In Revenue Ruling 2002-22, the IRS has established that a taxpayer who transfers non-statutory stock options and rights to nonqualified deferred compensation to the taxpayer’s former spouse incident to divorce is not required to include any amount in gross income upon the transfers.

Rather, the transferee former spouse will be required to recognize taxable income when the former spouse exercises the stock options or when the deferred compensation is paid or made available to the former spouse.