Draft Summary of U.S. Transfer Pricing and Documentation Rules and Dispute Resolution Programs John C. C. Hughes Director, APMA Advance Pricing and Mutual Agreement Program Large Business & International Division Internal Revenue Service March 1, 2018 2018 - January
Transfer Pricing and Documentation Rules Transfer Pricing Country Profile: http://www.oecd.org/tax/transfer-pricing/transfer-pricing-country-profile-united-states.pdf Substantive Transfer Pricing Rules: Statute: Section 482 of Internal Revenue Code (1986) Regulations: Treas. Reg. §§1.482-1 through 1.482-9 Explicit adoption of arm’s length standard Adoption of “best method” rule for selecting transfer pricing method Guidance on application of transfer pricing methods Documentation Rules and Penalties: Statute: Sections 6038 and 6662 Regulations: Treas. Reg. § §1.6038-4, 1.6662-6 CbC reporting (required) (Treas. Reg. §1.6038-4, Form 8975) Penalty protection: Treas. Reg. § 1.6662-6 2017 - December
Treaty Profile and Dispute Resolution Programs FTA MAP Forum Profile: http://www.oecd.org/tax/dispute/United-States-Dispute-Resolution-Profile.pdf Overview: Broad network of treaties, protocols, and information exchange agreements U.S. Model Income Tax Convention contains… Article 9(2) (corresponding adjustments) Article 25(2) (implementation of mutual agreements) Article 25(3) (MAP for “difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application” of the treaty) Article 25(6) (mandatory, binding arbitration) Competent Authority, MAP, and APA: U.S. competent authority comprises several offices, including APMA MAP Program Procedures: Rev. Proc. 2015-40 APA Program Procedures: Rev. Proc. 2015-41 2017 - December
Comparison and Connection to OECD Transfer Pricing: Consistency between U.S. transfer pricing regulations and OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines Analogies between key concepts: “Best” method / “Most appropriate” method Transactional methods (e.g., CUP method), profit-based methods (i.e., CPM / TNMM) Comparability considerations (e.g., economic, legal factors) Dispute Resolution: Sizable inventories of MAP and APA cases (inbound and outbound) Active participation in FTA MAP Forum Peer review report (September 2017): http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/taxation/making-dispute-resolution-more- effective-map-peer-review-report-united-states-stage- 1_9789264282698-en 2017 - December