R4 Flashcards
What is an S Corp?
a corporation that passes their income, losses, deductions, and credits to their shareholders to avoid double taxation (like in C Corps)
Which entity must pay federal income tax?
C Corps (not pass-through entities)
What is the corporation’s basis in the transfer of assets?
cash + adjusted basis
Under the 80% rule, if someone had bought shares for cash, do they have a gain?
no
What is the general rule for the basis of the property received from the transferor/shareholder?
the greater of:
1) adjusted NBV (often the purchase price) of the transferor/shareholder + any gain recognized by the transferor/shareholder
or
2) debt assumed by the corporation
How would you calculate a gain on contributed property?
liability assumed - basis of the asset
What is the general rule with shareholders who contribute property?
a shareholder who contributes property to a corporation in exchange for common stock will not recognize a gain or loss if immediately after the transaction, the transferring shareholders hold at least 80% of the corporation AND the shareholder does not receive any boot
T/F: A shareholder receiving common stock in exchange for services provided to the corporation must recognize compensation income equal to the FMV of the stock received.
true
How is the selection of an accounting method made for tax purposes?
it’s made on the initial tax return by using the chosen method
note: it does NOT need to be approved by the BOD and it does NOT need to be disclosed in the organizing documents
When is the accrual basis of accounting required?
- the accounting purchase and sale of inventory when the business has greater than $29M of average annual gross receipts for the 3-yr period ending with the prior tax year
- tax shelters
- certain farming corporations when the business has greater than $29M of average annual gross receipts for the 3-yr period ending with the prior tax year
- C corps, trusts with unrelated trade or business income, and partnerships having a C Corp as a partner when the business has greater than $29M of average annual gross receipts for the 3-yr period ending with the prior tax year
- manufacturers
T/F: Payments for cancelling a lease are rental income in the year paid.
true
What is the appropriate tax treatment for advertising costs?
deduct the costs currently as ordinary and necessary business expenses
note: they are expensed, not amortized
further note that no selling expenses can ever be amortized
T/F: Corporations that are not small banks or thrift institutions are required to use the direct charge-off method rather than the reserve method.
true
How should you treat gains for illegal activities?
-included in income
-a deduction is permitted for the cost of merchandise
What should you do with the excess of a corporation’s charitable contributions that exceed the limit for deductibility in a particular year?
carry it forward for a maximum of 5 years
note: cannot be carried back
How should you treat organization costs?
may be amortized over a period of at least 180 months (even if these costs are capitalized on the Company’s books)
up to $5,000 is deductible in the first year
What is the maximum deduction for charitable contributions for C Corps?
taxable income
+ dividends received deduction, if any
+ charitable contributions deducted, if any
+ net operating loss carryback, if any
+ net capital loss carryback, if any
* 10%
What is the maximum deduction for charitable contributions for C Corps in regards to matching contributions and board approval of contributions?
deductions are allowed if:
1) it was authorized to a qualified charity by Board resolution before the end of the taxable year
2) it was paid by the 15th day of the 4th month (April 15) after the end of the taxable year
How do you calculate the amortization expense for organizational costs?
(total organizational costs - $5,000 limit) / 180 months x # of months + $5,000
What would be included under organizational costs that you can amortize?
legal fees to obtain the corporate charter
necessary accounting services
expenses of temporary directors
incorporations fees paid to the state
What percentage of business meals are deductible?
50%
How do you determine the amount deductible for business gifts?
multiply the # of items by the lesser of the price of the gift or $25 (maximum)
When would life insurance premiums be deductible?
group term life insurance premiums paid on employees’ lives are considered to be a fringe benefit and would be deductible
life insurance premiums paid for an officer’s life where the corporation (not the dependent) is the owner and beneficiary of the policy are NOT deductible
Unlike individuals, how should corporations treat capital losses in excess of capital gains?
corporations may not deduct any capital losses in excess of capital gains
any excess capital losses may be carried back 3 years and carried forward 5 years and can only be offset against capital gains
What is the holding requirement for a corporate dividends-received deduction?
The corporate dividends-received deduction is affected by a requirement that the investor corporations must own the investee’s stock for a specified minimum holding period of more than 45 days.
__________ expenditures are subject to the Uniform Capitalization Rules of Code Sec. 263A.
quality control
T/F: When you’re calculating taxable income using dividends-received deductions, add dividend income to gross income (if not already included) and then subtract operating expenses and the dividends-received deduction.
true
If a corporation owns less than 20% of the investee’s stock, what percentage of the dividends-received deduction can be taken for an unrelated taxable corporation?
50%
(and it’s 65% for over 20% owned)
note: if this % is unknown, take 50% of the taxable income before the dividends-received deduction
note: the dividend will be from stock investments, NOT a subsidiary (b/c that would be intercompany)