The IRS Fixes Subpart F -- Sort Of

Excerpt from Practical US/International Tax Strategies by Joseph B. Darby III (Greenberg Traurig LLP) and Brainard Patton (Counselor at Law)

Ronald Reagan famously commented that the most scary phrase in the English language is, “We’re from the government and we’re here to help you.”

An even more celebrated saying is, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Now comes the Internal Revenue Service—unquestionably, these people are from the government—and they have decided to “help” us by delving into Subpart F of the Internal Revenue Code and “fixing” some esoteric but very important rules, including rules that address the consequences of contract manufacturing under the so-called “branch rule.” The branch rule is a significant limitation on the so-called “manufacturing exception,” which in turn is arguably the most important exception to the often tangled and always confusing “Subpart F rules” governing controlled foreign corporations (CFCs).

Let’s be frank about this: The branch rule is unquestionably broken, and has been broken for a long time. Now, let’s be even more frank: The branch rule is “broken” primarily because the Internal Revenue Service tried to fix it in the first place. Needless to say, some people—OK, a lot of people—have concerns about sending the IRS to fix a rule that the IRS has made far worse on several previous occasions.

Read More on the Proposed Regulations (free)