Title 26 — Internal Revenue CodeRelease 119-73
§679 Foreign trusts having one or more United States beneficiaries
Title 26 › Subtitle Subtitle A— - Income Taxes › Chapter CHAPTER 1— - NORMAL TAXES AND SURTAXES › Subchapter Subchapter J— - Estates, Trusts, Beneficiaries, and Decedents › Part PART I— - ESTATES, TRUSTS, AND BENEFICIARIES › Subpart Subpart E— - Grantors and Others Treated as Substantial Owners › § 679
Summary
If a U.S. person puts property into a foreign trust, the person must be treated as owning the part of the trust that came from that property for tax purposes if any U.S. person benefits from the trust that year. This does not apply to transfers at the owner’s death or to transfers where the owner got at least the fair market value back. Debts or guarantees tied to the transfer may not count except as rules say, and trust loan principal is counted when it is paid. People related to the trust or to its grantor, owner, or beneficiary are included in these rules. If a nonresident becomes a U.S. resident within 5 years after making the transfer, the transfer is treated as if it happened on the residency starting date for these rules. If someone transferred to a domestic trust and it later becomes a foreign trust while that person is alive, the same rules apply. A trust is treated as having a U.S. beneficiary unless its terms clearly and completely prevent any payments or benefits to U.S. persons, even if the trust ended. Payments that pass through certain foreign entities (like some foreign corporations, partnerships with a U.S. partner, or other foreign trusts with U.S. beneficiaries) count as going to a U.S. beneficiary. A beneficiary who becomes a U.S. person more than 5 years after the transfer does not count. Discretion to make distributions or any agreement that could lead to U.S. benefits also makes the trust treated as having a U.S. beneficiary. Loans to or from U.S. persons count as benefits unless repaid at market terms within a reasonable time. The IRS can ask for information and can treat the trust as having a U.S. beneficiary unless the transferor proves the trust meets the no-payment rules, and the IRS will issue rules to implement these provisions.
Full Legal Text
Title 26, §679
Internal Revenue Code — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)(1)A United States person who directly or indirectly transfers property to a foreign trust (other than a trust described in section 6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)) shall be treated as the owner for his taxable year of the portion of such trust attributable to such property if for such year there is a United States beneficiary of any portion of such trust.
(2)Paragraph (1) shall not apply—
(A)To any transfer by reason of the death of the transferor.
(B)To any transfer of property to a trust in exchange for consideration of at least the fair market value of the transferred property. For purposes of the preceding sentence, consideration other than cash shall be taken into account at its fair market value.
(3)(A)In determining whether paragraph (2)(B) applies to any transfer by a person described in clause (ii) or (iii) of subparagraph (C), there shall not be taken into account—
(i)except as provided in regulations, any obligation of a person described in subparagraph (C), and
(ii)to the extent provided in regulations, any obligation which is guaranteed by a person described in subparagraph (C).
(B)Principal payments by the trust on any obligation referred to in subparagraph (A) shall be taken into account on and after the date of the payment in determining the portion of the trust attributable to the property transferred.
(C)The persons described in this subparagraph are—
(i)the trust,
(ii)any grantor, owner, or beneficiary of the trust, and
(iii)any person who is related (within the meaning of section 643(i)(2)(B)) to any grantor, owner, or beneficiary of the trust.
(4)(A)If a nonresident alien individual has a residency starting date within 5 years after directly or indirectly transferring property to a foreign trust, this section and section 6048 shall be applied as if such individual transferred to such trust on the residency starting date an amount equal to the portion of such trust attributable to the property transferred by such individual to such trust in such transfer.
(B)For purposes of this section, undistributed net income for periods before such individual’s residency starting date shall be taken into account in determining the portion of the trust which is attributable to property transferred by such individual to such trust but shall not otherwise be taken into account.
(C)For purposes of this paragraph, an individual’s residency starting date is the residency starting date determined under section 7701(b)(2)(A).
(5)If—
(A)an individual who is a citizen or resident of the United States transferred property to a trust which was not a foreign trust, and
(B)such trust becomes a foreign trust while such individual is alive,
(b)If—
(1)subsection (a) applies to a trust for the transferor’s taxable year, and
(2)subsection (a) would have applied to the trust for his immediately preceding taxable year but for the fact that for such preceding taxable year there was no United States beneficiary for any portion of the trust,
(c)(1)For purposes of this section, a trust shall be treated as having a United States beneficiary for the taxable year unless—
(A)under the terms of the trust, no part of the income or corpus of the trust may be paid or accumulated during the taxable year to or for the benefit of a United States person, and
(B)if the trust were terminated at any time during the taxable year, no part of the income or corpus of such trust could be paid to or for the benefit of a United States person.
(2)For purposes of paragraph (1), an amount shall be treated as paid or accumulated to or for the benefit of a United States person if such amount is paid to or accumulated for a foreign corporation, foreign partnership, or foreign trust or estate, and—
(A)in the case of a foreign corporation, such corporation is a controlled foreign corporation (as defined in section 957(a)),
(B)in the case of a foreign partnership, a United States person is a partner of such partnership, or
(C)in the case of a foreign trust or estate, such trust or estate has a United States beneficiary (within the meaning of paragraph (1)).
(3)A beneficiary shall not be treated as a United States person in applying this section with respect to any transfer of property to foreign trust if such beneficiary first became a United States person more than 5 years after the date of such transfer.
(4)For purposes of paragraph (1)(A), if any person has the discretion (by authority given in the trust agreement, by power of appointment, or otherwise) of making a distribution from the trust to, or for the benefit of, any person, such trust shall be treated as having a beneficiary who is a United States person unless—
(A)the terms of the trust specifically identify the class of persons to whom such distributions may be made, and
(B)none of those persons are United States persons during the taxable year.
(5)For purposes of paragraph (1)(A), if any United States person who directly or indirectly transfers property to the trust is directly or indirectly involved in any agreement or understanding (whether written, oral, or otherwise) that may result in the income or corpus of the trust being paid or accumulated to or for the benefit of a United States person, such agreement or understanding shall be treated as a term of the trust.
(6)For purposes of this subsection, a loan of cash or marketable securities (or the use of any other trust property) directly or indirectly to or by any United States person (whether or not a beneficiary under the terms of the trust) shall be treated as paid or accumulated for the benefit of a United States person. The preceding sentence shall not apply to the extent that the United States person repays the loan at a market rate of interest (or pays the fair market value of the use of such property) within a reasonable period of time.
(d)If a United States person directly or indirectly transfers property to a foreign trust (other than a trust described in section 6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)), the Secretary may treat such trust as having a United States beneficiary for purposes of applying this section to such transfer unless such person—
(1)submits such information to the Secretary as the Secretary may require with respect to such transfer, and
(2)demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that such trust satisfies the requirements of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (c)(1).
(e)The Secretary shall prescribe such regulations as may be necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of this section.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2010—Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 111–147, § 531(a), inserted concluding provisions. Subsec. (c)(4), (5). Pub. L. 111–147, § 531(b), (c), added pars. (4) and (5). Subsec. (c)(6). Pub. L. 111–147, § 533(c), added par. (6). Subsecs. (d), (e). Pub. L. 111–147, § 532(a), added subsec. (d) and redesignated former subsec. (d) as (e). 1998—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 105–206 provided that the amendment made by section 1903(b) of Pub. L. 104–188 shall be applied as if “or” in the material proposed to be stricken were capitalized. See 1996 Amendment note below. 1997—Subsec. (a)(3)(C)(ii), (iii). Pub. L. 105–34 inserted “, owner,” after “grantor”. 1996—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 104–188, § 1903(b), which directed that subsec. (a) of this section be amended by substituting “section 6048(a)(3)(B)(ii)” for “section 404(a)(4) or 404A”, was executed to par. (1) by making the substitution for “section 404(a)(4) Or section 404A” to reflect the probable intent of Congress. See 1998 Amendment note above. Subsec. (a)(2)(B). Pub. L. 104–188, § 1903(a)(1), amended subpar. (B) generally. Prior to amendment, subpar. (B) read as follows: “Transfers where gain is recognized to transferor.—To any sale or exchange of the property at its fair market value in a transaction in which all of the gain to the transferor is realized at the time of the transfer and is recognized either at such time or is returned as provided in section 453.” Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 104–188, § 1903(a)(2), added par. (3). Subsec. (a)(4), (5). Pub. L. 104–188, § 1903(c), added pars. (4) and (5). Subsec. (c)(2)(A). Pub. L. 104–188, § 1903(e), amended subpar. (A) generally. Prior to amendment, subpar. (A) read as follows: “in the case of a foreign corporation, more than 50 percent of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock entitled to vote of such corporation is owned (within the meaning of section 958(a)) or is considered to be owned (within the meaning of section 958(b)) by United States shareholders (as defined in section 951(b)),”. Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 104–188, § 1903(d), added par. (3). Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 104–188, § 1903(f), added subsec. (d). 1980—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 96–603 inserted “Or section 404A” after “section 404(a)(4)”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2010 Amendment Pub. L. 111–147, title V, § 532(b), Mar. 18, 2010, 124 Stat. 114, provided that: “The
Amendments
made by this section [amending this section] shall apply to transfers of property after the date of the enactment of this Act [Mar. 18, 2010].” Amendment by section 533(c) of Pub. L. 111–147 applicable to loans made, and uses of property, after Mar. 18, 2010, see section 533(e) of Pub. L. 111–147, set out as a note under section 643 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1998 AmendmentAmendment by section 6018 of Pub. L. 105–206 effective as if included in the provisions of the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996, Pub. L. 104–188, to which such amendment relates, see section 6018(h) of Pub. L. 105–206, set out as a note under section 23 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1997 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 105–34 effective as if included in the provisions of the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996, Pub. L. 104–188, to which it relates, see section 1601(j) of Pub. L. 105–34, set out as a note under section 23 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1996 Amendment Pub. L. 104–188, title I, § 1903(g), Aug. 20, 1996, 110 Stat. 1910, provided that: “The
Amendments
made by this section [amending this section] shall apply to transfers of property after February 6, 1995.”
Effective Date
of 1980 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 96–603 applicable with respect to employer contributions or accruals for taxable years beginning after Dec. 31, 1979, election to apply
Amendments
retroactively with respect to foreign subsidiaries, allowance or prior deductions in case of certain funded branch plans, and time and manner for making elections, see section 2(e) of Pub. L. 96–603, set out as an
Effective Date
note under section 404A of this title.
Effective Date
Pub. L. 94–455, title X, § 1013(f)(1), Oct. 4, 1976, 90 Stat. 1616, provided that: “The
Amendments
made by this section (other than subsection (c)) [enacting this section and amending section 643, 678, 6048, and 6678 of this title] shall apply to taxable years ending after
December 31, 1975, but only in the case of— “(A) foreign trusts created after
May 21, 1974, and “(B) transfers of property to foreign trusts after
May 21, 1974.”
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
26 U.S.C. § 679
Title 26 — Internal Revenue Code
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73