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Definition: Wash Sale

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The sale and repurchase of stocks or securities within a short period of time. Under the wash sale rules, if you sell stock at a loss and purchase substantially identical stock within 30 days before or after the sale, you cannot claim the loss for tax purposes.

The wash sale period for any sale at a loss consists of 61 days: the day of the sale, the 30 days before the sale, and the 30 days after the sale.

For more information, see Wash Sales.