Boysie Billings' Research on Cross-Border Tax Arrangements Accepted in Tax Notes Journal
Boysie Billings, a professor of accounting at the Mike Ilitch School of Business has had his paper " The ongoing path to tax certainty for cross-border intra-group arrangements," accepted for publication in the Tax Notes journal.
Scheduled for the next release, Tax Notes highlights Billings' significant contributions to taxation. In collaboration with former M.S.A. student Kyung Jin Kim, the paper delves into recent announcements from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and the IRS on advance pricing agreements (APAs).
Abstract:
We examine recent developments regarding advance pricing agreements (hereafter APA) from recent judicial and administrative pronouncements by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ("Sixth Circuit Court") and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS is used interchangeably with the Service). These developments are critical to U.S. taxpayers pursuing APAs, are assessed along with recent guidance published by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) for tax jurisdictions contemplating new APA legislation or administrative pronouncements. The article discusses the implications of the Sixth Circuit Court reversal of the Service's cancellation of an existing APA between the Eaton corporate group and the Service (Eaton Opinion). The Eaton Opinion implies that every dispute regarding an APA depends on the facts and circumstances of the specific APA. Further, the Eaton Opinion demonstrates that APA-related disputes may affect areas beyond the explicit purview of the Service, such as contract law. U.S. taxpayers should anticipate further developments from the IRS regarding APAs. The Service intends to rewrite Revenue Procedure 2015-41 considering the Sixth Circuit Court's decision in Eaton and recently released interim guidance regarding the review and acceptance process for APA submissions.[1] Considering the position taken by the IRS in the Eaton opinion, tax professionals should remain attentive to the Service's revenue procedure updates. Until then, the Eaton opinion stipulates that APAs are binding contracts under contract law and that the IRS has the burden of proof in showing reasonable grounds for canceling an APA.
- Fahmida Khanom