Tag: aircraft management company

IRS Suspends Aircraft Management Tax Assessments

Posted by Ari Good, JD LLM on

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is suspending tax assessments applied to aircraft management companies during federal exercise tax (FET) audits while it develops additional guidance for auditing aircraft management operations.

The suspension is the result of government-industry collaboration since 2008, when the agency released an audit technique guide, and began assessing FET
on a wide variety of non-commercial flight operations. These assessments included FET on a “wide variety of non-commercial flight operations,” including flights
under Part 91 of the Federal Aviation Regulations, according to the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA).

IRS’ suspension of the audits comes following a meeting between the agency and NBAA, along with officials from the National Air Transportation Association (NATA) last week to discuss a possible suspension.

“Since 2008, NBAA has been diligently working with senior officials at the IRS to address significant industry concerns about the applicability of FET to management companies,” said NBAA President Ed Bolen. “Today’s announcement that IRS will suspend any potential assessments on these audits until the work to develop formal guidance is complete.”

The agency will still be completing open audits, though the aircraft management companies will not be subject to the tax assessments while the additional guidance is being developed. IRS is expected to release additional guidance for aircraft management companies in June.

By Woodrow Bellamy III

IRS Federal Excise Tax Surprise – New Rules For Aircraft Management Companies?

Posted by Ari Good, JD LLM on
IRS Federal Excise Tax
IRS excise tax & aircraft management companies:  and you thought the catering was exempt

The IRS’ new view of federal excise tax on aircraft management services in unwelcome indeed. To recap, in an IRS Chief Counsel Memorandum Re Federal Excise Tax and Aircraft Management Companies, the IRS is taking the position that aircraft services such as hiring and providing pilots and management services, even for part 91 aircraft, are “amounts paid” for “transportation services” and therefore subject to federal excise tax.  This in essence has the potential to raise general aviation services costs by 7.5%, a federal excise tax surprise that neither aircraft management companies nor aircraft owners need in this environment.

It has never been disputed that ” amounts paid” for commercial flights under Parts 121 or 135 are subject to excise tax as “taxable transportation”, and the price and availability of these flights reflect this.  Part 91 owners and operators make a conscious decision to assume more risk in retaining “operational control” of their flights and pay management companies for collateral services in making pilots, fuel and services available.  We could be left under the IRS’ new policy where a private aircraft owner would have to pay excise tax for flights over which he still has full legal liability.  This is clearly a surprise when it comes to federal excise tax, for the owners and aircraft management company alike.

Unfortunately there is also a “gotcha” factor here.  One might conclude that the IRS’ apparent aggressiveness with respect to auditing, and potentially assessing, federal excise tax against aircraft management companies is designed to catch us off guard.  There are a couple of problems with this.  First, a Chief Counsel opinion details the Service’s interpretation of existing law.  It is not equivalent to the Internal Revenue Code, regulations or Tax Court decisions, and therefore forms a questionable basis upon which to set aircraft management companies up for formal federal excise tax audits.  Second, if in time aircraft management companies are deemed to be receiving “amounts paid for taxable transportation” for support services, the industry must be given some reasonable opportunity to adjust to this without facing retroactive application of a brand-new interpretation along with the interest and penalties that go with it.

Call me for a free phone consultation if you think you may be subject to the new federal excise tax rules.  877.771.1131