Hi all - I'm wondering if anyone has been successful at structuring an add-on deal in such a way to maximize tax deduction for small acquisitions.

Background: I own a small company that is expanding via roll-up acquisitions. These are all super small (think###-###-#### 700k acquisition range). As you would imagine, there is a big opportunity to make a creative deal in this range to limit tax liability.

Example deal structure:
- 500k Acquisition
- 100k down payment (not tax deductible)
- Retain current owner as a part time employee (eases client transitions)
- 100k quarterly payment to current owner based on business KPIs. This is where I thought there might be an opportunity. Example, since the current owner would be an employee, the payment could be made as employee bonus. Which results in the ability to tax deduct as compensation. (is this legally possible?)

I know... I should consult the deal team. But I figured I'd try to to source information here.

^Searchfunder member‌, maybe this can be a viral tweet?


Thanks!