The U.S. Treasury\u27s Subpart F Report: Plus Ça Change, Plus C\u27est La Même Chose?

On 29 December 2000, the U.S. Treasury Department released its long-awaited study of Subpart F, entitled “The Deferral of Income Earned through U.S. Controlled Foreign Corporations. This study was commenced in the aftermath of the controversy that ensued from the issuance and subsequent withdrawal of Notice 98-11. The study was originally expected to be issued in 1999 in response to the report published that year by the National Foreign Trade Council, which advocated significant changes in Subpart F. The Treasury Study’s delayed issuance at the end of the Clinton Administration means that it only has (at best) persuasive force for the Bush Administration and Congress. However, even though the Treasury Study lacks the political authority it would have enjoyed had it been published a year earlier (or had Al Gore been elected), it is an impressive document and well worth studying as we await the legislative outcome