Updated October 2026
Data licensing income during a sale: questions for your CPA
Owners already search how the sale of a client list or a book of business is taxed. Data license income will raise the same questions, and this page answers none of them. What it does is collect the payment facts a tax adviser will ask for, licensor by licensor. Polyshares, for example, describes a license fee paid to the company, with no equity or debt involved.1
Fact 1
Is it one payment or a stream?
Turing's Project Lazarus says it makes a single payment, up to $1M by its own account. Polyshares describes a non-dilutive license fee paid Net 30-60, without saying whether it comes in one payment or several. Troveo describes licensing on a revenue share and does not publish the percentage. Your adviser will want to know which shape you have, and the contract wording that describes it.2,3,1,4
| Fact | Value and source |
|---|---|
| Payment structure | A license fee paid by Polyshares to the company; non-dilutive, with no equity or debt |
| Deal structure | Licensing, not sale, on a revenue share (percentage not published) |
| Turing Project Lazarus | Licenses code, tickets, communications and decision records from operating and winding-down companies; up to $1M in one payment |
Fact 2
When does the money arrive?
Most buyers pay within 2-8 weeks of signing: Mercor quotes 2-4 weeks, Cognor 3-6 weeks and Polyshares Net 30-60, and micro1 invoices only after written acceptance. If your business sale closes in December and a license pays in January, the two payments fall in different calendar years. Bring the signing date and the expected payment date to your adviser.5,6,7,8
Fact 3
Who is paid: the company or the owner?
Polyshares says it pays the company that licenses the data, and other licensors' contracts will name a payee too. In a sale, whether the company or its owners end up holding that income depends on how the deal is structured, which is a question for your CPA and deal counsel.1
Fact 4
Fees and commissions in the chain
Most buyers charge sellers nothing, Mercor and Polyshares among them, while some brokers take a cut, such as Jottings at 20-30% and FileYield at 8%. Brokers are paid by the licensing side: Pewter says the licensing firm pays it at close. Referral programs pay third parties: micro1 pays by default 7.5% of the license price, and Handshake $10K per referred company at close. If anyone introduced you, your adviser should know who was paid what.9,10,11,12,13,14,15
FAQ
Questions, answered with sources
Polyshares describes its fee as non-dilutive, with no equity or debt.1
Polyshares says it pays the company. Ask every licensor who the payee is.1
We do not answer legal questions. Ask the licensing company: their team reviews this with you before anything is signed.
We do not answer legal questions. Ask the licensing company: their team reviews this with you before anything is signed.
We do not answer legal questions. Ask the licensing company: their team reviews this with you before anything is signed.
Before you sign
Legal questions go to the licensing company
We do not answer legal questions. Ask the licensing company before you sign: their team reviews these with you.
Questions for this kind of business
- Is the payment a license fee, a sale of an asset, or something else in your contract's terms?
- Will you issue a tax form for the payment, and to which entity?
- How is the payment taxed?
Questions for any buyer
- Is the license exclusive, and for how long?
- Can you sublicense the data, and to whom?
- Which AI labs will receive it, and will you tell us?
- How long do you keep it, and how is it deleted?
- What is your liability cap, and who indemnifies whom?
- Will the contract ban re-identification of people in the data?
- Who removes personal data, by what method, and do we approve it first?