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Tax Reporting: Foreign Tax Paid as a Foreign Tax Credit or as a Deduction

Treatment of foreign tax withheld as a foreign tax credit or as a deduction depends upon the tax situation of each shareholder. IRS Publication 514, “Foreign Tax Credit for Individuals” and the instructions for Schedule A “Itemized Deductions” and Form 1116 “Foreign Tax Credit” provide more specific guidance. We also recommend that you consult IRS Publication 514, “Foreign Tax Credit for Individuals”, for additional information on this subject. Please consult your tax professional for any additional information and determination of the appropriate treatment for your tax situation.

Circular 230 Notice: These statements are provided for information purposes only, are not intended to constitute tax advice which may be relied upon to avoid penalties under any federal, state, local or other tax statutes or regulations, and do not resolve any tax issues in your favor.

Tax Reporting: Return of Capital (ROC) in an Account

IB will report ROC distributions to shareholders as nontaxable distributions on Form 1099-DIV, "Dividends and Distributions". Please note that this information is often not available until after the initial 1099 forms are made available to you. Once the information is available IB will issue corrected 1099s to you. We suggest that you check your tax forms in Account Management – Tax Forms prior to filing your return to verify that you have used the most current information.

Circular 230 Notice: These statements are provided for information purposes only, are not intended to constitute tax advice which may be relied upon to avoid penalties under any federal, state, local or other tax statutes or regulations, and do not resolve any tax issues in your favor.

Tax Reporting: What is the purpose of the Forms 1099?

Forms 1099 are a series of U.S. tax information returns which report income earned such as interest, dividends, proceeds from securities and commodities sale transactions, and other reportable payments posted to your account during a calendar year. These reports, which are supplied to the IRS, provide information, which should be used in preparing your tax return. For example, dividends and interest, are reported on IRS Form 1040, "U.S. Individual Income Tax Return", Schedule B. Sales transactions are to be reported on IRS Form 1040, "U.S. Individual Income Tax Return", Schedule D.  The information from these forms is included in your consolidated Form 1099.

Information on reporting gains and losses, including determining the cost basis can be obtained by reading IRS Publications 544, "Sales and Other Dispositions of Assets", and 551, "Basis of Assets". We recommend you consult your tax professional with specific questions.

All of the IRS forms and publications referenced above are available on line at www.IRS.gov/formspubs.

In compliance with Treasury Department Circular 230, unless stated to the contrary, any information contained in this FAQ was not intended or written to be used and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.

 

Tax Reporting: U.S. Government Interest on Form 1099-INT

U.S. Government interest is reported separately for state tax reporting purposes.

In compliance with Treasury Department Circular 230, unless stated to the contrary, any information contained in this FAQ was not intended or written to be used and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.

 

Tax Reporting: If You Filed Taxes but Did Not Include Information Reported on Form 1099

You will have to file an amended tax return that includes the applicable information as reported on Form 1099. As the IRS verifies the information on your tax returns with the 1099s received from banks, brokers and other sources, you may receive a notice from the IRS indicating that your return was filed without the omitted information. Consult your tax or legal advisor for further information.

In compliance with Treasury Department Circular 230, unless stated to the contrary, any information contained in this FAQ was not intended or written to be used and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.

Tax Reporting: Form 2439

Form 2439, "Notice to Shareholder of Undistributed Long–Term Capital Gains", reports to owners of Regulated Investment Companies (RICs) and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) undistributed capital gains allocable to them. A separate form 2439 will be issued for each investment. These forms will be issued 90 days following the fiscal year end of the RIC or REIT. Note that some RICs and REITs do not have calendar fiscal years, it is best to consult the website of the investment or your tax advisor for specific guidance in this area.

Box 1a reports total undistributed long-term capital gains attributable to your ownership of the fund. For individuals, this amount is reported on your IRS Form 1040, US Individual Income Tax Return, Schedule D, Capital Gains and Losses.

Box 1b is your allocable portion of the amount included in Box 1a that has been designated as unrecaptured section 1250 gain from the disposition of depreciable real property. For individuals, this amount is entered on your Unrecaptured Section 1250 Gain Worksheet.

Box 2 contains any Federal Income tax paid by the RIC or REIT on this gain in your behalf.

In compliance with Treasury Department Circular 230, unless stated to the contrary, any information contained in this FAQ was not intended or written to be used and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.

 

 

 

 

Tax Reporting: Reporting 1099 Information to the IRS

IB sends an electronic file to the IRS with the same information that was reported to you on Forms 1099.

In compliance with Treasury Department Circular 230, unless stated to the contrary, any information contained in this FAQ was not intended or written to be used and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.

 

Tax Reporting: Form 1099-DIV tax information

Generally, individual investors will need to report Form 1099-DIV information on IRS Form 1040, "U.S. Individual Income Tax Return." Depending on the type of information reported on your Form 1099-DIV, you may need to include with Form 1040 additional forms such as Schedule B, "Interest and Ordinary Dividends" Schedule D, "Capital Gains and Losses." and/or Form 1116, "Foreign Tax Credit." All IRS forms are available online free of charge at www.IRS.gov/formspubs or by calling the IRS at 800.829.3676 (800/TAX FORM).

In compliance with Treasury Department Circular 230, unless stated to the contrary, any information contained in this FAQ was not intended or written to be used and cannot be used for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.

Tax Reporting: Profit or Loss Realized for Closed Contracts on Form 1099 for Noncovered Securities

Profit or Loss Realized for Closed Contracts on Form 1099 for Noncovered Securities is the aggregate profit or loss recognized over the course of the year from transactions in commodity futures and regulated futures contracts which have been closed, reached final settlement or, in the case of options, expired.

Circular 230 Notice: These statements are provided for information purposes only, are not intended to constitute tax advice which may be relied upon to avoid penalties under any federal, state, local or other tax statutes or regulations, and do not resolve any tax issues in your favor.

W8 Re-certification

If you are not a U.S. citizen or entity formed within the U.S. and have an account with Interactive Brokers, you are requested to declare your citizenship or country of formation with the US tax authority (IRS). This declaration can be done online by correctly filling out the W-8BEN form. Filling out this form is an easy process that only takes a few minutes. In the short movie below, we show you where to find the W-8BEN in your IB account management and how to fill it out.

If you fail to declare your foreign citizenship or country of formation, and IB does not have a valid W-8BEN form on file, you are presumed to be a US person/entity without a proper tax certification. As a US person/entity, you will be subject to backup withholding at a rate of 28% on interest, dividends, and substitute payments in lieu; as well as gross proceeds. 

Every 3 years the IRS requires a re-certification of the W-8BEN form. IB will ask the beneficial account owner to re-certify their foreign status by re-signing the W8-BEN in order to continue their status as a foreign person and claim the tax treaty benefits. If you experience any problems or have questions regarding the W-8BEN form or how IB handles Non-US persons and entities, select this Tax Information and Reporting link and choose the tab Non-US Persons and Entities or consult the following IRS information page for more details: www.irs.gov/instructions/iw8/ch02.html

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