IRS Issues Final Regs Regarding Foreign Persons' Sale, Exchange of Partnership Interest

The IRS has released final regs that provide guidance for certain foreign persons that recognize gain or loss from the sale or exchange of an interest in a partnership that is engaged in a trade or business within the U.S.

The final regs retain the basic approach and structure of the proposed regs with certain revisions described below. 

1. Determining deemed sale EC gain or deemed sale EC loss. The final regs retain the basic framework of the proposed regs, including the factual determinations regarding assets attributable to an office or fixed place of business in the U.S. maintained by the partnership ("office attribution rule") (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(2)(ii)(B) through Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(2)(ii)(E)) 
2. Ten-year exception. The final regs retain the ten-year exception as an exception to the determination of deemed sale EC gain and EC loss under Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(2)(i)(A). 
3. Sourcing rules. The final regs make several changes to the general sourcing rule provided in Prop Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(2)(i).
4. Look-back rule for inventory property. The final regs provide a look-back rule for determining the foreign source portion of deemed sale EC gain or EC loss attributable to inventory property that is held by the partnership on the date of the deemed sale. 
5. Look-back rule for intangibles. To minimize the difficulty of applying the sourcing rules to intangible property and to provide more certainty, the final regs provide a separate rule for intangibles (including going concern value) that determines the foreign source portion of deemed sale gain or loss attributable to intangibles by using a proxy method that is based on the source of the partnership’s historic gross ordinary income. (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(2)(ii)(C)) 
6. Depreciable personal property. The final regs provide a two-part approach for determining the foreign source portion of deemed sale EC gain and EC loss attributable to depreciable personal property. The first part applies a recapture principle to the extent of depreciation adjustments taken with respect to the property. The second part focuses on where the property is located to the extent the property has deemed sale EC gain in excess of its depreciation adjustments or if the property has deemed sale EC loss. (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(2)(ii)(D)) 
7. Material change in circumstances rule. The final regs provide a material change in circumstances rule for inventory and intangibles. When this rule applies, the foreign source portion of deemed sale EC gain or EC loss attributable to inventory property or intangibles may be determined using a modified look-back period. Taxpayers can use this material change in circumstances rule to remedy an incorrect sourcing result with respect to inventory property and intangibles. (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(2)(ii)(E)) 
8. Treaty coordination. The final regs retain the general rule that prevents taxation of gain on assets that do not form part of a U.S. permanent establishment, but also address certain gains that may be taxed without regard to whether there is a U.S. permanent establishment (for example, gains from the disposition of certain USRPI). (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(f)) The final regs also add a rule coordinating these regs with treaty provisions governing the disposition of USRPI, which allow the U.S. to tax gain derived from the disposition of the USRPI without regard to whether the USRPI forms a part of a partnership’s permanent establishment. (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(f)) Partner-specific exclusions and exceptions. Under the final regs, a foreign transferor’s distributive share of deemed sale EC gain or EC loss does not include any amount that is excluded from the foreign transferor’s gross income or otherwise exempt from U.S. Federal income tax under the Code. (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(c)(3)(i)) 
9. Clarification of Sec. 897 coordination rule with respect to nonrecognition provisions. The final regs clarify the interaction between the Code Sec. 897 coordination rule and the nonrecognition provision described in Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(b)(2)(ii). Specifically, the final regs provide that any transfer of an interest in a partnership as part of a nonrecognition transaction will not be subject to Code Sec. 864(c)(8) to the extent that the gain or loss on the transfer is not recognized. Instead, if the partnership owns one or more USRPI, Code Sec. 897(g) and its regs will apply with respect to the unrecognized gain or loss. (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(d)) 

The final regs generally apply to transfers occurring on or after December 26, 2018 (that is, the date on which the proposed regs were filed with the Federal Register). While not subject to these final regulations, transfers occurring on or after November 27, 2017, but before December 26, 2018, are subject to Code Sec. 864(c)(8). In addition, the final regs apply to amounts taken into account on or after December 26, 2018, pursuant to an installment sale occurring on or after November 27, 2017 and before December 26, 2018. (Reg §1.864(c)(8)-1(j) and Reg §1.897-7(c)) 

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