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Weekly IRS Roundup August 31 – September 4, 2020

by | Sep 9, 2020 | ,

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of August 31, 2020 – September 4, 2020. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

September 1, 2020: The IRS released for publication in the federal register final regulations providing additional guidance on the base erosion and anti-abuse tax (BEAT) imposed on certain large corporate taxpayers with respect to certain payments made to foreign related parties. The final regulations affect corporations with substantial gross receipts that make payments to foreign related parties.

September 1, 2020: The IRS announced the launch of the Bipartisan Budget Act (BBA) Centralized Partnership Audit Regime webpage. The Centralized Partnership Audit Regime replaces the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act (TEFRA) and the electing large partnership rules. The centralized partnership audit regime, or BBA, is generally effective for tax years beginning January 2018. Under the BBA, the IRS generally assesses and collects any understatement of tax (called an imputed underpayment) at the partnership level.

September 1, 2020: The IRS published a memorandum providing guidance on the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA) until Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) 8.19 is revised. The guidance covers: (1) Appeals TEFRA Team (ATT) and Technical Guidance (TG) referrals; (2) Tax Court rules on BBA partnership proceedings; (3) Tax Computation Specialist (TCS) assistance; (4) Tried Cases and Counsel Settlements; (5) Tax Court Decision Appealed and Final Decision from Appeal; and (6) Department of Justice (DOJ) cases.

September 1, 2020: The IRS announced its intention to issue regulations addressing the application of sections 951 and 951A of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) to certain S corporations (as defined in section 1361(a)(1)) with accumulated earnings and profits, as described in section 316(a)(1) (AE&P). The notice also announces that the US Department of the Treasury and the IRS intend to issue regulations addressing the treatment of qualified improvement property (QIP) under the alternative depreciation system (ADS) of section 168(g) for purposes of calculating qualified business asset investment (QBAI) for purposes of the foreign-derived intangible income (FDII) and global intangible low-taxed income (GILTI) provisions. Comments should be submitted by November 2, 2020.

September 1, 2020: The IRS requested comments on Revenue Procedure 2015-40 (that provides guidance for taxpayers who believe that the actions of the United States, a treaty country or both result or will result in taxation that is contrary to the provisions of an applicable tax treaty) to submit the requested information in order to receive assistance from the IRS official acting as the US competent authority. Comments are due on or before November 2, 2020.

September 3, 2020: The IRS released the fourth quarter update to the 2019–2020 Priority Guidance Plan. The fourth quarter update to the 2019-2020 plan reflects 53 additional projects which have been published [...]

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Can Virtual Currency Traders Elect into Special Rules that Allow Current Deductions for Trading Losses?

by | Sep 4, 2020 | ,

Traders in virtual currency seeking to deduct trading losses and avoid application of the capital loss limitations would want to elect into the special tax rules found at IRC § 475(f). However, such taxpayers should analyze the definitions of “securities” and “commodities,” determine whether they are eligible for either of the trader elections, and consider the federal and state tax implications of making such an election.

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Weekly IRS Roundup August 24 – August 28, 2020

by | Sep 2, 2020 | , , , ,

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of August 24, 2020 – August 28, 2020. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

August 24 2020: The IRS published a memorandum concerning guidance to the field on the criteria that should be applied in considering if a request for designation for litigation should be made to the Office of Chief Counsel. The memorandum also provides interim guidance on the requirements of Section 1001 of the Taxpayer First Act (TFA) with respect to the limitation on designation of cases as not eligible for referral to the IRS Independent Office of Appeals.

August 25, 2020: The IRS published a Summer 2020 Statistics of Income Bulletin. The Summer 2020 Bulletin focuses individual income tax shares, 2017; foreign recipients of US income, calendar year 2017; effects of post-filing adjustments on Statistics of Income (SOI) estimates; and implementation of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

August 25, 2020: The IRS published a practice unit focusing on the definition of foreign earned income for purposes of section 911.

August 26, 2020: The IRS published a notice and request for comments on Treasury Decision 8702 concerning certain transfers of domestic stock or securities by US persons to foreign corporations. The regulation relates to certain transfers of stock or securities of domestic corporations pursuant to the corporate organization, reorganization or liquidation provisions of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). Transfers of stock or securities by US persons in tax-free transactions are treated as taxable transactions when the acquirer is a foreign corporation, unless an exception applies under section 367(a). The regulation provides that no US person will qualify for an exception unless the US target company complies with certain reporting requirements. The comments should be received on or before October 26, 2020.

August 26, 2020: The IRS published a notice and request for comments on Treasury Decision 8612 concerning the availability of the gift and estate tax marital deduction when the donee spouse or the surviving spouse is not a US citizen. The regulation provides guidance to individuals or fiduciaries: (1) for making a qualified domestic trust election on the estate tax return of a decedent whose surviving spouse is not a US citizen in order that the estate may obtain the marital deduction; and (2) for filing the annual returns that such an election may require. The comments should be received on or before October 26, 2020.

August 27, 2020: The IRS published an announcement on the opening of the application period for the 2021 Compliance Assurance Process program. The application period runs September 1 to November 13, 2020. The IRS will inform applicants if they’re accepted into the program in February 2021.

August 28, 2020: The IRS published
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When Can Bitcoin Positions Be Taxed as Mixed Straddles Subject to the Special Mixed Straddle Rules?

by | Aug 31, 2020 | ,

Taxpayers who enter into offsetting positions in actively traded personal property where one or more—but not all—of the positions making up a straddle are taxed as section 1256 contracts (while another offsetting position is not a section 1256 contract) are subject to the mixed straddle rules. Potential adverse consequences can be magnified or made more complex by application of these special rules. This article can help taxpayers understand and take action to minimize or avoid these consequences when such positions involve virtual currencies.

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Weekly IRS Roundup August 17 – August 21, 2020

by | Aug 26, 2020 | ,

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of August 17, 2020 – August 21, 2020. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

August 19, 2020: The IRS requested comments from large corporate taxpayers currently utilizing the procedures under Revenue Procedure 94-69 to disclose changes in tax positions after the opening of an examination. The IRS is considering obsoleting Revenue Procedure 94-69, which is available to a small group of large corporate taxpayers. Revenue Procedure 94-69 provides special procedures for taxpayers that are subject to the (former) Coordinated Examination Program to show additional tax due or make disclosures to avoid the imposition of accuracy-related penalties for negligence, disregard of rules or regulations or substantial understatement of income tax under sections 6662(b)(1) and (b)(2). Comments are due by October 19, 2020.

August 19, 2020: The IRS published a practice unit concerning the taxability of distributions from an S corporation that either (1) does not have accumulated earnings and profits (AE&P), or (2) makes distributions from sources other than AE&P; that is, nondividend distributions made from the accumulated adjustments account, other adjustments account or a shareholder-level previously taxed income account from before 1983 to the extent it still exists. The practice unit also addresses what items to consider to determine the taxability of nondividend distributions, liquidating distributions and sale-or-exchange redemption distributions.

August 19, 2020: The IRS published a practice unit concerning the last-in first-out (LIFO) pooling method and taxpayers who may elect to compute opening and closing inventories for goods using LIFO.

August 20, 2020: The IRS published a memorandum concerning guidance for Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) employees on the types of cases accepted into TAS under Criteria 9 – Public Policy. The Taxpayer Advocate is adding four cases that fit the policy; (1) organizations where the IRS automatically revoked their tax-exempt status for failure to file an annual return or notice for three consecutive years; (2) cases involving any tax account-related issue referred to TAS from a Congressional office, including limited Economic Impact Payment (EIP) issues; (3) cases involving revocation, limitation or denial of a passport; and (4) cases that have been referred to a Private Collection Agency for collection of a federal tax debt.

August 20, 2020: The IRS published corrections to Treasury Decision 9614, which was published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, March 19, 2013. Treasury Decision 9614 contained final regulations that apply to transfers of certain property by a domestic corporation to a foreign corporation in certain nonrecognition exchanges, or to distributions of stock of certain foreign corporations by a domestic corporation in certain nonrecognition distributions. The corrections are effective on August 20, 2020.

August 21, 2020: The IRS announced it has temporarily stopped mailing notices to taxpayers with [...]

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Special Tax Rules Apply to Bitcoin Futures and Options

by | Aug 24, 2020 | ,

Special tax rules require taxpayers to treat gains on certain virtual currency positions as taxable even though they still hold their positions. These rules apply to futures and options that qualify as section 1256 contracts, which is potentially relevant to taxpayers buying, selling and holding Bitcoin futures and options, as well as Ether futures and other virtual currencies. This article reviews a number of issues that arise—or may arise in the future—for taxpayers with virtual currency positions.

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When Virtual Currency Positions Are Subject to the Straddle Rule

by | Aug 21, 2020 | ,

Taxpayers who hold virtual currency positions may be subject to the tax straddle rules that require them to defer losses on one offsetting position to the extent of unrecognized gain on other offsetting positions. This article explores guidance (or the lack thereof) relating to actively traded personal property, offsetting positions and other issues as applied to virtual currency holdings.

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When Virtual Currency Positions Are Subject to the Wash Sales Rule

by | Aug 19, 2020 | ,

Under the wash sales rule, taxpayers cannot deduct a loss on the sale of stock or securities if the taxpayer purchases the same or substantially similar assets a short time before or after the sale that triggered the loss. This article examines possible application of the wash sales rule to virtual currencies.

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Weekly IRS Roundup August 10 – August 14, 2020

by | Aug 18, 2020 | ,

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of August 10, 2020 – August 14, 2020. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

August 10, 2020: The IRS published corrections to a notice of proposed rulemaking related to section 245A(e) (Hybrid Dividends) that was published in the Federal Register on April 8, 2020. The notice contained proposed regulations that adjust hybrid deduction accounts to take into account earnings and profits of a controlled foreign corporation that are included in income by a US shareholder. The corrections are effective on August 11, 2020.

August 10, 2020: The IRS published corrections to final regulations from Treasury Decision 9896 that were published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, April 8, 2020. The final regulations provide guidance regarding hybrid dividends and certain amounts paid or accrued pursuant to hybrid arrangements, which generally involve arrangements whereby US and foreign tax law classify a transaction or entity differently for tax purposes. The correction is effective on August 12, 2020.

August 12, 2020: The IRS published a memorandum that modifies Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) case acceptance criteria for cases involving Economic Impact Payments (EIPs).

August 12, 2020: The IRS announced changes to user fees relating to certain requests for letter rulings and determinations that will take effect on January 4, 2021. The increased user fees described in this announcement will be reflected in Rev. Proc. 2021-4, which will be published in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2021-1 on January 4, 2021.

August 13, 2020: The IRS published a practice unit concerning the identification, review of the computation and determination of the circumstances when section 986(c) recognition is appropriate in the pre-Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) environment. The practice unit addresses two issues: (1) Did the taxpayer correctly compute section 986(c) exchange gain or loss on the distribution of previously taxed earnings and profits (PTEP) to its US parent?; and (2) Was the distribution of previously taxed earnings and profits to the US parent resulting in the section 986(c) exchange gain or loss part of a step transaction that should be collapsed, a transaction lacking a business purpose and/or a transaction that lacks economic substance?

August 14, 2020: The IRS released Internal Revenue Bulletin 2020-34, dated August 17, 2020, containing the following: (1) REG-111879-20 (Employment Tax); (2) TD 9904 (Employment Tax); (3) REG-112042-19 (Excise Tax); (4) Notice 2020-58 (Income Tax); and (5) REG-132766-18 (Income Tax).

August 14, 2020: The IRS published corrections to final regulations (TD 9885) that were published in the Federal Register on Friday, December 6, 2019. The final regulations implement the base erosion and anti-abuse tax, which is designed to prevent the reduction of tax liability by certain large corporate taxpayers through certain payments [...]

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What Is the Significance of Virtual Currency Not Being Taxed as Currency?

by | Aug 14, 2020 | ,

Virtual currencies are not currently accepted as the legal tender or “fiat” currency of any country. In the United States, the IRS has stated its view that convertible virtual currency is property, subject to the general tax rules that apply to property, and is not foreign currency. As such, virtual currency does not qualify for the special tax rules available to foreign currency transactions. This article explores the major consequences of this rule on taxpayers.

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