Tax Reform

Tax reform continues to come into focus since the signing of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). As additional regulations and corrections are released, we are closely following developments large—international global intangible low-taxed income (GILTI) and base erosion and anti-abuse tax (BEAT) minimum tax provisions—and small—drafting errors and technical corrections.

When Congress moved on tax reform, Alston & Bird was dedicated to keeping clients informed as the legislation came together. On December 22, 2017, President Trump signed the TCJA into law, the first major tax overhaul in 31 years. In late 2018, the IRS and Treasury began releasing a host of TCJA-related regulations and other guidance that have important implications for taxpayers. We continue to provide insight on how this historic legislation could affect your bottom line. Our team has been actively advising clients on the issues:

Federal & International Tax

• Tax planning for C corporations versus LLCs and other types of entities, particularly when foreign business activities are involved.
• Advising a public German manufacturer/importer of medical devices on its financing issues as a result of the new limitation on interest deduction provisions of the TCJA.
• Advising a foreign multinational finance company on its ability to deduct related party interest under the new BEAT provisions of the TCJA.
• Advising a foreign investment management company on the effects of the new controlled foreign corporation (CFC) downward attribution rules on its U.S. owners.
• Advising taxpayers on the impact of the new limitations on the deductibility of interest under Section 163(j).

State & Local Tax

The states’ conformity to key provisions of the TCJA, including interest expense deductions, GILTI, BEAT, and federal NOL provisions.

Wealth Planning

• Advising individuals and families on the revised standard, whether to itemize, and the end of the “Pease limitation.”
• Tax planning for individuals with closely held businesses and other types of entities, particularly when foreign business activities are involved.
• Advising on all the legal and planning issues that go along with high net worth (for those still subject to estate and gift taxes).
• Helping clients make the most of these changes to promote their philanthropic goals.

Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation

• Advising clients on the changes to the limitation of deductible compensation for publicly traded and other types companies.
• Advising clients on the new excise tax (Section 4960) for tax-exempt entities related to excess compensation.
• Monitoring the changes to rules on participant repayment of 401(k) loans after termination of employment.
• Advising on changes to deductions for certain fringe benefits.

Check back often as we continue to update how the TCJA can affect estate taxes, pass-through entities, and corporate taxes, plus any trickle-down effects we may see. If you’d like to receive updates directly to your inbox, sign up here.

News

• Hedge Fund Law Report | Lessons on Separation Agreements That Fund Managers Can Glean From Recent SEC Action
• Law360 | Outcome Cloudy on Int'l Interest Deductions in Tax Bill
• Accounting Today | Business Braces for Tax Reform of Historic Proportions
• Global RadioX | Wealth Matters: So We Have a New Tax Code: What Does That Mean For Me? (Video)
• Inside Counsel | President Trump’s Proposed Tax Plan: What Tax Moves You Should be Considering
• Tax Notes | Employee Benefit Plans Might Escape Tax Reform Efforts
• Financial Times | Republicans Feel the Pinch on Tax Reform
• Accounting Today | House and Senate Budget Measures Advance Tax Reform

Publications

• International Tax Advisory: The Other Green Book: Treasury Explains Administration’s Tax Proposals 
• Federal Tax Advisory: IRS Issues CARES Act Guidance Addressing Tax Issues Prevalent in M&A Transactions 
• International Tax Advisory: Sourcing the Source of Inventory Sales – Final Regulations Under Section 863(b)
• Wealth Planning Advisory: Crystal Ball Gazing for the Federal Estate and Gift Tax After 2020 – Should I Act Now?
• International Tax Advisory: Treasury’s High Wire Act – Final and Proposed Regulations on CFC High-Tax Exceptions
• Federal Tax Advisory: Splitting the Difference: IRS Applies Exempt Organization Excise Tax to Split-Dollar Life Insurance Policies
• International Tax Advisory: From Obscurity to Spotlight: The Section 962 Election
• International Tax Advisory: The BEAT (Still) Goes On – New Final and Proposed BEAT Regulations
• International Tax Advisory: Down the Rabbit Hole: Guidance Addressing Downward Attribution After Repeal of Section 958(b)(4)
• Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Advisory: Final Hardship Distribution Rules Are Here: Does Your 401(k) or 403(b) Plan Comply?
• International Tax Advisory: Altera Redux – The Ninth Circuit Once Again Holds in Favor of the IRS 
• International Tax Advisory: International Tax Regulations: The Road Ahead – Key Practitioner Concerns and Government Responses 
• International Tax Advisory: FDII or Not: Section 250 FDII and GILTI Deduction Regulations Proposed
• International Tax Advisory: Finally! Final Regulations Published for Section 965 Transition Tax 
• “Foreign Partners Again Subject To 'US-Source' Income Tax,” Law360, January 29, 2019. 
• International Tax Advisory: Another Chapter in the Effectively Connected Income Saga—IRS Issues Proposed Regulations on Sales of Partnership Interests by Foreign Partners 
• State & Local Tax Advisory: State Guidance Needed After Treasury Issues Proposed Regulations Under Section 163(j)
• Federal Tax Advisory: Sales of CFCs Got Harder?
• International Tax Advisory: Plot Twist – Proposed Regulations Mean Section 956 Did Not Actually Survive Tax Reform Intact
• International Tax Advisory: State of Uncertainty: GILTI Considerations for Individuals
• International Tax Advisory: First Round of Proposed GILTI Regulations Avoids the Hard(er) Stuff
• Federal Tax Advisory: Cash Deals Abound  
• Federal Tax Advisory: Certain Banks Qualify for the 20% Pass-Through Deduction  
• Federal Tax Advisory: Section 338 and the Tax Act
• Federal Tax Advisory: Regulation Confusion
• International Tax Advisory: Trickle Down Guidance: Interim Notices Tackle Key International Reforms
• Federal Tax Advisory: Tax Act: Vote and Value
• “FERC Acts to Address Decrease in Federal Corporate Income Tax Rate,” Energy Law Report, May 2018
• International Tax Advisory: Tax Cuts and Jobs Act - First Impressions Regarding International Tax Reform
• Federal Tax Advisory: Foreign-Derived Intangible Income
• International Tax Advisory: The Tax Act’s New Business Interest Expense Limitation – Dear IRS: Some Guidance, Please?
• International Tax Advisory: International Tax Reform Is Here
• Federal Tax Advisory: Foreign Tax Credits' Demise
• International Tax Advisory: Inexplicably, Section 956 Survives Tax Reform Intact
• International Tax Advisory: Omnibus Spending Bill Makes Long-Awaited Technical Corrections to Several PATH Act Provisions
• International Tax Advisory: Section 721(c) Partnership Regulations Arrive Just in Time
• Tax Policy & Regulation Advisory: If Republicans Agree on 80% of Tax Reform, What’s the Other 20%?
• International Tax Advisory: Treasury Would Overhaul 2016 Regulatory Guidance
• International Tax Advisory: Trump’s Tax Reform Plan – When the Dessert Pays for Dinner

Events

• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Section 864(c)(8) - Effectively Connected Income and Sales of Partnership Interests
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Foreign Tax Credits
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Notice 2019-1 and Previously Taxed Income (PTI) Accounts
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income (GILTI)
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | 162(m) Deductibility of Executive Compensation
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | State & Local Tax
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Opportunity Zones
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Anti-Hybrid Rules
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Outbound Case Studies
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax (BEAT)
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | Section 199A Passthrough Deduction
• TCJA Proposed Regulations – Weekly Client Update | 163(j) Interest Deductibility 
• Council on State Taxation Mid-Atlantic Regional State Tax Seminar
• 11th Annual Tax Planning Strategies U.S. and Latin America Conference
• 2018 Spring Audit Session & Income Tax Conference
• Tax Executives Institute Inc. (TEI) 2018 68th Midyear Conference
• National Foreign Trade Council International Benefits Committee Meeting
• Tax Reform 2018 – Weekly Client Update from Alston & Bird
• The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: A Conference with the Government and Private Sector to Discuss the Legislation
• North Atlantic Regional State Tax Seminar
• Tax Reform Panel Discussion
• The Certificate in Employee Benefits Law Seminar
• Health & Welfare Benefits Monthly Update

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