Final RSU vest when leaving: last-day vests, payroll delays, and W-2

RSU tax timing follows delivery date, not your exit interview date. Plans define whether you must be employed on the vest date to receive shares.

A quarterly vest the week before your last Monday may still pay if you were employed on that vest date. A vest the week after termination usually forfeits unless the plan or separation agreement provides otherwise.

Stock plan administrators batch vest processing. Your last vest may run through payroll after IT access ends. The calendar-year W-2 should still include vest FMV when delivery occurred.

Sell-to-cover or net settlement on the final vest uses the same wage rules: full FMV is Box 1 wages; net shares land in brokerage if the account stays open.

Severance is separate payroll from RSU vest income. Do not assume severance withholding covers RSU tax on a final vest.

Negotiated acceleration vests unvested units early. Delivered shares are wages at FMV in the acceleration year.

Two W-2s from old and new jobs in one year do not split a single vest. The granting employer reports the full amount.

Final vest supplemental withholding may use flat federal rates. Combined with salary at a new job, under-withholding gaps are common.

1099-B from sell-to-cover on a December final vest may arrive in January of the next year while wages were in the termination year.

State sourcing on the final vest follows payroll and residency rules for the vest date.

Vested shares after exit sell with normal vest FMV basis.

Download vest confirmations before brokerage access closes.

Acceleration promised verbally but not in writing may not vest — tax follows actual delivery.

Performance-based tranches that fail before exit forfeit without wages.

Forfeited unvested units after exit are not on W-2 — see the forfeiture guide.

Garden leave or paid notice periods keep you employed on paper — vest dates during notice may still qualify if the plan requires only employment status, not active work.

Retirement-eligible employees sometimes have different vest rules than voluntary quit — check whether retirement triggers prorated or accelerated PSUs separately from time-based RSUs.

COBRA and benefits end dates do not change whether vest wages hit W-2 when shares deliver.

If you relocate states in the exit month, final vest wages may source to the state where you worked on the vest date — multi-state guides apply.

Estimated tax payments may be needed if final vest withholding plus new job withholding still under-cover your combined bracket.

• ✓Employed-on-vest-date rule in grant agreement.
• ✓Vest dates within 30 days before and after last day.
• ✓Separation agreement acceleration schedule.
• ✓Final W-2 vs vest confirmations.
• ✓Sell-to-cover or net settlement on final vest confirmation.
• ✓W-4 at new job after large final vest on old W-2.
• ✓Brokerage still holds net shares from final vest.
• ✓HR letter promising acceleration vs payroll reality at year-end.
• ✓Whether sell-to-cover on final vest produced a 1099-B in the next calendar year.
• ✓Equity portal access cutoff — save PDFs before login expires.

• ✓Grant vest schedule and termination exhibit.
• ✓Separation agreement acceleration terms.
• ✓Final vest confirmation and trade confirms.
• ✓Final W-2 from former employer.
• ✓New employer W-2 if same calendar year.

• ✓Separation agreement promises acceleration but payroll shows nothing by year-end.
• ✓Final W-2 RSU wages disagree with vest confirmation.
• ✓Vest processed after termination when you believe you were ineligible.
• ✓Multi-state move in the same month as final vest.