SECTION 3. TREATMENT OF U.S.

PERSONS THAT OWN STOCK OF A PFIC THROUGH CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS AND ACCOUNTS THAT ARE TAX EXEMPT

The Treasury Department and the IRS believe that the application of the PFIC rules to a U.S. person treated as owning stock of a PFIC through a tax exempt organization or account described in § 1.1298–1T(c)(1) would be inconsistent with the tax policies underlying the PFIC rules and the tax provisions applicable to tax exempt organizations and accounts. For example, applying the PFIC rules to a U.S. person that is treated as a shareholder of a PFIC through the U.S. person’s ownership of an individual retirement account (IRA) described in section 408(a) that

April 28, 2014 990 Bulletin No. 2014–18

owns stock of a PFIC would be inconsistent with the principle of deferred taxation provided by IRAs. Accordingly, the Treasury Department and the IRS will amend the definition of shareholder in the section 1291 regulations to provide that a U.S. person that owns stock of a PFIC through a tax exempt organization or account (as described in § 1.1298–1T(c)(1)) is not treated as a shareholder of the PFIC. This amendment will affect all regulations that cross-reference the § 1.1291–1T(b)(7) and (8) definitions of shareholder and indirect shareholder, including § 1.1298–1T(a).