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Weekly IRS Roundup June 7 – June 11, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of June 7, 2021 – June 11, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

June 7, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing it has begun sending letters to inform more than 36 million American families of their potential eligibility to receive monthly Child Tax Credit payments beginning in July, pursuant to the expansion of the Child Tax Credit under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA).

June 8, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, soliciting applications for 80 vacancies within its Procurement office, including vacancies for contract specialists who assist the IRS in the procurement and administration of third-party contracts.

June 8, 2021: The IRS issued a news release reminding taxpayers who make estimated tax payments that the second installment of estimated taxes for 2021 is due June 15, 2021.

June 9, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing the disbursement of more than 2.3 million Economic Impact Payments worth more than $4.2 billion, bringing the total amount of disbursements under ARPA to more than 169 million payments worth approximately $395 billion.

June 10, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-36, announcing that the applicability date for certain regulations under sections 59A and 6038A of the Code, which set forth various reporting requirements with respect to qualified derivative payments (QDPs) for purposes of the base erosion and anti-abuse tax (BEAT), is delayed to the 2023 taxable year.

June 11, 2021: The IRS issued final regulations regarding the new mandatory 60-day postponement of certain tax deadlines due to a federally-declared disaster, enacted as section 7805A(d) of the Code by the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020.

June 11, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Ruling 2021-11, providing the semi-annual Standard Industry Fare Level (SIFL) rates and terminal charges used in computing the value of noncommercial flights on employer-provided aircrafts for purposes of the taxation of fringe benefits under section 61 of the Code. The Revenue Ruling provides both unadjusted SIFL rates and SIFL rates adjusted for relief provided to the airline industry by COVID-related legislation.

June 11, 2021: The IRS issued an Action on Decision, announcing it would not acquiesce to TriNet Group, Inc. v. United States, 979 F.3d 1311 (11th Cir. 2020), which held that a professional employer organization (PEO) had “control of the payment of wages” to its clients’ employees and therefore the PEO—not its clients—was the “employer” (under section 3401(d) of the Code) eligible to claim Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tip tax credits with respect to such wages.

June 11, 2021: The IRS issued a news release and two sets of FAQs, providing assistance to families and small businesses claiming [...]

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Weekly IRS Roundup May 31 – June 4, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of May 31, 2021 – June 4, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

June 1, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, soliciting applications for the IRS Advisory Council, a forum consisting of representatives of the public to advise the IRS regarding various tax administration issues.

June 2, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, reminding taxpayers living and working abroad of the June 15, 2021, deadline for filing their 2020 US federal income tax returns.

June 4, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-34, providing the applicable reference price and associated credit amount used in determining the marginal well production credit under section 45I of the Code.

June 4, 2021: The IRS issued Announcement 2021-11, announcing that the United States and Switzerland have entered into an arrangement listing the US and Swiss pension and retirement plans, which now include various US and Swiss individual retirement savings plans that may qualify for the exemption from withholding on dividends under the US-Switzerland tax treaty.

June 4, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, announcing the issuance of more than 2.8 million refunds to taxpayers who paid taxes on unemployment compensation in 2020, compensation that was retroactively excluded from 2020 taxable income by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

June 4, 2021: The IRS released its weekly list of written determinations (e.g., Private Letter Rulings, Technical Advice Memorandums and Chief Counsel Advice).

Special thanks to Le Chen in our Washington, DC, office for this week’s roundup.




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Weekly IRS Roundup May 17 – May 21, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of May 17, 2021 – May 21, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

May 17, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Ruling 2021-9, providing various prescribed interest rates for federal income tax purposes for June 2021.

May 17, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2021-24, providing procedures for individuals who are not required to file federal income tax returns to receive advance Child Tax Credit payments and third-round Economic Impact Payments under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), as well as 2020 recovery rebate credits under earlier coronavirus-related legislation.

May 17, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, reminding taxpayers that May 17 is the filing deadline for most individual income tax returns and summarizing various e-filing and extension options.

May 17, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, announcing that the first monthly payments under the Child Tax Credit, as expanded by ARPA, will be made to eligible families on July 15, 2021.

May 18, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-31 and an accompanying news release, providing guidance on the temporary premium assistance for Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) health insurance benefits, and the associated COBRA premium assistance credit, enacted by ARPA.

May 19, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-33, providing the monthly update to certain interest rates used for pension plan funding and distribution purposes.

May 19, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, summarizing various tax benefits available to individuals experiencing homelessness, the rural poor and other underserved groups and urging employers and community groups to spread information about such benefits and assist such individuals in filing 2020 tax returns.

May 20, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, urging taxpayers who missed the recent May 17 tax-filing deadline to file their tax returns as soon as possible to obtain refunds or limit penalties and interest.

May 21, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-32, providing the 2021 inflation adjustment factors and reference prices for the renewable electricity production credit, refined coal production credit and Indian coal production credit under section 45 of the Code.

May 21, 2021: The IRS issued an Action on Decision, announcing that it would not acquiesce to Machacek v. Comm’r, 906 F.3d 429 (6th Cir. 2018), which held that the economic benefits of a compensatory split-dollar life insurance arrangement may be treated as a distribution under section 301 of the Code.

May 21, 2021: The IRS released its weekly list of written determinations (e.g., Private Letter Rulings, Technical Advice Memorandums and Chief Counsel Advice).

Special thanks to Le Chen in our Washington, DC, office for this week’s roundup.




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Weekly IRS Roundup May 10 – May 14, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of May 10, 2021 – May 14, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

May 10, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2021-25, announcing various inflation-adjusted amounts relevant to health savings accounts (HSAs) for calendar year 2022.

May 10, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-26 and an accompanying news release, clarifying that unused amounts from dependent care assistance programs for 2020 that are carried over to 2021 or 2022 (pursuant to coronavirus-related legislation) remain excludible from gross income for those later years.

May 11, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2021-26, providing procedures under section 446(e) of the Code for certain foreign corporations to obtain automatic IRS consent to change to the alternative depreciation system of accounting under section 168(g) of the Code.

May 11, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, providing an overview of certain key tax provisions in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), including provisions retroactive to the 2020 taxable year.

May 12, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, announcing a ninth round of Economic Impact Payments consisting of nearly one million payments worth more than $1.8 billion, bringing the total amount of disbursements under ARPA to approximately 165 million payments worth approximately $388 billion.

May 13, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, announcing that, in response to recent disruptions to the fuel supply chain, it is waiving penalties for failure to make semi-monthly deposits of excise tax on the sale of dyed diesel fuel for highway use. The relief is retroactive to May 7, 2021, and is in effect through May 21, 2021, and the IRS stated that it is closely monitoring the situation and will provide additional relief as needed.

May 13, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, extending the deadline to apply for 2022 membership on the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, a federal advisory committee formed to identify taxpayer concerns and make recommendations for improving IRS service, through June 1, 2021.

May 14, 2021: The IRS issued Announcement 2021-10, clarifying that the boundaries of qualified opportunity zones created under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are unaffected by the results of the 2020 decennial census.

May 14, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, announcing that victims of storms and tornadoes that occurred in Tennessee in late March and early April would have until August 2, 2021, to file individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.

May 14, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, announcing that it has commenced issuing refunds to taxpayers who paid taxes on 2020 unemployment compensation, compensation that ARPA later excluded from 2020 taxable income.

May 14, [...]

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Weekly IRS Roundup April 26 – April 30, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of April 26, 2021 – April 30, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

April 26, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2021-23, making superseding changes to earlier Revenue Procedures related to the Child Tax Credit under section 24 of the Code, the Earned Income Credit under section 32 of the Code and the Premium Tax Credit under section 36B of the Code in order to reflect statutory amendments made by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA).

April 26, 2021: The IRS issued a news release reporting the results of its March 2021 inaugural National Virtual Settlement Month, an IRS-coordinated nationwide initiative to provide pro bono legal advice to pro se US Tax Court litigants.

April 27, 2021: The IRS issued corrections to final regulations published in December 2020 regarding the elimination of the deduction for expenses associated with certain employer-provided transportation and commuting benefits under section 274 of the Code.

April 27, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, describing various electronic services it provides and urging taxpayers and tax professionals to use such services to speed up the processing of tax returns, payments and refunds.

April 28, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing a seventh round of Economic Impact Payments consisting of nearly two million payments totaling more than $4.3 billion, bringing the total amount of disbursements under ARPA to approximately 163 million payments worth approximately $384 billion.

April 29, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, providing information and resources to assist with tax compliance by gig economy workers and taxpayers who claimed unemployment compensation in 2020.

April 29, 2021: The IRS issued a news release, reminding taxpayers of the availability of tax-filing extensions upon request and listing certain categories of taxpayers who automatically obtain extensions without request.

April 30, 2021: The IRS issued Announcement 2021-8, listing attorneys, Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) and other practitioners who have received disciplinary sanctions for violating the regulations governing practice before the IRS.

April 30, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing the release of updated 2021 versions of Schedules K-2 and K-3 for Forms 1065, 1120-S and 8865. The updated Schedules are intended to provide greater clarity regarding the reporting of certain international tax items with respect to pass-through entities.

April 30, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing that it is now accepting grant applications by eligible organizations under the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) programs, which provide tax assistance services to elderly taxpayers and underserved communities, respectively.

April 30, 2021: The IRS released its weekly list of written determinations (e.g., [...]

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Weekly IRS Roundup April 19 – April 23, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of April 19, 2021 – April 23, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

April 19, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing the establishment of a new office, the IRS Office of Promoter Investigations (OPI), which will address promoters of abusive tax avoidance transactions, such as certain syndicated conservation easements and micro-captive insurance arrangements.

April 20, 2021: The IRS issued a news release reminding taxpayers of common filing errors that could delay the processing of returns and refunds.

April 21, 2021: The IRS issued a fact sheet and an accompanying news release, providing details about small business tax credits available under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), including credits for the cost of providing leave for employees who are unable to work because of COVID-19 and credits for the cost of providing leave for employees to receive, or recover from, COVID-19 vaccinations.

April 22, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2021-20 and an accompanying news release, providing a safe harbor for certain businesses that received COVID-related Paycheck Protection Program loans and did not deduct the associated expenses for the 2020 taxable year. In response to recent legislation permitting the deduction of such expenses, the Revenue Procedure provides that such businesses may deduct such expenses for the 2021 taxable year in lieu of filing an amended return for the 2020 taxable year.

April 22, 2021: The IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2021-21, waiving the residence requirements to qualify for benefits under section 911 of the Code for the 2020 taxable year, with respect to certain individual taxpayers who departed from Iraq after March 25, 2020.

April 22, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing a sixth round of Economic Impact Payments consisting of nearly two million payments totaling nearly $3.4 billion, bringing the total amount of disbursements under ARPA to approximately 161 million payments worth more than $379 billion.

April 23, 2021: The IRS released its weekly list of written determinations (e.g., Private Letter Rulings, Technical Advice Memorandums and Chief Counsel Advice).

Special thanks to Le Chen in our Washington, DC, office for this week’s roundup.




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Weekly IRS Roundup April 5 – April 9, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Serve (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of April 5, 2021 – April 9, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

April 5, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing that it is mailing letters to certain taxpayers who claimed the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit, explaining why they may be getting a different amount than expected.

April 5, 2021: The IRS issued a news release estimating that more than $1.3 billion of unclaimed income tax refunds are available to the estimated 1.3 million taxpayers who did not file a 2017 Form 1040 and reminding such taxpayers to file their 2017 returns before the May 17, 2021, deadline for claiming refunds.

April 7, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing a fourth round of Economic Impact Payments consisting of over 25 million payments totaling over $36 billion, bringing the total amount of disbursements under the American Rescue Plan of 2021 (ARPA) to more than 156 million payments worth approximately $372 billion.

April 8, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-25 and an accompanying news release, providing guidance on the application of section 274(n)(2)(D) of the Code, a provision added by the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 which provides for a temporary 100% deduction for food and beverages provided by a restaurant.

April 8, 2021: The IRS issued a news release reminding taxpayers who make estimated tax payments that the due date for the first estimated tax installment remains April 15, 2021.

April 8, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing various internal executive changes, including the appointment of Douglas O’Donnell as IRS Deputy Commissioner, Services and Enforcement, and Nikole Flax as Commissioner of the Large Business and International Division.

April 8, 2021: The IRS issued a news release reminding residents of US territories that, pursuant to recent legislation, they may be eligible to exclude up to $10,200 per person of unemployment compensation from gross income for the 2020 taxable year.

April 9, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing that, pursuant to ARPA, it was suspending the requirement that taxpayers repay excess advance payments of Premium Tax Credits.

April 9, 2021: The IRS issued a news release urging participants in abusive micro-captive insurance arrangements to exit the arrangements as soon as possible.

April 9, 2021: The IRS issued a news release reminding taxpayers that the deadline for filing the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) remains April 15, 2021.

April 9, 2021: The IRS released its weekly list of written determinations (e.g., Private Letter Rulings, Technical Advice Memorandums and Chief Counsel Advice).

Special thanks to Le Chen in our Washington, DC, [...]

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Weekly IRS Roundup March 29 – April 2, 2021

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Serve (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of March 29, 2021 – April 2, 2021. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

March 29, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-21 and an accompanying news release, extending certain individual income tax deadlines to May 17, 2021, including the deadline for making contributions to individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and health savings accounts (HSAs) and the deadline for claiming refunds.

March 30, 2021: The IRS issued corrections to final regulations published on January 15, 2021, regarding credits for carbon capture equipment under section 45Q of the Code.

March 30, 2021: The IRS released Announcement 2021-6, providing a report on advance pricing agreements for calendar year 2020 under the Advance Pricing and Mutual Agreement Program.

March 30, 2021: The IRS issued a news release warning students and staff of educational institutions of an IRS-impersonation phishing scam.

March 30, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing that it anticipates Economic Impact Payments will begin to be issued to Social Security recipients and other individuals who do not normally file tax returns starting the weekend of April 3.

March 30, 2021: The IRS issued a news release providing answers to frequently asked questions regarding the reporting of pandemic-related emergency financial aid grants by students and higher education institutions.

March 31, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing that it will take steps to provide automatic refunds to taxpayers who filed tax returns reporting unemployment compensation prior to changes made by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA).

April 1, 2021: The IRS issued a news release announcing a third round of Economic Impact Payments consisting of four million payments totaling over $10 billion, bringing the total amount of disbursements under ARPA to more than 130 million payments worth approximately $335 billion.

April 2, 2021: The IRS issued Notice 2021-23 and an accompanying news release, providing guidance on the changes made by the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 on the employee retention credit under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

April 2, 2021: The IRS issued a news release soliciting civic-minded volunteers to serve on the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, a federal advisory committee for identifying taxpayer concerns and making recommendations for improving IRS service and customer satisfaction.

April 2, 2021: The IRS released its weekly list of written determinations (e.g., Private Letter Rulings, Technical Advice Memorandums and Chief Counsel Advice).

Special thanks to Le Chen in our Washington, DC, office for this week’s roundup.




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Exxon Prevails in $200 Million Tax Penalty Case

On January 13, 2021, the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled in favor of Exxon Mobil Corporation (“Exxon”) in its battle against the government over tax penalties. Exxon filed amended returns for its 2006-2009 tax years seeking a $1.35 billion tax refund based upon a change of character of certain transactions (from mineral leases to purchase transactions). The government disallowed the refund claims and imposed a $200 million penalty pursuant to Internal Revenue Code (IRC) section 6676. Exxon paid the penalty and filed suit for a refund.

We have written extensively concerning IRC section 6676, warning taxpayers of this potential landmine. See, e.g., Taxpayers Should Prepare for the Next Penalty Battleground” Roberson, Spencer and Walters, Law360 (May 21, 2019) and “Expect More Civil Tax Penalties—So, Now What?” Roberson and Spencer, Tax Executive (Sept. 27, 2019). To recap, IRC Section 6676 was enacted in 2007 in response to the high number of meritless refund claims being filed at the time. It imposes a 20% penalty to the extent that a claim for refund or credit with respect to income tax is made for an “excessive amount.” An “excessive amount” is defined as the difference between the amount of the claim for credit or refund sought and the amount that is actually allowable. For example, if the taxpayer claims a refund of $2 million and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) allows only $1 million, the taxpayer can still be penalized $200,000.Significantly, IRC section 6676 does not require the IRS to show any fault or culpability on the part of the taxpayer—e.g., negligence, disregard of rules or regulations, etc. IRC section 6676(a) originally provided a “reasonable basis” defense (which is applicable to the Exxon case), but in 2015 Congress amended the statute and now requires a showing of “reasonable cause.” Neither the Code nor the regulations provide for any other defense to the IRC section 6676 penalty. Moreover, the penalty is immediately assessable, meaning taxpayers cannot fight the IRS in a pre-payment forum like the US Tax Court but must first pay the penalty and seek redress in a refund form.

In Exxon, the government argued that the court should overlay a subjective element on “reasonable basis,” as the US Circuit Court for the Eighth Circuit did in Wells Fargo & Co. v. United States, 957 F.3d 840 (8th Cir. 2020). Our prior coverage of this case can be found here. The Exxon court declined the invitation. Instead, the court explained IRC section 6676 “focuses on whether the claim had a reasonable basis, not on whether the taxpayer had a reasonable basis.” The court agreed with Exxon that its position in the refund claim that its transactions were purchases was reasonable based on the relevant authorities. It further found that the company had “colorable support for its legal contention that a change that affects whether, not when, an item comes into income is not [...]

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Weekly IRS Roundup July 20 – July 24, 2020

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of July 20, 2020 – July 24, 2020. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

July 20, 2020: The IRS published a news release on after-tax-day tips for taxpayers who missed the July 15, 2020, tax deadline and did not request an extension. The tips include advice on obtaining a refund and on reducing penalties and interest.

July 20, 2020: The IRS released public comments on the 2020-21 Priority Guidance Plan in response to Notice 2020-47, which invited the public to submit recommendations for items to be included on the 2020-2021 Priority Guidance Plan. The US Department of the Treasury and the IRS use the Priority Guidance Plan each year to identify and prioritize the tax issues that should be addressed through regulations, revenue rulings, revenue procedures, notices and other published administrative guidance.

July 21, 2020: The IRS announced the creation of the new Enterprise Digitalization and Case Management office, which will spearhead IRS efforts to empower taxpayers and IRS employees to rapidly resolve issues in a simplified digital environment. The office’s efforts will support overall IRS modernization and implementation of long-term changes stemming from the Taxpayer First Act. The new stand-alone office will focus on enhancing the taxpayer experience by improving business processes and modernizing systems.

July 22, 2020: The IRS published a notice to solicit comments on Form 3800 (General Business Credit). Section 38 permits taxpayers to reduce their income tax liability by the amount of their general business credit, which is an aggregation of various credits. Form 3800 is used to figure the correct credit. Comments are due on or before September 21, 2020.

July 23, 2020: The IRS published a notice requesting comments on TD 8435 that provides final income, estate and gift, and employment tax regulations relating to elections made under the Technical and Miscellaneous Revenue Act of 1988. This regulation enables taxpayers to take advantage of various benefits provided by the Internal Revenue Code (Code). Comments are due on or before September 21, 2020.

July 23, 2020: The IRS published final regulations under the global intangible low-taxed income (GILTI) and subpart F income provisions of the Code regarding income subject to a high rate of foreign tax. The final regulations allow taxpayers to exclude certain high-taxed income of a controlled foreign corporation from their GILTI computation on an elective basis. The final regulations are effective on September 21, 2020.

July 23, 2020: The IRS also published proposed regulations that generally conform the rules implementing the subpart F high-tax exception to the rules implementing the GILTI high-tax exclusion set forth in the final regulations, and provided for a single election under section 954(b)(4) for purposes [...]

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