U.S. Shareholders Of A Passive Foreign Investment Company

OLIVIER WAGNER - US Expats With Passive Foreign Investment Company

The IRS found the way to congratulate U.S.expats who are shareholders of a Passive Foreign Investment Company(PFIC) by adding one additional form you need to file. Together with your tax return, you need to file Form 8621.

This applies for each separate PFIC you are a shareholder if you:

-Receive direct or indirect distributions from a PFIC.
-Recognize a gain on a direct or indirect disposition of PFIC stock.
-Report information with respect to a QEF or section 1296 mark-to-market election.
-Make an election reportable in Part II of the form.
-File an annual report pursuant to section 1298(f).

Who must file Form 8621?

A shareholder taking the benefits of income from a passive foreign investment company (PFICs). If you received a disposition of the shares of a PFIC by gift. Tax-free exchanges or redemptions.

Yet, in case you have investments in a foreign partnership, but the partnership does not own any shares, then you are not required to file a Form 8621.

What Information Is Required?

The main concern while filing is that you must choose to pay taxes currently on the shareholder’s pro-rata share of the income of the PFIC. There are two methods of electing to pay current taxes on the income of a PFIC. And a default method of taxation if no election is made.

Default method involves a complicated allocation of an “excess distribution”. Applied to the prior tax years in which the taxpayer was a shareholder. Another method is the Qualified Electing Fund (QEF) which requires extensive information from the PFIC.

In order to use the QEF election, the U.S. shareholders must own enough of the stock to force the fund managers to provide the required information for the shareholders to compute their share of the income of the PFIC each year.

Why do I need to file Form 8621?

Where there are no distributions to the shareholders, there are no explicit penalties for a failure to file the form.

Generally, it is to the advantage of a U.S. taxpayer to file this form and to make an election to pay taxes on the current income of the PFIC. If an election is not made to pay taxes on the current income of the PFIC, then any future distributions may be subject to the punitive tax on excess distributions.

In addition, the QEF election may permit the taxpayer to retain the benefits of the lower tax rate on long term capital gains realized by the PFIC.

There are no consequences for failure to file Form 8621. However, failure may impose the statute of limitations indefinitely for that tax year. As the US grantor who invests in any foreign mutual funds (PFICs), you will have to file a Form 8621.

Exemption From Filing

You are not required to file Form 8621 when you are:

not subject to tax under section 1291. On an excess distribution received from the PFIC during the shareholder’s tax year.
haven’t made a QEF election with respect to the PFIC. And either:

#1 the aggregate value of all PFIC stock at the end of its tax year does not exceed $25,000. $50,000 if you and your wife file together.
#2 the shareholder owns the PFIC stock through another PFIC. The value of the shareholder’s proportionate share of the upper-tier PFIC’s interest in the lower-tier PFIC does not exceed $5,000.

Have a question? Contact Olivier Wagner.

Olivier Wagner

Certified Public Accountant, U.S. immigrant, expat, and perpetual traveler Olivier Wagner preaches the philosophy of being a worldly American. He uses his expertise to show you how to use 100% legal strategies (beyond traditionally maligned “tax havens”) to keep your income and assets safe from the IRS. Before obtaining my U.S. citizenship and traveling all over the world, he was born and raised in France. His experience learning the intricacies of the U.S. immigration process combined with his desire to travel freely lead me to specialize in taxes for Americans living and working abroad. He helps Americans Abroad file their taxes and devise strategies that make sense for their lifestyle. These strategies encompass all aspects of registering an offshore business, opening a bank account abroad, and planning out new residencies and citizenships. He is operating the accounting firm 1040 Abroad. 1040 Abroad exists to help you make sense of an incredibly large world of possibilities. Find out more by visiting www.1040abroad.com

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