Short answer: keep grant, vesting, sale, broker, payroll, exchange-rate, and foreign account records in one folder before filing your return.
RSU tax mistakes often happen because the employee does not have the documents ready. The shares vested months ago. The broker portal changed. The employer worksheet is buried in email. The sale confirmation is missing.
Then filing season becomes reconstruction work.
Keep grant and vesting records
Start with the documents that show how the shares became yours.
Keep:
- ✓Grant agreement.
- ✓Vesting schedule.
- ✓Vesting confirmation.
- ✓Fair market value used at vesting.
- ✓Shares withheld or sold for taxes.
- ✓Employer payroll record for the vesting month.
These records help connect the equity portal to payroll and tax reporting.
Keep sale records
If you sold shares, keep every sale confirmation.
You need:
- ✓Sale date.
- ✓Number of shares sold.
- ✓Sale price.
- ✓Fees or commissions.
- ✓Net proceeds.
- ✓Broker transaction statement.
Do not rely only on an annual summary. Annual summaries can help, but sale confirmations are easier to audit later.
Keep broker and account records
Foreign RSUs often sit inside a foreign brokerage account.
Keep:
- ✓Account opening details.
- ✓Year-end broker statement.
- ✓Monthly or quarterly statements if available.
- ✓Cash balance records.
- ✓Dividend records, if any.
- ✓Account closure or transfer records, if relevant.
Foreign asset reporting depends on facts. A tax reviewer needs the full picture, not only the sale.
Keep exchange-rate support
For Indian tax work, exchange-rate support can become important.
Keep:
- ✓Employer conversion records.
- ✓Broker USD values.
- ✓Sale-date USD values.
- ✓Any reference-rate support used by the tax preparer.
Do not guess exchange rates later. Make a dated record.
Keep a simple timeline
Create one page with:
- ✓Grant date.
- ✓Vest dates.
- ✓Sale dates.
- ✓Transfer dates.
- ✓Residency changes.
- ✓Payroll country changes.
- ✓Broker changes.
This timeline saves time because it lets your advisor see the sequence quickly.
A quick check before filing
Ask:
- ✓Did any RSUs vest during the year?
- ✓Did I sell any foreign shares?
- ✓Did I receive dividends?
- ✓Did I hold a foreign brokerage account?
- ✓Did my tax residency change?
- ✓Do I have records for every event?
If any answer is unclear, review it before filing.