes home at night. In asset sales of small owner-operated corporations, there can often be two sellers: (a) the business entity, and (b) an individual selling his or her personal goodwill.