[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 26, Volume 9]
[Revised as of April 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 26CFR1.861-11]

[Page 204-206]
 
                       TITLE 26--INTERNAL REVENUE
 
    CHAPTER I--INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 
                               (CONTINUED)
 
PART 1_INCOME TAXES--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 1.861-11  Special rules for allocating and apportioning interest 
expense of an affiliated group of corporations.

    (a)-(c) [Reserved]. For further guidance, see Sec. 1.861-11T(a) 
through (c).
    (d) Definition of affiliated group--(1) General rule. For purposes 
of this section, in general, the term affiliated group has the same 
meaning as is given that term by section 1504, except that section 936 
corporations are also included within the affiliated group to the extent 
provided in paragraph (d)(2) of this section. Section 1504(a) defines an 
affiliated group as one or more chains of includible corporations 
connected through 80-percent stock ownership with a common parent 
corporation which is an includible corporation (as defined in section 
1504(b)). In the case of a corporation that either becomes or ceases to 
be a member of the group during the course of the corporation's taxable 
year, only the interest expense incurred by the group member during the 
period of membership shall be allocated and apportioned as if all 
members of the group were a single corporation. In this regard, assets 
held during the period of membership shall be taken into account. Other 
interest expense incurred by the group member during its taxable year 
but not during the period of membership shall be allocated and 
apportioned without regard to the other members of the group.
    (2) Inclusion of section 936 corporations--(i) Rule--(A) In general. 
Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d)(2)(i)(B) of this section, 
the exclusion of section 936 corporations from the affiliated group 
under section 1504(b)(4) does not apply for purposes of this section. 
Thus, a section 936 corporation that meets the ownership requirements of 
section 1504(a) is a member of the affiliated group.
    (B) Exception for purposes of alternative minimum tax. The exclusion 
from the affiliated group of section 936 corporations under section 
1504(b)(4) shall be operative for purposes of the application of this 
section solely in determining the amount of foreign source

[[Page 205]]

alternative minimum taxable income within each separate category and the 
alternative minimum tax foreign tax credit pursuant to section 59(a). 
Thus, a section 936 corporation that meets the ownership requirements of 
section 1504(a) is not a member of the affiliated group for purposes of 
determining the amount of foreign source alternative minimum taxable 
income within each separate category and the alternative minimum tax 
foreign tax credit pursuant to section 59(a).
    (ii) Section 936 corporation defined. For purposes of this section, 
Sec. 1.861-9, and Sec. 1.861-14, the term section 936 corporation 
means, for any taxable year, a corporation with an election in effect to 
be eligible for the credit provided under section 936(a)(1) or section 
30A for the taxable year.
    (iii) Example. This example illustrates the provisions of paragraph 
(d)(2)(i) of this section:

    Example--(A) Facts. X owns all of the stock of Y. XY constitutes an 
affiliated group of corporations within the meaning of section 1504(a) 
and uses the tax book value method of apportionment. In 2000, Y owns all 
of the stock of Z, a section 936 corporation. Z manufactures widgets in 
Puerto Rico. Y purchases these widgets and markets them exclusively in 
the United States. Of the three corporations, only Z has foreign source 
income, which includes both qualified possessions source investment 
income and general limitation income. For purposes of section 904, Z's 
qualified possessions source investment income constitutes foreign 
source passive income. In computing the section 30A benefit, Y and Z 
have elected the cost sharing method. Of the three corporations, only X 
has debt and, thus, only X incurs interest expense. (B) Analysis for 
regular tax. Assume first that X has no alternative minimum tax 
liability. Under paragraph (d)(2) of this section, Z is treated as a 
member of the XY affiliated group for purposes of allocating and 
apportioning interest expense for regular tax purposes. As provided in 
Sec. 1.861-11T(b)(2), section 864(e)(1) and (5) do not apply in 
computing the combined taxable income of Y and Z under section 936, but 
these rules do apply in computing the foreign source taxable income of 
the XY affiliated group. The effect of including Z in the affiliated 
group is that X, the only debtor corporation in the group, must, under 
the asset method described in Sec. 1.861-9T(g), apportion a part of its 
interest expense to foreign source passive income and foreign source 
general limitation income. This is because the assets of Z that generate 
qualified possessions source investment income and general limitation 
income are included in computing the group apportionment fractions. The 
result is that, under section 904(f), X has an overall foreign loss in 
both the passive and general limitation categories, which currently 
offsets domestic income and must be recaptured against any subsequent 
years' foreign passive income and general limitation income, 
respectively, under the rules of that section.
    (C) Analysis for alternative minimum tax. Assume, alternatively, 
that X is liable to pay the alternative minimum tax. Pursuant to section 
59(a), X must compute its alternative minimum tax foreign tax credit as 
if section 904 were applied on the basis of alternative minimum taxable 
income instead of taxable income. Under paragraph (d)(2)(i)(B) of this 
section, for purposes of the apportionment of interest expense in 
determining alternative minimum taxable income within each limitation 
category, Z is not considered a member of the XY affiliated group. Thus, 
the stock (and not the assets) of Z are included in computing the group 
apportionment fractions. Pursuant to sections 59(g)(4)(C)(iii)(IV), 
861(a)(2)(A), and 862(a)(2), dividends paid by a section 936 corporation 
are foreign source income subject to a separate foreign tax credit 
limitation for alternative minimum tax purposes. Thus, under Sec. 
1.861-9T(g)(3), the stock of Z must be considered attributable solely to 
the statutory grouping consisting of foreign source dividends from Z. 
The effect of excluding Z from the affiliated group is that X must 
apportion a part of its interest expense to the separate category for 
foreign source dividends from Z in computing alternative minimum taxable 
income within each separate category. If, as a result, under section 
904(f), X has a separate limitation loss or an overall foreign loss in 
the category for dividends from Z for alternative minimum tax purposes, 
then that loss must be allocated against X's other income (separate 
limitation or United States source, as the case may be). The loss must 
be recaptured in subsequent years under the rules of section 904(f) for 
purposes of the alternative minimum tax foreign tax credit. * * *

    (iv) Effective date. This paragraph (d)(2) applies to taxable years 
beginning after December 31, 1989.
    (d)(3)-(6) [Reserved]. For further guidance, see Sec. 1.861-
11T(d)(3) through (6).
    (7) Special rules for the application of Sec. 1.861-11T(d)(6). The 
attribution rules of section 1563(e) and the regulations under that 
section shall apply in determining indirect ownership under Sec. 1.861-
11T(d)(6). The Commissioner shall have the authority to disregard 
trusts, partnerships, and pass-through

[[Page 206]]

entities that break affiliated status. Corporations described in Sec. 
1.861-11T(d)(6) shall be considered to constitute members of an 
affiliated group that does not file a consolidated return and shall 
therefore be subject to the limitations imposed under Sec. 1.861-
11T(g). The affiliated group filing a consolidated return shall be 
considered to constitute a single corporation for purposes of applying 
the rules of Sec. 1.861-11T(g). For taxable years beginning after 
December 31, 1989, Sec. 1.861-11T(d)(6)(i) shall not apply in 
determining foreign source alternative minimum taxable income within 
each separate category and the alternative minimum tax foreign tax 
credit pursuant to section 59(a) to the extent that such application 
would result in the inclusion of a section 936 corporation within the 
affiliated group. This paragraph (d)(7) applies to taxable years 
beginning after December 31, 1986.
    (e)-(g) [Reserved]. For further guidance, see Sec. 1.861-11T(e) 
through (g).

[T.D. 8916, 66 FR 273, Jan. 3, 2001]