Various tax benefits, including tax exemption, tax deferral, tax credits, and deductions, are available if you are paying or saving for college or other higher education costs. This Guide suggests ways to take advantage of these benefits.
Many tax benefits are available to help you pay higher education costs, whether for your children or yourself. Because of the variety of benefits and programs, this area is one of the most complex that an individual can face. This Financial Guide discusses strategies you can use to build savings for higher education, and tax credits currently available to help ease the financial burden of paying for education.
Eligibility rules vary for education credits and savings plans and most are subject to income limitations.
Related Financial Guide: For more information about saving and investing to cover education costs, please see the Financial Guide: YOUR CHILD'S EDUCATION: How To Finance It.
Starting in 2013, you can contribute up to $2,000 to a Coverdell Education Savings account (a Section 530 program formerly known as an Education IRA) for a child under 18. These contributions are not deductible, but they grow tax-free until withdrawn. Contributions for any year can be made through the (unextended) due date for the return for that year.
There is no adjustment for inflation; therefore the $2,000 contribution limit is expected to remain at $2,000 for tax years 2012 and beyond.
Only cash can be contributed to a Section 530 account and you cannot contribute to the account after the child reaches his or her 18th birthday.
Anyone can establish and contribute to a Section 530 account, including the child. You may establish 530s for as many children as you wish, but the amount contributed during the year to each account cannot exceed $2,000. The child need not be a dependent, and, in fact, does not even need to be related to you. The maximum contribution amount for each child is subject to a phase-out limitation with a modified AGI between $190,000 and $220,000 for joint filers and $95,000 and $110,000 for single filers.
A 6 percent excise tax (to be paid by the beneficiary) applies to excess contributions. These are amounts in excess of the applicable contribution limit ($2,000 or phase out amount) and contributions for a year that amounts are contributed to a qualified tuition program for the same child. A qualified tuition program (QTP), sometimes called a Section 529 program, is a tax-favored state program to prepay education costs (see below). The 6 percent tax continues for each year the excess contribution stays in the 530 account.
The child must be named (designated as beneficiary) in the Coverdell document, but the beneficiary can be changed to another family member (for example, to a sibling where the first beneficiary gets a scholarship or drops out). And funds can be rolled over tax-free from one child's account to another child's account. Funds must be distributed not later than 30 days after the beneficiary's 30th birthday (or 20 days after the beneficiary's death if earlier). For special needs beneficiaries, age limits (i.e., no contributions after age 18, distribution by age 30) don't apply.
Withdrawals are taxable to the person who gets the money, with these major exceptions: Only the earnings portion is taxable (the contributions come back tax-free). Also, even that part isn't taxable income, as long as the amount withdrawn doesn't exceed a child's qualified higher education expenses; for that year. The definition of qualified higher education expenses" includes room and board and books, as well as tuition. In figuring whether withdrawals exceed qualified expenses, expenses are reduced by certain scholarships and by amounts for which tax credits (see Educational Credits, below) are allowed. If the amount withdrawn for the year exceeds the education expenses for the year, the excess is partly taxable under a complex formula. There's another formula if the sum of withdrawals from this 530 program and from the qualified tuition (Section 529) program exceed education expenses.
As the person who sets up the Section 530 account, you may change the beneficiary (the child who will get the funds) or roll the funds over to the account of a new beneficiary, tax-free, if the new beneficiary is a member of your family. But funds you take back (for example, withdrawal in a year when there are no qualified higher education expenses, because the child is not enrolled in higher education) are taxable to you, to the extent of earnings on your contributions, and you will generally have to pay an additional 10 percent tax on the taxable amount. However, you won't owe tax on earnings on amounts contributed that are returned to you by June 1 of the year following contribution.
In contrast to Section 529 programs and Series EE bonds, you are able to choose and change Section 530 investments as you see fit.
Check with your financial adviser about using both the Section 530 program, which has wide investment options but limited ($2,000 or less) contribution/investment amounts, and the Section 529 program, which has limited investment options but allows higher contribution/investment amounts.
Section 530 programs can be used to build up funds for primary and secondary education. The tax rules are similar to those for higher education: withdrawals taxable to the extent of earnings on contributions, except tax-free up to the child's qualified elementary and secondary education expenses. These expenses qualify whether the child attends a private, religious or public school. Expenses such as room, board, tuition, transportation, and uniforms will qualify only where connected with private or religious schools, but some expenses - books, computers, educational software and internet access - apply as well to children in public school living at home.
The age limits for higher education apply here too: no contribution after a child reaches age 18, distribution at age 30 except for special needs beneficiaries. Withdrawals in excess of qualified education expenses are taxable under a special formula.
Every state now has a program allowing persons to prepay for future higher education, with tax relief. Starting in 2018, funds in 529 Plans can also be used for K-12 education.
There are two basic plan types, with many variations among them:
In approaching state programs one must distinguish between what the federal tax law allows and what an individual state's program may impose.
You may open a Section 529 program in any state, but when buying prepaid tuition credits (less popular than savings accounts), you will want to know which institutions the credits will be applied to.
Unlike certain other tax-favored higher education programs, such as the American Opportunity Tax Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit, federal tax law doesn't limit the benefit to tuition, but can also extend it to room, board, and books (individual state programs could be narrower).
The two key individual parties to the program are the Designated Beneficiary (the student-to-be) and the Account Owner, who is entitled to choose and change the beneficiary and who is normally the principal contributor to the program. There are no income limits on who may be an account owner. There's only one designated beneficiary per account. Thus, a parent with three college-bound children might set up 3 accounts. (Some state programs don't allow the same person to be both beneficiary and account owner.)
Contributions must be in cash, and must not total more than reasonably needed for higher education (as determined initially by the state). Neither account owner or beneficiary may direct investments, but the state may allow the owner to select a type of investment fund (e.g., fixed income securities), and to change the investment annually, and when the beneficiary is changed. The account owner decides who gets the funds (can pick and change the beneficiary) and is legally allowed to withdraw funds at any time, subject to tax and penalty discussed later.
Funds in the account not yet distributed at the account owner's death pass as part of the probate estate under state law though this is not the result for federal estate tax purposes, see below.
Income tax. Contributions made by the account owner or other contributor are not deductible for federal income tax purposes. Earnings on contributions grow tax-free while in the program.
Distributions from the fund are tax-free to the extent used for qualified higher education expenses. Distributions used otherwise are taxable to the extent of the portion which represents earnings.
A Section 529 distribution can be tax-free even though the student is claiming an American Opportunity Tax Credit or the Lifetime Learning Credit. Section 530 Coverdell distributions are also tax-free if the programs aren't covering the same specific expenses.
Distribution for a purpose other than qualified education is taxed to the one getting the distribution. In addition, a 10 percent penalty must be imposed on the taxable portion of the distribution, comparable to the 10 percent penalty in Section 530 Coverdell plans.
The account owner may change the beneficiary designation from one to another in the same family. Funds in the account roll over tax-free for the benefit of the new beneficiary.
Gift Tax. For gift tax purposes, contributions are treated as completed gifts even though the account owner has the right to withdraw them. Thus, they qualify for the up-to-$16,000 annual gift tax exclusion in 2022 ($15,000 in 2021). One contributing more than $16,000 may elect to treat the gift as made in equal installments over the year of the gift and the following four years so that up to $80,000 can be given tax-free in the first year.
A rollover from one beneficiary to another in a younger generation is treated as a gift from the first beneficiary, an odd result for an act the "giver" may have had nothing to do with.
Estate tax. Funds in the account at the designated beneficiary's death are included in the beneficiary's estate, another odd result, since those funds may not be available to pay the tax. Funds in the account at the account owner's death are not included in the owner's estate, except for a portion thereof where the gift tax exclusion installment election is made for gifts over $15,000. For example, if the account owner made the election for a gift of $80,000 in 2022, a part of that gift is included in the estate if he or she dies within five years.
A Section 529 program can be an especially attractive estate-planning move for grandparents. There are no income limits, the account owner giving up to $80,000 avoids gift tax, and estate tax by living five years after the gift, yet has the power to change the beneficiary.
State Tax: For specifics of each state's program, see College Savings Plans Network (CSPN).
You can use a traditional IRA or Roth IRA as a savings plan to pay qualified higher education expenses. Withdrawals before age 59 1/2 to pay qualified higher education expenses are not subject to the additional tax on early withdrawals. To escape the 10 percent tax, however, you must pay education costs that at least equal your withdrawal amount. The education costs must be "qualified", that is, used for tuition, fees, books, room and board, supplies, or equipment at a qualified institution of learning and they must be for yourself, your spouse, or the children or grandchildren or yourself or your spouse. The qualified institution of learning may be any college, university, vocational school, or any other post-secondary school that is eligible to participate in federal Department of Education aid programs.
You do not actually have to use the IRA funds to pay education costs. That is, the tax relief doesn't require you to trace the IRA withdrawal dollars to a specific education expense payment. You can pay the costs with your own earnings or savings, with a loan, or with a gift or inheritance received by the student or the person making the withdrawal. You can use savings accumulated in a Section 529 (state-sponsored) program.
However, you cannot count education costs paid with proceeds from the following in determining whether your IRA withdrawal is to be free of the 10 percent tax:
You can exclude from your gross income interest on qualified U.S. savings bonds if you have qualified higher education expenses during the year in which you redeem the bonds. For tax year 2022, the exclusion begins phasing out at $85,800 ($83,200 in 2021) modified adjusted gross income ($76,000 indexed for inflation) and is eliminated for adjusted gross incomes of more than $100,800 ($98,200 in 2021). For married taxpayers filing jointly, the tax exclusion begins phasing out at $128,650 ($124,800 in 2021) and is eliminated for adjusted gross incomes of more than $158,650 ($154,800 in 2021). The exclusion is unavailable to married filing separately.
The education must be of the bondholder, his or her spouse or dependent. Qualified higher education expenses are tuition and fees, and contributions to Section 529 and 530 programs, reduced for tax-free scholarships and other relief.
A qualified U.S. savings bond means a Series EE bond issued after 1989. The bond must be either in your name or in the names of both you and your spouse, and you must be at least 24 years old before the bond's issue date.
Two tax credits are available for education costs - the American Opportunity Tax Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit. These credits are available only to taxpayers with adjusted gross income below specified amounts (see Income Phase-Outs below).
The amount of the credit you can claim depends on (1) how much you pay for qualified tuition and other expenses for students and (2) your adjusted gross income (AGI) for the year.
You must report the eligible student's name and Social Security number on your return to claim the credit. You subtract the credits from your federal income tax. If the credit reduces your tax below zero, you cannot receive the excess as a refund. If you receive a refund of education costs for which you claimed a credit in a later year, you may have to repay ("recapture") the credit.
If you file married-filing separately, you cannot claim these credits.
Which costs are eligible? Qualifying tuition and related expenses refer to tuition and fees, and course materials required for enrollment or attendance at an eligible education institution. They now include books, supplies, and equipment needed for a course of study whether or not the materials must be purchased from the educational institution as a condition of enrollment or attendance.
"Related" expenses do not include room and board, student activities, athletics (other than courses that are part of a degree program), insurance, equipment, transportation, or any personal, living, or family expenses. Student-activity fees are included in qualified education expenses only if the fees must be paid to the institution as a condition of enrollment or attendance. For expenses paid with borrowed funds, count the expenses when they are paid, not when borrowings are repaid.
If you pay qualified expenses for a school semester that begins in the first three months of the following year, you can use the prepaid amount in figuring your credit.
You pay $6,500 of tuition in December 2022 for the winter 2023 semester, which begins in January 2023. You can use the $6,500 in figuring your 2022 credit. If you paid in January instead, you would take the credit on your 2023 return.
As future year-end tax planning, this rule gives you a choice of the year to take the credit for academic periods beginning in the first three months of the year; pay by December and take the credit this year; pay in January or later and take the credit next year.
Eligible students. You, your spouse, or an eligible dependent (someone for whom you can claim a dependency exemption, including children under age 24 who are full-time students) can be an eligible student for whom the credit can apply. If you claim the student as a dependent, qualifying expenses paid by the student are treated as paid by you, and for your credit purposes are added to expenses you paid. A person claimed as another person's dependent can't claim the credit. The student must be enrolled at an eligible education institution (any accredited public, non-profit or private post-secondary institution eligible to participate in student Department of Education aid programs) for at least one academic period (semester, trimester, etc.) during the year.
No "double-dipping." The tax law says that you can't claim both a credit and a deduction for the same higher education costs. It also says that if you pay education costs with a tax-free scholarship, Pell grant, or employer-provided educational assistance, you cannot claim a credit for those amounts.
Income Limits. For 2022, the amount of both the American Opportunity Tax Credit and Lifetime Learning Credit begins to phase out when modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is between $80,000 and $90,000 ($160,000 and $180,000 for joint returns). The credit cannot be claimed if your MAGI is $90,000 or more ($180,000 or more for joint returns). "Modified AGI" generally means your adjusted gross income. The "modifications" only come into play if you have income earned abroad.
Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), the Lifetime Learning Credit and American Opportunity tax credit now have the same credit amounts and phase out ranges.
The American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) was made permanent by the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH). The maximum credit, available only for the first four years of post-secondary education, is $2,500. You can claim the credit for each eligible student you have for which the credit requirements are met.
Special Qualification Rules. In addition to being an eligible student, he or she:
Amount of credit. The maximum amount of the AOTC credit is $2,500. Generally, 40 percent of the AOTC is now a refundable credit for most taxpayers, which means that you can receive up to $1,000 even if you owe no taxes.
You may be able to claim a Lifetime Learning credit of up to $2,500 in 2022 (Consolidated Appropriations Act) for eligible students (subject to reduction based on your AGI). In years prior to 2021, this amount was $2,000 or 20 percent of the first $10,000 of qualified expense. Only one Lifetime Learning Credit can be taken per tax return, regardless of the number of students in the family.
Choosing the Credit. You can't claim both credits for the same person in the same year. But you can claim one credit for one or more family members and the other credit for expenses for one or more others in the same year - for example, an American Opportunity Tax Credit for your child and a Lifetime Learning Credit for yourself.
Electing Not To Take the Credit. There are situations in which the credit is not allowed, or not fully available, if some other education tax benefit is claimed - where the higher education expense deduction is claimed for the same student, see below, or where credit and tax exemption (under a Section 529 or 530 program) are claimed for the same expense. In that case, the taxpayer - or, more likely, the taxpayer's tax adviser - will determine which tax rule offers the greater benefit and if it's not the credit, elect not to take the credit.
The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 repealed the tuition and fees deduction for tax years beginning after 2020. Income limitations for the lifetime learning credit have been increased to help tax filers transition to the lifetime learning credit.
For tax years before 2021, a limited deduction was allowed for "qualified higher education expenses" - tuition and related expenses under the same definition as for tuition credits, above. A $4,000 above the line deduction (Form 8917) was allowed for qualified tuition expenses in 2020, as in 2019 and 2018. The deduction was allowed if a taxpayer's (modified) adjusted gross income was $80,000 or less ($160,000 or less on a joint return). This tax deduction reduced your amount of income, thereby reducing the amount of tax you paid. You did not need to itemize deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040) in order to take this deduction, which benefited higher earners who could not take the Lifetime Learning Credit because their income exceeded the limits.
For distributions made from qualified tuition programs (QTPs) after 2018, qualified higher education expenses may include:
Business expense deduction is allowed, without dollar limit, for education that serves the taxpayer's business, including employment. a deduction is also allowed for student loan interest, but a taxpayer may not take more than one deduction for the same item. In addition, you cannot claim this deduction if your filing status is married filing separately or if another person can claim an exemption for you as a dependent on his or her tax return.
"Qualified higher education expenses" must be reduced by any such expense paid with an amount treated as tax-free under the rules for excluding income from Series EE bonds, or Section 529 or 530 programs.
If your employer paid education assistance benefits (e.g., reimbursements of tuition), part or all of them may be tax-free. You can exclude up to $5,250 per year of the benefits you receive under a qualified educational assistance program. This means your employer shouldn’t include those benefits with your wages, tips and other compensation shown on your Form W-2, box 1. This also means that you don’t have to include the benefits on your income tax return.
You can't both exclude and deduct the same item, even if it's otherwise deductible. In order to qualify, your employer must have established an educational assistance plan that does not discriminate in favor of highly paid employees or owners. The exclusion applies to undergraduate level courses other than those involving sports, game, and hobbies. The courses do not need to relate to your job. The exclusion is available for tuition, fees, books, and supplies but not meals, lodging or transportation. And it applies to benefits for graduate-level courses.
In addition to the exclusion for qualifying education plans, your employer can provide reimbursement for business related courses, including graduate courses. Prior to tax year 2018, if your employer did not reimburse you for these expenses, you were entitled to deduct them as a miscellaneous itemized deduction on Schedule A, Itemized Deductions, subject to the two percent deduction floor. To qualify, the expense must meet the requirement of your employer or the law or maintain or improve skills in your current job. The course must not meet minimum education requirements for your job or qualify you for a new trade or business.
However, under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 ("tax reform"), for tax years 2018 through 2025, employee business-related deductions (including education expenses) are disallowed. That is, there are no miscellaneous deductions on Schedule A as there were previously. Self-employed individuals are still able to deduct qualifying educational expenses on Schedule C.
You may be able to deduct interest on student loans. You may also be able to exclude income that you would otherwise have to report if a student loan is canceled.
Interest Deduction. You may deduct student loan interest you pay, including interest paid that's not currently due because payment is deferred.
Deduction is allowed even though it would otherwise be nondeductible personal interest. But you may deduct only if you are the one legally bound to pay the interest, and only on loans solely for qualified expenses (so not under open credit lines).
The student-loan deduction (up to $2,500 starting in 2013), was made permanent by AFTRA, but only to taxpayers whose AGI is below $160,000 (joint filers) or $80,000 (single filers). Married couples filing separately can't take the deduction.
The student-loan interest deduction is an "above the line" deduction. In other words, you don't have to itemize in order to claim it. The loan must have been taken out to cover education expenses of at least half-time study for yourself, your spouse, or a person who was your dependent when you took out the loan.
You cannot deduct interest on a loan from a related person, for example, a relative, or a business entity in which you have an ownership interest as defined by the tax law. And you can't deduct if you are claimed as a dependent.
Where interest fails to qualify under these tests, consider a home equity loan, interest on which is generally deductible.
Cancellation of Student Loan. If certain requirements are met, cancellations of student loans that are intended to induce students to perform certain services do not increase the student's gross income. This relief extends to certain private programs, as well as government and public programs.
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Many tax benefits are available to you when you sell your principal residence. However, the rules are complex and personal guidance is necessary to take full advantage of these benefits so that you and your tax advisor can best work together to minimize the tax on the gain. This financial guide discusses the key rules so that you and your tax advisor can best work together to minimize the tax on the gain.
The IRS allows an exclusion of up to $250,000 of the gain on the sale of your main home ($500,000 if you are married and file a joint return. Most taxpayers can take advantage of the exclusion and will not have to pay any tax on the sale of a main home as long as they meet the IRS ownership and use tests (see below).
If you do have a loss from the sale, it is a personal loss. You cannot deduct the loss.
If you don't qualify for the exclusion, your gain exceeds the exclusion, or you used part of the property in business or for rent, you have a taxable gain and must report the sale of your main home on your tax return on IRS Form 8949, Sales and Other Dispositions of Capital Assets and Schedule D, Capital Gains and Losse.
Usually, the home you live in most of the time is your main home. In addition to a standard dwelling unit, your home can also be a houseboat, mobile home, cooperative apartment, or condominium.
Example 1: You own and live in a house in town. You also own beach property, which you use in the summer months. The town property is your main home; the beach property is not.
Example 2: You own a house, but you live in another house that you rent. The rented home is your main home.
Where a second residence has soared in value and you want to sell, some tax advisors have suggested moving to the second residence for the required period to qualify for exclusion on its sale. If this is your situation, please consult with a tax professional.
Key information for determining gain or loss is the selling price, the amount realized, and the adjusted basis.
The selling price is the total amount you receive for your home. It includes money, all notes, mortgages, or other debts assumed by the buyer as part of the sale, and the fair market value of any other property or any services you receive. Next, you deduct the selling expenses such as commissions, advertising, legal fees, and loan charges paid by the seller from the selling price.
The difference is the "amount realized." If the amount realized is more than your home's "adjusted basis," discussed later, the difference is your gain. If the amount realized is less than the adjusted basis, the difference is your loss.
However, it does not include amounts you received for personal property sold with your home. Personal property is property that is not a permanent part of the home, such as furniture, draperies, and lawn equipment.
The following discussion covers how to determine your gain or loss if you trade one home for another, if your home is foreclosed on or repossessed or if you transfer a jointly owned home.
Jointly owned home. If you and your spouse sell your jointly owned home and file a joint return, you figure and report your gain or loss as one taxpayer. If you file separate returns, each of you must figure and report your own gain or loss according to your ownership interest in the home. Your ownership interest is determined by state law.
If you and a joint owner other than your spouse sell your jointly owned home, each of you must figure and report your own gain or loss according to your ownership interest in the home. Each of you applies the exclusion rules individual basis.
Trading homes. If you trade your old home for another home, treat the trade as a sale and a purchase.
Foreclosure or repossession. If your home was foreclosed on or repossessed, you have what the IRS calls a disposition and will need to determine if you have ordinary income, gain, or loss. The amount of your gain or loss depends on whether you were personally liable for repaying the debt secured by the home and whether the outstanding loan balance is more than the fair market value (FMV) of the property.
If you were not personally liable for repaying the debt secured by the home, the amount you realize includes the full amount of the outstanding debt immediately before the transfer. This is true even if the FMV of the property is less than the outstanding debt immediately before the transfer.
If you were personally liable for repaying the debt secured by the home and the debt is canceled, the amount realized on the foreclosure or repossession includes the smaller of the outstanding debt immediately before the transfer reduced by any amount for which you remain personally liable immediately after the transfer, or the Fair Market Value (FMV) of the transferred property.
In addition to any gain or loss, if you were personally liable for the debt you may have ordinary income. If the canceled debt is more than the home's fair market value, you have ordinary income equal to the difference. However, the income from the cancellation of debt is not taxed to you if the cancellation is intended as a gift, or if you are insolvent or bankrupt.
You owned and lived in a home with an adjusted basis of $41,000. A real estate dealer accepted your old home as a trade-in and allowed you $50,000 toward a new house priced at $80,000 (its fair market value). You are considered to have sold your old home for $50,000 and to have had a gain of $9,000 ($50,000 minus $41,000). If the dealer had allowed you $27,000 and assumed your unpaid mortgage of $23,000 on your old home, $50,000 would still be considered the sales price of the old home (the trade-in allowed plus the mortgage assumed).
Transfer to spouse. If you transfer your home to your spouse, or to your former spouse incident to your divorce, you generally have no gain or loss, even if you receive cash or other consideration for the home. Therefore, the rules explained in this Guide do not apply.
If you owned your home jointly with your spouse and transfer your interest in the home to your spouse, or to your former spouse incident to your divorce, the same rule applies. You have no gain or loss.
If you buy or build a new home, its basis will not be affected by the transfer of your old home to your spouse, or to your former spouse incident to divorce. The basis of the home you transferred will not affect the basis of your new home.
You will need to know your basis in your home as a starting point for determining any gain or loss when you sell it. Your basis in your home is determined by how you got the home. Your basis is its cost if you bought it or built it. If you acquired it in some other way, its basis is either its fair market value when you received it or the adjusted basis of the person you received it from.
While you owned your home, you may have made adjustments (increases or decreases) to the basis. This adjusted basis is used to figure gain or loss on the sale of your home.
The cost of property is the amount you pay for it in cash or other property.
Purchase. If you buy your home, your basis is its cost to you. This includes the purchase price and certain settlement or closing costs. Your cost includes your down payment and any debt, such as a first or second mortgage or notes you gave the seller in payment for the home.
Seller-paid points. If you bought your home after April 3, 1994, you must reduce the basis of your home by any points the seller paid, whether or not you deducted them. If you bought your home after 1990 but before April 4, 1994, you must reduce your basis by the amount of seller-paid points only if you chose to deduct them as home mortgage interest in the year paid.
Settlement fees or closing costs. When buying your home, you may have to pay settlement fees or closing costs in addition to the contract price of the property. You can include in your basis the settlement fees and closing costs that are for buying the home. You cannot include in your basis the fees and costs that are for getting a mortgage loan. A fee is for buying the home if you would have had to pay it even if you paid cash for the home.
Settlement fees do not include amounts placed in escrow for the future payment of items such as taxes and insurance.
Some of the settlement fees or closing costs that you can include in the basis of your property are:
Some settlement fees and closing costs not included in your basis are:
Real estate taxes. Real estate taxes for the year you bought your home may affect your basis, as follows:
If you pay taxes that the seller owed on the home up to the date of sale and the seller does not reimburse you, then the taxes are added to the basis of your home.
If you pay taxes that the seller owed on the home up to the date of sale and the seller does reimburse you, then the taxes do not affect the basis of your home.
If the seller pays taxes for you (taxes owed beginning on the date of sale) and you do not reimburse the seller, then the taxes are subtracted from the basis of your home.
If the seller pays taxes for you (taxes owed beginning on the date of sale) and you reimburse the seller, then the taxes do not affect the basis of your home.
Construction. If you contracted to have your house built on land you own; your basis is the cost of the land plus the amount it cost you to complete the house. This amount includes the cost of labor and materials, or the amounts paid to the contractor, and any architect's fees, building permit charges, utility meter, and connection charges, and legal fees directly connected with building your home. Your cost includes your down payment and any debt, such as a first or second mortgage or notes you gave the seller or builder. It also includes certain settlement or closing costs. You may have to reduce the basis by points the seller paid for you. If you built all or part of your house yourself, its basis is the total amount it cost you to complete it. Do not include the value of your own labor or any other labor you did not pay for, in the cost of the house.
Cooperative apartment. Your basis in the apartment is usually the cost of your stock in the co-op housing corporation, which may include your share of a mortgage on the apartment building.
Condominium. Your basis is generally its cost to you. The same rules apply as for any other home.
If your home was acquired in a transaction other than a traditional purchase (such as gift, inheritance, trade, or from a spouse), you may have to use a basis other than cost, such as fair market value.
Fair market value is the price at which the property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither having to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts. Sales of similar property, on or about the same date, may be helpful in figuring the fair market value of the property.
Home received as gift. If your home was a gift, its basis to you is the same as the donor's adjusted basis when the gift was made. However, if the donor's adjusted basis was more than the fair market value of the home when it was given to you, you must use that fair market value as your basis for measuring any loss on its sale.
If you use the donor's adjusted basis to figure a gain and get a loss, and then use the fair market value to figure a loss and get a gain, you have neither a gain nor a loss on the sale or disposition.
If you received your home as a gift and its fair market value was more than the donor's adjusted basis at the time of the gift, you may be able to add to your basis any federal gift tax paid on the gift. If the gift was before 1977, the basis cannot be increased to more than the fair market value of the home when it was given to you. On the other hand, if you received your home as a gift after 1976, you would add to your basis the part of the federal gift tax paid that is due to the home's "net increase" in value (value less donor's adjusted basis).
Home received from spouse. You may have received your home from your spouse or from your former spouse incident to your divorce.
Your jointly owned home had an adjusted basis of $50,000 on the date of your spouse's death, and the fair market value on that date was $100,000. Your new basis in the home is $75,000 ($25,000 for one-half of the adjusted basis plus $50,000 for one-half of the fair market value).
In community property states (Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin), each spouse is usually considered to own half of the community property. When either spouse dies, the fair market value of the community property becomes the basis of the entire property, including the portion belonging to the surviving spouse. For this to apply, at least, half of the community interest must be included in the decedent's gross estate, whether or not the estate must file a return.
Home received in trade. If you acquired your home in a trade for other property, the basis of your home is generally its fair market value at the time of the trade. If you traded one home for another, you have made a sale and purchase. In that case, you may have realized a capital gain.
Adjusted basis is your cost or other basis increased or decreased by certain amounts.
Increases to basis include:
Decreases to basis include:
Discharges of qualified principal residence indebtedness. You may be able to exclude from gross income a discharge of qualified principal residence indebtedness. This exclusion applies to discharges made after 2006 through the end of 2025 (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021) and also applies to debts forgiven as the result of a written agreement entered into before January 1, 2026, even if the actual discharge happens later. If you choose to exclude this income, you must reduce (but not below zero) the basis of your principal residence by the amount excluded from gross income.
Amount eligible for the exclusion. The exclusion applies only to debt discharged after 2006 and before 2025. The maximum amount you can treat as qualified principal residence indebtedness is $750,000 ($375,000 if married and filing separately). Prior to December 31, 2020, this amount was $2 million ($1 million if married filing separately). You cannot exclude from gross income discharge of qualified principal residence indebtedness if the discharge was for services performed for the lender or on account of any other factor not directly related to a decline in the value of your residence or to your financial condition.
Improvements. These add to the value of your home, prolong its useful life, or adapt it to new uses. You add the cost of improvements to the basis of your property.
Putting a recreation room in your unfinished basement, adding another bathroom or bedroom, putting up a fence, putting in new plumbing or wiring, installing a new roof, or paving your driveway are improvements.
Here are some other examples:
You put wall-to-wall carpeting in your home 15 years ago. Later, you replaced that carpeting with new wall-to-wall carpeting. The cost of the old carpeting you replaced is no longer part of your home's adjusted basis.
Repairs. These maintain the good condition of your home. They do not add to its value or prolong its life, and you do not add their costs to the basis of your property.
Repainting your house inside or outside, fixing your gutters or floors, repairing leaks or plastering, and replacing broken window panes are examples of repairs.
The entire job is considered an improvement, however, if items that would otherwise be considered repairs are done as part of an extensive remodeling or restoration of your home.
Recordkeeping. You should keep records of your home's purchase price and purchase expenses. Furthermore, you should also save receipts and other records for all improvements, additions, and other items that affect the basis of your home.
You must keep records for 3 years after the due date for filing your return for the tax year in which you sold, or otherwise disposed of, your home. But if the basis of your old home affects the basis of your new one, such as when you sold your old home before May 7, 1997, and postponed tax on any gain, you should keep those records forever.
The records you should keep include:
If you sell your main home after May 6, 1997, you may qualify to exclude up to $250,000 of the gain ($500,000 if married filing jointly) on the sale of your main home; however, to claim the exclusion, you must meet the ownership and use tests. This means that during the 5-year period ending on the date of the sale, you must have:
Exception. If you owned and lived in the property as your main home for less than 2 years, you can still claim an exclusion in some cases. However, the maximum amount you may be able to exclude will be reduced.
If you sell the land on which your main home is located, but not the house itself, you cannot exclude any gain you have from the sale of the land.
If you have more than one home, only the sale of your main home qualifies for excluding the gain. If you have two homes and live in both of them, your main home is the one you live in most of the time.
If you owned and used the property as your main home for less than 2 years, you may be able to claim a reduced exclusion.
The two years of ownership and use during the five-year period don't have to be continuous. You meet the tests if you can show that you owned and lived in the property as your main home for either 24 full months or 730 days during the five-year period. Short temporary absences, e.g., for vacations, are counted as periods of use, even if you rent out the property during that time.
From 1994 through August 2007, Anne lived with her parents in a house that her parents owned. On September 29, 2007, she bought this house from her parents. She continued to live there until December 15 of 2007 when she sold it at a gain. Although Anne lived in the property as her main home for more than 2 years, she did not own it for the required 2 years. Therefore, she cannot exclude any part of her gain on the sale, unless she sold the property due to a change in health or place of employment.
Professor Moore bought and moved into a house on January 4, 2005. He lived in it as his main home continuously until October 1, 2006, when he went abroad for a one-year sabbatical. During part of the leave, the house was unoccupied, and during the rest of the time, he rented it out. On October 1, 2007, he sold the house. Because his leave was not a short temporary absence, he cannot include the period of leave to meet the 2-year use test.
Ownership and Use Tests Met at Different Times. You can meet the ownership and use tests during different 2-year periods. However, you must meet both tests during the 5-year period ending on the date of the sale.
In 1996, Harry was 60 years old and lived in a rental apartment. When the apartment building went co-op, he bought his apartment on December 1, 1999. Harry then went to live with his daughter on April 14, 2001, because he became ill. On July 10, 2003, he sold his co-op while still living with his daughter. Harry can exclude gain on the sale of his co-op because he met the ownership and use tests. His 5-year period runs from July 11, 1998, to July 10, 2003, the date he sold the co-op. Even though he only owned the co-op from December 1, 1999, to July 10, 2003--over two years, he lived in the apartment from July 11, 1997 (the beginning of the five-year period) to April 14, 2001 (over two years).
Special Situations. There are a number of special situations that may result in exceptions to the general rules.
Individuals with Disabilities. There is an exception to the 2-out-of-5-year use test if you become physically or mentally unable to care for yourself at any time during the 5-year period. You qualify for this exception to the use test if, during the 5-year period before the sale of your home:
Under this exception, you are considered to live in your home during any time that you live in a facility (including a nursing home) that is licensed by a state or political subdivision to care for persons in your condition.
If you meet this exception to the use test, you still have to meet the 2-out-of-5-year ownership test to claim the exclusion.
Gain postponed on sale of previous home. For the ownership and use tests, you may be able to add the time you owned and lived in a previous home to the time you lived in the home on which you wish to exclude gain. You can do this if you postponed all or part of the gain on the sale of the previous home because of buying the home on which you wish to exclude gain.
Also, if buying the previous home enabled you to postpone all or part of the gain on the sale of a home you owned earlier, you can also include the time you owned and lived in that earlier home.
Previous home destroyed or condemned. For the ownership and use test, you add the time you owned and lived in a previous home that was destroyed or condemned to the time you owned and lived in the home on which you wish to exclude gain. This rule applies if any part of the basis of the home you sold depended on the basis of the destroyed or condemned home. Otherwise, you must have owned and lived in the same home for 2 of the 5 years before the sale to qualify for the exclusion.
Members of the uniformed services or Foreign Service, employees of the intelligence community, or employees or volunteers of the Peace Corps. You can choose to have the 5-year test period for ownership and use suspended during any period you or your spouse serve on qualified official extended duty (defined later) as a member of the uniformed services or Foreign Service of the United States, or as an employee of the intelligence community.
You can choose to have the 5-year test period for ownership and use suspended during any period you or your spouse serve outside the United States either as an employee of the Peace Corps on qualified official extended duty (defined later) or as an enrolled volunteer or volunteer leader of the Peace Corps. This means that you may be able to meet the 2-year use test even if, because of your service, you did not actually live in your home for at least the required 2 years during the 5-year period ending on the date of sale.
The period of suspension cannot last more than 10 years. Together, the 10-year suspension period and the 5-year test period can be as long as, but no more than, 15 years. You cannot suspend the 5-year period for more than one property at a time. You can revoke your choice to suspend the 5-year period at any time.
If you and your spouse file a joint return for the year of sale, you can exclude gain (up to $500,000) if either spouse meets the ownership and use tests.
Mary sells her home in June of this year and marries John later in the year. She meets the ownership and use tests, but John does not. Emily can exclude up to $250,000 of gain on a separate or joint return for this year.
Now assume that John also sells a home. He meets the ownership and use tests on his home. Mary and John can each exclude $250,000 of gain.
Death of spouse before sale. If your spouse died before the date of sale, you are considered to have owned and used the property as your main home during any period of time when your spouse owned and used it as his or her main home.
Home transferred from spouse. If your home was transferred to you by your spouse (or former spouse if the transfer was incident to divorce), you are considered to have owned it during any period of time when your spouse owned it.
Use of home after divorce. You are considered to have used property as your main home during any period when you owned it and your spouse or former spouse is allowed to use it under a divorce or separation instrument. Such use is added to your own use before or after divorce.
Home destroyed or condemned. If your home is destroyed or condemned after May 6, 1997, any gain (e.g., due to insurance proceeds) qualifies for the exclusion.
Expatriates. You cannot claim the exclusion if the expatriate tax applies to you because you have renounced their citizenship and one of the primary purposes was to avoid U.S. taxes.
More Than One Home Sold During the Two-Year Period. You cannot exclude gain on the sale of your home if, during the two-year period ending on the date of the sale, you sold another home at a gain and are excluding all or part of that gain. If you cannot exclude the gain, you must include it in your income.
However, you can claim a reduced exclusion if you sold the home due to a change in health or place of employment or experienced unforeseen circumstances such as natural disasters, death, or unemployment (eligible unemployment compensation). When counting the number of sales during a two-year period, do not count sales before May 7, 1997.
The $250,000 (or $500,000) exclusion is reduced according to a formula whose numerator is the number of days of qualified ownership or use (or between sales of the homes) and the denominator is 730 days (for 2 years). If married filing jointly, duplicate the same calculation for your spouse's ownership and use (or days between sales).
You owned and used your main home for 400 days before selling it at a $150,000 gain following your move to a new job location. Your exclusion is $136,986, that is, 400/730 x $250,000.
Change in Place of Employment. You may qualify for a reduced exclusion if the primary reason for the sale of your main home is a change in the location of employment of a qualified individual.
Health. You may qualify for a reduced exclusion if the sale of your main home is because of health if your primary reason for the sale is to obtain, provide, or facilitate the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, or treatment of disease, illness, or injury of a qualified individual, or to obtain or provide medical or personal care for a qualified individual suffering from a disease, illness, or injury.
Unforeseen Circumstances. You may qualify for a reduced exclusion if the sale of your main home is because of an unforeseen circumstance if your primary reason for the sale is the occurrence of an event that you could not reasonably have anticipated before buying and occupying that home. You are not considered to have an unforeseen circumstance if the primary reason you sold your home was that you preferred to get a different home or because your finances improved.
Home used in business. So long as the business use takes place in the same dwelling unit as your main home, the exclusion is not affected by business use, with this exception: You cannot exclude the part of your gain that is equal to any depreciation allowed or allowable for the business use of your home after May 6, 1997. The 2 out of 5-year use-as-the-main-home test is not applied to deny exclusion for gain allocable to business use in the same dwelling unit, except for allowable depreciation.
You bought a home in 1997 and used it throughout 3/4 as your residence and 1/4 as your home office. On December 30, 2002, you sold it. The gain qualifies for exclusion except that you cannot exclude the part of your gain that is equal to any depreciation allowed or allowable for the business use of your home after May 6, 1997.
If you financed your home under a federally subsidized program (loans from tax-exempt qualified mortgage bonds or loans with mortgage credit certificates), you may have to recapture all or part of the benefit you received from that program when you sell or otherwise dispose of your home. You recapture the benefit by increasing your federal income tax for the year of the sale. You may have to pay this recapture tax even if you can exclude your gain from income under the rules discussed earlier; that exclusion does not affect the recapture tax.
Adjusted basis: This is your basis in the property increased or decreased by certain amounts. See Adjusted Basis, earlier in this Guide, for a list of items that increase or decrease your basis in the property.
Amount realized: This is the selling price of your old home minus your selling expenses.
Basis: Your basis in the property is determined by how you got it. If you bought or built the property, your basis is what it cost you. If you got the property in some other way, your basis will be determined differently. See Cost as Basis and Basis Other Than Cost earlier in this Guide for more information.
Date of sale: If you received a Form 1099-S, Proceeds From Real Estate Transactions, the date should be shown in box 1. If you did not receive this form, the date of sale is the earlier of (a) the date title transferred or (b) the date the economic burdens and benefits of ownership shifted to the buyer. In most cases, these dates are the same.
Fair market value: Fair market value is the price at which property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither having to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts. Sales of similar property, on or about the same date, may be helpful in figuring the fair market value of the property.
Fixing-up expenses: These are costs you pay for decorating or repairing your home to make it easier to sell. You may be able to deduct fixing-up expenses from the amount realized on the sale of your old home.
Gain: Your gain on the sale of your home is the amount realized minus the adjusted basis of the home you sold.
Improvements: These add to the value of your home, prolong the life of the property or allow the property to be used for new purposes. The cost of improvements increases your basis in the property.
Main home: This is the home you live in most of the time. It can be a house, houseboat, cooperative apartment, condominium, etc.
Repairs: These maintain your property in good condition. They differ from Improvements in that they do not add much to the value or life of the property and their cost does not increase your basis in the property.
Seller-financed mortgage: This is a mortgage from the buyer of your home. The buyer makes mortgage payments to you.
Selling expenses: Selling expenses include items such as sales commissions and advertising and legal fees you pay to sell your home. Selling expenses also usually include loan charges you pay on the buyer's behalf as an aid in selling your home, such as loan placement fees or "points."
Settlement fees (or closing costs): These are amounts paid in purchasing your property in addition to the contract price. Some of these amounts are added to the basis of the property and some are deductible as itemized deductions. Certain amounts are neither deductible nor added to the basis of the property. See Settlement fees or closing costs under Basis, earlier in this Guide, for more details.
This Content is for informational purposes only. Nothing contained herein constitutes accounting, tax, financial, investment, legal or other professional advice, and, accordingly, the author and the distributor assume no liability whatsoever in connection with its use. This Content is not an exhaustive explanation of any topic, practice or process. You should seek the advice of a licensed professional before making any accounting, tax, financial, investment or legal decision.
This Financial Guide explains when and to what extent points paid on the purchase of a home or refinancing are deductible. It explains the rules for deducting points and discusses special circumstances and situations.
For an explanation of the deductibility of home mortgage interest, please click here.
The term "points" is used to describe certain charges paid or treated as paid, by a borrower to obtain a home mortgage. Points may also be called loan origination fees, maximum loan charges, loan discount, or discount points.
Points are prepaid interest and may be deductible as home mortgage interest if you itemize deductions on Form 1040, Schedule A. Generally, if you can deduct all of the interest on your mortgage, you may be able to deduct all of the points paid on the mortgage. If your acquisition debt exceeds $750,000 for tax years 2018-2025 or your home equity debt exceeds $100,000, you cannot deduct all the interest on your mortgage, and you cannot deduct all your points.
A borrower is treated as paying any points that a home seller pays for the borrower's mortgage. See "Points Paid by Seller," later.
Generally, you cannot deduct the full amount of points in the year paid. Because they are prepaid interest, you generally must deduct them over the life (term) of the mortgage.
However, you can fully deduct points in the year paid if you meet all of the following tests.
Home improvement loan. You can also fully deduct in the year paid points paid on a loan to improve your main home if statements (1) through (5) above are true.
Amounts charged by the lender for specific services connected to the loan are not considered interest. Examples of these charges are:
You cannot deduct these amounts as points either in the year paid or over the life of the mortgage.
The term "points" includes loan placement fees that the seller pays to the lender to arrange financing for the buyer. The seller cannot deduct these fees as interest. But they are a selling expense that reduces the seller's amount realized. The buyer reduces the basis of the home by the amount of the seller-paid points and treats the points as if he or she had paid them. If all the tests explained earlier are met, the buyer can deduct the points in the year paid. If any of those tests are not met, the buyer deducts the points over the life of the loan.
If you meet all the tests referred to earlier; except that the funds you provided were less than the points charged to you (test 9), you can deduct the points in the year paid, up to the amount of funds you provided. You can also deduct any points paid by the seller.
Example 1: When you took out a $100,000 mortgage loan to buy your home in December, you were charged one point ($1,000). You meet all the nine tests for deducting points in the year paid, except the only funds you provided were a $750 down payment. Of the $1,000 charged for points, you can deduct $750 in the year paid. You spread the remaining $250 over the life of the mortgage.
Example 2: The facts are the same as in the example above except that the person who sold you your home also paid one point ($1,000) to help you get your mortgage. In the year paid, you can deduct $1,750 ($750 of the amount you were charged plus the $1,000 paid by the seller). You must reduce the basis of your home by the $1,000 paid by the seller.
If you meet all the tests except that the points paid were more than generally paid in your area (test 3), you deduct in the year paid only the points that are generally charged. You must spread any additional points over the life of the mortgage.
The general rule of instant deductibility does not apply to points you pay on loans secured by your second home. You can deduct these points only over the life of the loan.
If you spread your deduction for points over the life of the mortgage, you can deduct any remaining balance in the year the mortgage ends. However, if you refinance the mortgage with the same lender, you cannot deduct any remaining balance of spread points. Instead, deduct the remaining balance over the term of the new loan.
A mortgage may end early due to a prepayment, refinancing, foreclosure, or similar event.
Example: Dan paid $3,000 in points in 2008 that he had to spread out over the 15-year life of the mortgage. He deducts $200 points per year. Through 2019, Dan has deducted $2,200 of the points. Dan prepaid his mortgage in full in 2019. He can deduct the remaining $800 of points in 2019.
Generally, points you pay to refinance a mortgage are not deductible in full in the year you pay them. This is true even if the new mortgage is secured by your main home.
However, if you use part of the refinanced mortgage proceeds to improve your main home and you meet the first five tests listed earlier; you can fully deduct the part of the points related to the improvement in the year paid. You can deduct the rest of the points over the life of the loan.
Example 1: In 1999, Bill Fields got a mortgage to buy a home. In 2019, Bill refinanced that mortgage with a 15-year $100,000 mortgage loan. The mortgage is secured by his home. To get the new loan, he had to pay three points ($3,000). Two points ($2,000) were for prepaid interest, and one point ($1,000) was charged for services, in place of amounts that ordinarily are stated separately on the settlement statement. Bill paid the points out of his private funds, rather than out of the proceeds of the new loan. The payment of points is an established practice in the area and the points charged are not more than the amount generally charged there. Bill's first payment on the new loan was due July 1. He made six payments on the loan in 2019 and is a cash basis taxpayer.
Bill used the funds from the new mortgage to repay his existing mortgage. Although the new mortgage loan was for Bill's continued ownership of his main home, it was not for the purchase or improvement of that home. For that reason, Bill does not meet all the tests, and he cannot deduct all of the points in 2019. He can deduct two points ($2,000) ratable over the life of the loan. He deducts $67 [($2,000 ÷ 180 months) x 6 payments] of the points in 2019. The other point ($1,000) was a fee for services and is not deductible.
Example 2: The facts are the same as in Example 1, except that Bill used $25,000 of the loan proceeds to improve his home and $75,000 to repay his existing mortgage. Bill deducts 25 percent ($25,000 ÷ $100,000) of the points ($2,000) in 2019. Therefore, his deduction is $500 ($2,000 x 0.25).
Bill also deducts the ratable part of the remaining $1,500 ($2,000 - $500) prepaid interest that must be spread over the life of the loan. This is $50 [($1,500 ÷ 180 months) x 6 payments] in 2018. The total amount Bill deducts in 2019 is $550 ($500 + $50).
You cannot fully deduct points paid on a mortgage that exceeds the limits on home mortgages for purposes of the home mortgage interest deduction.
The mortgage interest statement (Form 1098) you receive should show not only the total interest paid during the year but also your deductible points.
The statement will show the total interest you paid during the year. If you purchased a main home during the year, it also will show the deductible points paid during the year, including seller-paid points. However, it should not show any interest that was paid for you by a government agency.
As a general rule, Form 1098 will include only points that you can fully deduct in the year paid. However, certain points not included on Form 1098 also may be deductible, either in the year paid or over the life of the loan. See the earlier discussion of Points to determine whether you can deduct points not shown on Form 1098.
This Content is for informational purposes only. Nothing contained herein constitutes accounting, tax, financial, investment, legal or other professional advice, and, accordingly, the author and the distributor assume no liability whatsoever in connection with its use. This Content is not an exhaustive explanation of any topic, practice or process. You should seek the advice of a licensed professional before making any accounting, tax, financial, investment or legal decision.
Annuities may help you meet some of your mid and long-range goals such as planning for your retirement and for a child's college education. This Financial Guide tells you how annuities work, discusses the various types of annuities, and helps you determine which annuity product (if any) suits your situation. It also discusses the tax aspects of annuities and explains how to shop for both an insurance company and an annuity, once you know which type you'll need.
While traditional life insurance guards against "dying too soon," an annuity, in essence, can be used as insurance against "living too long." In brief, when you buy an annuity (generally from an insurance company, that invests your funds), you in turn receive a series of periodic payments that are guaranteed as to amount and payment period. Thus, if you choose to take the annuity payments over your lifetime (keep in mind that there are many other options), you will have a guaranteed source of "income" until your death. If you "die too soon" (that is, you don't outlive your life expectancy), you will get back from the insurer far less than you paid in. On the other hand, if you "live too long" (and do outlive your life expectancy), you may get back far more than the cost of your annuity (and the resultant earnings). By comparison, if you put your funds into a traditional investment, you may run out of funds before your death.
The earnings that occur during the term of the annuity are tax-deferred. You are not taxed on them until they are paid out. Because of the tax deferral, your funds have the chance to grow more quickly than they would in a taxable investment.
Assess the costs of an annuity relative to the alternatives. Separate purchase of life insurance and tax-deferred investments may be more cost effective.
The two primary reasons to use an annuity as an investment vehicle are:
Annuities lend themselves particularly well to funding retirement and, in certain cases, education costs.
One negative aspect of an annuity is that you cannot get to your money during the growth period without incurring taxes and penalties. The tax code imposes a 10 percent premature-withdrawal penalty on money taken out of a tax-deferred annuity before age 59½, and insurers impose penalties on withdrawals made before the term of the annuity is up. The insurers' penalties are termed "surrender charges," and they usually apply for the first seven years of the annuity contract.
These penalties lead to a de facto restriction on the use of annuities primarily as an investment. It only makes sense to put your money into an annuity if you can leave it there for at least ten years and the withdrawals are scheduled to occur after age 59½. These restrictions explain why annuities work well for either retirement needs or for cases of education funding where the depositor will be at least 59½ when withdrawals begin.
The greater the investment return, the less punishing the 10 percent penalty on withdrawal under age 59½ will appear. If your variable annuity investments have grown substantially, you may want to consider taking some of those profits (despite the penalty, which applies only to the taxable portion of the amount withdrawn).
Annuities can also be effective in funding education costs where the annuity is held in the child's name under the provisions of the Uniform Gifts to Minors Act. The child would then pay tax (and 10 percent penalty) on the earnings when the time came for withdrawals.
A major drawback is that the child is free to use the money for any purpose, not just education costs.
The available annuity products vary in terms of (1) how money is paid into the annuity contract, (2) how money is withdrawn, and (3) how the funds are invested. Here is a rundown on some of the annuity products you can buy:
Single-Premium Annuities. You can purchase a single-premium annuity, in which the investment is made all at once (perhaps using a lump sum from a retirement plan payout). The minimum investment is usually $5,000 or $10,000.
Flexible-Premium Annuities. With the flexible-premium annuity, the annuity is funded with a series of payments. The first payment can be quite small.
Immediate Annuities. The immediate annuity starts payments right after the annuity is funded. It is usually funded with a single premium and is usually purchased by retirees with funds they have accumulated for retirement.
Deferred Annuities. With a deferred annuity, payouts begin many years after the annuity contract is issued. You can choose to take the scheduled payments either in a lump sum or as an annuity, that is, as regular annuity payments over some guaranteed period. Deferred annuities are used as long-term investment vehicles by retirees and non-retirees alike. They are used to fund tax-deferred retirement plans and tax-sheltered annuities. They may be funded with a single or flexible premium.
Fixed Annuities. With a fixed annuity contract, the insurance company puts your funds into conservative fixed income investments such as bonds. Your principal is guaranteed and the insurance company gives you an interest rate that is guaranteed for a certain minimum period from a month to several years. This guaranteed interest rate is adjusted upwards or downwards at the end of the guarantee period. Thus, the fixed annuity contract is similar to a CD or a money market fund, depending on the length of the period during which interest is guaranteed. The fixed annuity is considered a low-risk investment vehicle. All fixed annuities also guarantee you a certain minimum rate of interest of 3 to 5 percent for the entirety of the contract. The fixed annuity is a good choice for investors with a low-risk tolerance and a short-term investing time horizon. The growth that will occur will be relatively low. Fixed annuity investors benefit if interest rates fall, but not if they rise.
Variable Annuities. The variable annuity, which is considered to carry with it higher risks than the fixed annuity - about the same risk level as a mutual fund investment - gives you the ability to choose how to allocate your money among several different managed funds. There are usually three types of funds: stocks, bonds, and cash-equivalents. Unlike the fixed annuity, there are no guarantees of principal or interest. However, the variable annuity does benefit from tax deferral on the earnings.
You can switch your allocations from time to time for a small fee or sometimes for free.
The variable annuity is a good annuity choice for investors with a moderate to high-risk tolerance and a long-term investing time horizon. Variable annuities have higher costs than similar investments that are not issued by an insurance company.
The taxable portion of variable annuity distributions is taxable at full ordinary rates, even if they are based on stock investments. Unlike dividends from stock investments (including mutual funds), there is no capital gains relief.
Annuities are available that combine both fixed and variable features. Before buying an annuity, contribute as much as possible to other tax-deferred options such as IRA's and 401 (k) plans. The reason is that the fees for these plans are likely to be lower than those of an annuity and early-withdrawal fees on annuities tend to be steep.
IRA contributions are sometimes invested in flexible premium annuities with IRA deduction, if otherwise available. You may prefer to use IRAs for non-annuity assets. Non-annuity assets gain the ability to grow tax-free when held in an IRA. The IRA regime adds no such benefit to annuity assets which grow tax-free in or outside IRAs.
When it's time to begin taking withdrawals from your deferred annuity, you have a number of choices. Most people choose a monthly annuity-type payment, although a lump sum withdrawal is also possible.
Once you have chosen a payment option, you cannot change your mind.
The size of your payout (settlement option) depends on:
Here are summaries of the most common forms of payout:
This type gives you a fixed monthly amount (chosen by you) that continues until your annuity is used up. The risk of using this option is that you may live longer than your money lasts. Thus, if the annuity is your only source of income, the fixed amount is not a good choice. And, if you die before your annuity is exhausted, your beneficiary gets the rest.
This option pays you a fixed amount over the time period you choose. For example, you might choose to have the annuity paid out over ten years. If you are seeking retirement income before some other benefits start, this may be a good option. If you die before the period is up, your beneficiary gets the remaining amount.
This type of payment continues until you die. There are no payments to survivors. The life annuity gives you the highest monthly benefit of the options listed here. The risk is that you will die early, thus leaving the insurance company with some of your funds. The life annuity is a good choice if (1) you do not need the annuity funds to provide for the needs of a beneficiary and (2) you want to maximize your monthly income.
This form of payment gives you payments as long as you live (as does the life annuity) but with a minimum period during which you or your beneficiary will receive payments, even if you die earlier than expected. The longer the guarantee period, the lower the monthly benefit.
This option pays you as long as you live and guarantees that, should you die early, whatever is left of your original investment will be paid to a beneficiary. Monthly payments are less than with a straight life annuity.
In one joint and survivor option, monthly payments are made during the annuitants' joint lives, with the same or a lesser amount paid to whoever is the survivor. In the option typically used for retired employees (employment model), monthly payments are made to the retired employee, with the same or a lesser amount to the employee's surviving spouse or another beneficiary. The difference is that with the employment model, the spouse's (or other co annuitant's) death before the employee won't affect what the survivor employee collects. The amount of the monthly payments depends on the annuitants' ages, and whether the survivor's payment is to be 100 percent of the joint amount or some lesser percentage.
The way your payouts are taxed differs for qualified and non-qualified annuities.
A tax-qualified annuity is one used to fund a qualified retirement plan, such as an IRA, Keogh plan, 401(k) plan, SEP (simplified employee pension), or some other retirement plan. The tax-qualified annuity, when used as a retirement savings vehicle, is entitled to all of the tax benefits (and penalties) that Congress saw fit to attach to such qualified plans.
The tax benefits are:
If you withdraw money from a qualified plan annuity before the age of 59 1/2, you will have to pay a 10 percent penalty on the amount withdrawn in addition to paying the regular income tax. There are exceptions to the 10 percent penalty, including an exception for taking the annuity out in a series of equal periodic payments over the rest of your life.
For individuals who reached age 72 after December 31, 2022, and age 73 before January 1, 2033, the applicable age for starting RMDS is 73. Roth IRAs and employees still in the workforce after age 73 are exempted. For individuals who attain age 74 after December 31, 2032, the applicable age is 75. The new rules apply to distributions required after December 31, 2022, for individuals who attain age 72 after such date. In other words, taxpayers born between 1951 and 1959 will begin RMDs at age 73. Those born in 1960 or later will begin taking RMDs at age 75. [SECURE Act 2.0 of 2022]
A non-qualified annuity is purchased with after-tax dollars. You still get the benefit of tax deferral on the earnings; however, you pay tax on the part of the withdrawals that represent earnings on your original investment.
If you make a withdrawal before the age of 59 1/2, you will pay the 10 percent penalty only on the portion of the withdrawal that represents earnings.
With a non-qualified annuity, you are not subject to the minimum distribution rules that apply to qualified plans after you reach age 73 in tax years 2023 to 2033.
If your annuity is to continue after your death, other taxes may apply to your beneficiary (the person you designate to take further payments) or your heirs (your estate or those who take through the estate if you didn't designate a beneficiary).
Income Tax. Annuity payments collected by your beneficiaries or heirs are subject to tax on the same principles that would apply to payments collected by you.
Exception. There's no 10 percent penalty on withdrawal under age 59 1/2; regardless of the recipient's age, or your age at death.
Estate Tax. The present value at your death of the remaining annuity payments is an asset of your estate, and subject to estate tax with other estate assets. Annuities passing to your surviving spouse or to charity would escape this tax.
If a particular fund has a great track record, ascertain whether the same management is still in place. Although past performance is no guarantee, consistent management will grant you better odds.
Although annuities are typically issued by insurance companies, they may also be purchased through banks, insurance agents, or stockbrokers.
There is considerable variation in the amount of fees that you will pay for a given annuity as well in the quality of the product. Thus, it is important to compare costs and quality before buying an annuity.
Before checking out the product itself, it is important to make sure that the insurance company offering it is financially sound. Because annuity investments are not federally guaranteed, the soundness of the insurance company is the only assurance you can rely on. Consult services such as A.M. Best Company, Moody's Investor Service, or S&P Global's Ratings to find out how the insurer is rated.
The way you should go about comparing annuity contracts varies with the type of annuity:
Immediate Annuities: Compare the settlement options. For each $1,000 invested, how much of a monthly payout will you get? Be sure to consider the interest rate and any penalties and charges.
Deferred Annuities: Compare the rate, the length of guarantee period, and a five-year history of rates paid on the contract. It is important to consider all three of these factors and not to be swayed by high interest rates alone.
Variable Annuities: Check out the past performance of the funds involved.
If a particular fund has a great track record, ascertain whether the same management is still in place. Although past performance is no guarantee, consistent management will grant you better odds.
Be sure to compare the following points when considering an annuity contract:
Find out the surrender charges (that is, the amounts charged for early withdrawals). The typical charge is seven percent for first-year withdrawals, six percent for the second year, and so on, with no charges after the seventh year. Charges that go beyond seven years, or that exceed the above amounts, should not be acceptable.
Be sure the surrender charge "clock" starts running with the date your contract begins, not with each new investment.
Be sure to ask about all other fees. With variable annuities, the fees must be disclosed in the prospectus. Fees lower your return, so it is important to know about them. Fees might include:
These provisions are not costs per se, but should be asked about before you invest in the contract. Some annuity contracts offer "bail-out" provisions that allow you to cash in the annuity if interest rates fall below a stated amount without paying surrender charges.
There may also be a "persistency" bonus which rewards annuitants who keep their annuities for a certain minimum length of time. In deciding whether to use annuities in your retirement planning (or for any other reason) and which types of annuities to use, professional guidance is advisable.
At first glance, the immediate annuity would seem to make sense for retirees with lump-sum distributions from retirement plans. After all, an initial lump-sum premium can be converted into a series of monthly, quarterly, or yearly payments that represent a portion of principal plus interest and is guaranteed to last for life. The portion of the periodic payout that constitutes a return of principal is excluded from taxable income.
However, this strategy contains risks. For one thing, when you lock yourself into a lifetime of level payments, you fail to guard against inflation. Furthermore, you are gambling that you will live long enough to get your money back. Thus, if you buy a $150,000 annuity and die after collecting only $60,000, the insurer often gets to keep the rest. Unlike other investments, the balance doesn't go to your heirs. Finally, since the interest rate is fixed by the insurer when you buy it, you may be locking yourself into low rates.
You can hedge your bets by opting for a "period certain," or "term certain" which, in the event of your death, guarantees payment for some years to your beneficiaries. There are also "joint-and-survivor" options (which pay your spouse for the remainder of his or her life after you die) or a "refund" feature (in which some or all of the remaining principal is resumed to your beneficiaries).
Some plans offer quasi-inflation adjusted payments. One company offers a guaranteed increase in payments of $10 at three-year intervals for the first 15 years. Payments then get an annual cost-of-living adjustment with a three percent maximum. However, for these enhancements to apply, you will have to settle for much lower monthly payments than the simple version.
Recently, a few companies have introduced immediate annuities that offer potentially higher returns in return for some market risk. These "variable immediate annuities" convert an initial premium into a lifetime income; however, they tie the monthly payments to the returns on a basket of mutual funds.
Seniors 75 years of age and older may have fewer worries about inflation or liquidity. Nevertheless, they should question whether they really need such annuities at all.
If you want a comfortable retirement income, consider a balanced portfolio of mutual funds. If you want to guarantee that you will not outlive your money, you can plan your withdrawals over a longer time horizon.
This Content is for informational purposes only. Nothing contained herein constitutes accounting, tax, financial, investment, legal or other professional advice, and, accordingly, the author and the distributor assume no liability whatsoever in connection with its use. This Content is not an exhaustive explanation of any topic, practice or process. You should seek the advice of a licensed professional before making any accounting, tax, financial, investment or legal decision.
When must you start withdrawing the funds in your retirement plans? And what happens if the funds aren't withdrawn before you die? To what extent will your heirs be taxed? The rules are complex but there are ways the savvy taxpayer can maximize the tax shelter.
The basic rule is that you must begin withdrawing funds - and incurring taxes on these withdrawals - no later than April 1 of the year after you turn 73. This rule exists so that retirement funds will be distributed whether or not spent during what for most people is their retirement years.
Under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, for individuals who reach age 72 after December 31, 2022, and age 73 before January 1, 2033, the applicable age for starting RMDS is 73. For individuals who attain age 74 after December 31, 2032, the applicable age is 75. The new rules apply to distributions required to be made after December 31, 2022, for individuals who attain age 72 after such date. In other words, taxpayers born between 1951 and 1959 will begin RMDs at age 73. Those born in 1960 or later will begin taking RMDs at age 75.
An exception to this general rule is that, where your retirement plan permits, you do not need to begin these mandatory withdrawals until you retire if you are still employed when you reach the mandatory withdrawal age. The exception doesn't apply where you're a five percent or more owner of the business that provides the plan, or to withdrawals from traditional IRAs - in those cases, you are subject to the mandatory withdrawal rules.
Related Guide: Roth IRAs are another exception. For a discussion of Roth IRAs, please see the Financial Guide: ROTH IRAS: How They Work And How To Use Them.
Preserving the tax shelter. Your funds grow sheltered from tax while they are in the retirement plan. So the longer your financial situation lets you prolong the distribution or the smaller the amount you must withdraw the more your assets grow. Some taxpayers choose to defer withdrawals for as long as the law allows, to maximize assets and the shelter, for the next generation.
The law has specific rules about how fast the money must be taken out of the plan after your death. These rules curtail the ability to prolong a tax shelter that started out to aid your retirement.The rules are complex, but here's a general overview of the timing of retirement plan distributions which will help avoid unnecessary tax headaches for you and your heirs. Because of the complexity of the rules, professional guidance in this area is strongly suggested.
Related Guide: The tax treatment will be dictated not only by the timing of the withdrawal (i.e., when to take it) but also by the form of the withdrawal (i.e., how to take it). This Financial Guide discusses the "when." For a discussion of the "how," please see the Financial Guide: RETIREMENT PLAN DISTRIBUTIONS: HOW to Take Them.
Until the year you reach 73, you need not take your money out of your retirement account, although your employer's plan might require you to do so. In fact, there will usually be a 10 percent early-withdrawal penalty if you make withdrawals from an IRA before age 59 1/2. Between the ages of 59 1/2 and 73; you pay only the income tax on any amounts you decide to withdraw, with no tax on the return of after-tax contributions you made.
Taxpayers affected by the coronavirus were able to withdraw up to $100,000 and will not be subject to the 10 percent penalty for early withdrawals. Distributions must have been taken before December 31, 2020. The amount withdrawn is considered income, however, and taxpayers have three years to pay the tax on the additional income and replace the funds in-kind.
Once you hit 73, withdrawals must begin. Technically they can be postponed until April 1 of the year following the year you reach 73, but waiting until April 1 of the following year means you must withdraw for two years. To avoid this income bunching and a possible higher marginal tax rate, tax advisers generally suggest withdrawing in the year you reach 73.
IRS has greatly simplified and relaxed the withdrawal rules over the years to increase the retirement plan tax shelter, by lengthening, in most cases, the period over which plan withdrawals may be stretched.
The rules allow you, automatically, to spread your withdrawals over a period substantially longer than your life expectancy. Under these rules the taxpayer (say, an IRA owner) first determines his or her retirement plan asset values as of the end of the preceding year. Then the owner takes the number for his or her age from an IRS table (the table is unisex). The number corresponds to the period over which the withdrawals may be spread. The owner divides that number into the retirement asset total. The result is the amount to be withdrawn for the year.
Example 1: Joe reaches age 73 in October of this year. Retirement plan assets in his IRA totaled $600,000 at the end of last year. The IRS number for age 73 is 26.5. Joe must withdraw $22,641 ($600,000/26.5) this year.
The distribution period in the IRS table in effect assumes distribution over a period based on your life expectancy plus that of a beneficiary 10 years younger than you. Distribution after your death is based on the actual life span or life expectancy of your actual beneficiary (see "Withdrawal after You Die" below). Only where your designated beneficiary is a spouse more than 10 years younger than you is his or her actual life expectancy used to figure the withdrawal period during your lifetime. You may use these rules to prolong distribution for 2003 and after, even though you have been taking withdrawals over a shorter period under previous rules.
Under the current rules, the life expectancy of your designated beneficiary (if you have one) is irrelevant in figuring your withdrawal period (except for a beneficiary spouse more than 10 years younger). Thus, you can change your designated beneficiary at will, or replace one who died, without affecting your withdrawal period (except for a change to or from a spouse more than 10 years younger).
You can always take out money faster than required and pay tax on these withdrawals; however, the tax code is strict about minimum withdrawals. If you or your beneficiaries or heirs fail to take out what's required, a tax penalty will take 50 percent of what should have been withdrawn but wasn't.
The rules as to how fast your beneficiaries or heirs must withdraw funds from your account and pay the income tax-differ, depending on your beneficiary choice.
Under the SECURE Act of 2019, and starting in 2020, there is a new beneficiary category - the eligible designated beneficiary (EDB). An EDB can include the IRA owner's surviving spouse or minor child, a person who is chronically ill or disabled, or another individual (e.g., parent, sibling, and unmarried partner) who is not more than 10 years younger than the IRA owner at the time of his/her death. If an individual inherits an IRA in 2020 (or in years beyond) but does not meet the definition of an EDB they may be required to take full distribution of the inherited IRA within 10 years after the IRA owner’s year of death.
Of course, designating a beneficiary is wise as a matter of planning for the disposition of your assets. You may change the beneficiary later without affecting the amount you withdraw (except for a change to or from a spouse more than 10 years younger).
Eligible Designated Beneficiaries: Your Spouse. Naming your spouse as beneficiary carries the most flexibility. A surviving spouse has options that no other beneficiary has such as:
Leave the money in the IRA account. If your spouse, for example, is the sole beneficiary, he or she may elect to treat the balance in the IRA as if it were their own. Depending on their age, they may be required to take required minimum distributions.
Rollover to another IRA. A spouse beneficiary of your IRA can elect to roll the IRA balance over to their own IRA. This provides the optimal extension of the withdrawal period if your spouse is younger than you since your spouse doesn't have to start withdrawing funds until they turn 73. At age 73, your spouse can then use the period in the IRS table or a longer one if they then has a spouse more than 10 years younger. A rollover isn't allowed if a trust is a beneficiary, even if the spouse is the trust's sole beneficiary. A similar extension is allowed for a balance you might leave in a qualified retirement plan: your spouse can roll it over into his or her IRA. And your spouse can roll over a distribution from your retirement plan to another retirement plan in which he or she participates, as well as to an IRA.
Remaining a beneficiary. Instead of a rollover, a surviving spouse can simply leave the money in the deceased participant's account. There's no 10 percent early-withdrawal penalty if the spouse takes funds out of your account, but that penalty would apply if the spouse rolled over the money into his or her own IRA and tapped it before reaching 59 1/2.
Leaving the money in your account makes sense if your spouse is under age 59 1/ 2 and needs the money soon after your death. If your spouse remains a beneficiary, he or she doesn't have to start withdrawals until you would have reached age 73 after which withdrawals will be taken under the IRS table. Generally, there will not be an estate tax on retirement plan assets left to a spouse and the spouse will pay income taxes only as funds are withdrawn.
Eligible Designated Beneficiaries: Your Minor Child. If you name your child you should be aware that upon reaching the age of majority (18 in most states, 19 in Alabama and Nebraska, and 21 in Mississippi) your child will become a non-eligible designated beneficiary and subject to the 10-year rule - i.e., required to take full distribution of the inherited IRA within 10 years.
Non-Designated Beneficiaries. This type of beneficiary does not have a life expectancy. As such, distributions are different depending on whether the IRA account owner dies before, during, or after the start of the required beginning date for required minimum distributions (RMDs). If a traditional IRA owner passes away after his/her RBD, the beneficiary must continue distributions using the decedent's life expectancy. If before, then the entire account balance must be taken by the end of 5th year following year of death. Beneficiaries of Roth IRA account owners who have died must distribute the assets within five years.
The required payout schedules set the minimum that can be withdrawn. The beneficiary can always take out more.
No beneficiary. If you die before April 1 after the year you reach age 73 having named no beneficiary or, in most cases, where your beneficiary is not a human being (such as an estate or a charity), all funds must be distributed and income taxes paid within five to six years of your death. Heirs don't get the option of using their own life expectancy.
If you die on or after that April 1 date without having named a beneficiary or having named your estate as the beneficiary, the money must come out by the end of the period remaining under the IRS table. For example, at age 80 the table period is 20.2. On a death at age 80, the estate or heirs would have 20.2 years to complete withdrawal.
Death before distributions begin. If you should die before the time (age 73) required distributions are to begin, minimum distributions to your beneficiary can be spread over his or her life expectancy.
Estate tax. There may be an estate tax on retirement funds left to someone other than your spouse, who will also owe an income tax as funds are withdrawn. Where an estate tax is imposed, the taxpayer who received the retirement funds is entitled to a partial income tax deduction for the estate tax paid.
The above discussion covered the general rules as to the withdrawal of retirement plan distributions both before and after you die. Now let's look at some specific tax planning techniques, particularly as regards the estate tax, for minimizing the tax bite when the funds accumulated in your retirement accounts (including pension and profit-sharing plans, 401(k) plans, IRAs and rollover IRAs) are passed on to your heirs.
The general rule is that, while there may be a estate tax bite at your death, inherited assets are received income-tax-free by your heirs. Unfortunately, however, this general rule doesn't apply to money in a retirement plan. Whoever gets the money will incur income tax on it, unless it's left to charity (more on giving retirement assets to charity below).
If you gave your wife a $500,000 stock-and-bond portfolio, she will not pay income tax on receipt of the portfolio. Or if you leave your son a $150,000 vacation home, he will not pay income tax when he receives it. But if you leave your daughter the $150,000 in your IRA, she will be subject to income tax on it, more or less as you would be if you had received the distributions yourself. (Moreover, there may be a further estate tax as well.)
The basic income tax rule is that retirement plan distributions to heirs are taxable at ordinary rates, except for after-tax investments, which come out tax-free. There are, however, the following key exceptions or qualifications:
The federal estate tax isn't a major problem for most Americans. Less than one percent of those who die in any year leave an estate that's hit by the estate tax; but the larger a taxpayer's retirement account, the more likely it will be cut down by the federal estate tax on top of the federal income tax described above.
Unlike the income tax, which is collected only as amounts are distributed - and thus is deferred on annuities and the like - the estate tax is collected up front, at the owner's death, on the present value of the annuity.
One common planning technique - making lifetime gifts to reduce your taxable estate is impractical for retirement accounts. Even where you might be able to give part of your retirement account away (as with an IRA, for example), your gift is a taxable distribution to you and no IRA tax shelter survives for your donee. But there are more practical techniques:
Make your spouse the beneficiary of your retirement plan assets and leave non-retirement plan assets to non-spouse beneficiaries. This reduces estate taxes and permits deferral of income taxes for the longest period possible.
If you plan on leaving assets to charity, use retirement plan assets. You can eliminate estate and income taxes on this amount while achieving charitable goals.
A charitable remainder trust is a sophisticated way to benefit family, as well as charity at a reduced tax cost. Typically, your children or other non-spouse beneficiaries will draw the income from the retirement assets for a period, after which the remainder goes to charity. An estate tax deduction is allowed for the present value of what will go to the charity.
Consider buying life insurance to pay estate tax that can't be avoided (perhaps because you want a large retirement account to go to someone other than a spouse or charity). The insurance proceeds will be exempt from income tax (while funds withdrawn from the account to pay estate tax will be subject to income tax). With proper planning, the withdrawn funds can escape estate tax as well.
This Content is for informational purposes only. Nothing contained herein constitutes accounting, tax, financial, investment, legal or other professional advice, and, accordingly, the author and the distributor assume no liability whatsoever in connection with its use. This Content is not an exhaustive explanation of any topic, practice or process. You should seek the advice of a licensed professional before making any accounting, tax, financial, investment or legal decision.
