Treasury Regulations · 26 CFR
§ 1.167(a)-3. Intangibles.
Regulation text, no changes From the eCFR, current as of October 15, 2026. The eCFR is an authoritative but unofficial editorial compilation of the Code of Federal Regulations; the official text is the annual CFR on govinfo. Compare it with this section on ecfr.gov (external site) or the official annual CFR on govinfo (external site).
Regulation under 26 U.S.C. § 167(a)
Cite as 26 CFR § 1.167(a)-3
At a glance
Read from the text and its source citation. Not part of the regulation.
- Status
- In the current eCFR
- Issued
- November 26, 1960 by T.D. 6500
- Last amended
- January 5, 2004 by T.D. 9107
- Issued under
- 26 U.S.C. § 167(a)
- Length
- 623 words · about 3 min to read
- Cross-references
- cites 4 Code sections and 4 regulations; cited by 5
¶(a) In general. If an intangible asset is known from experience or other factors to be of use in the business or in the production of income for only a limited period, the length of which can be estimated with reasonable accuracy, such an intangible asset may be the subject of a depreciation allowance. Examples are patents and copyrights. An intangible asset, the useful life of which is not limited, is not subject to the allowance for depreciation. No allowance will be permitted merely because, in the unsupported opinion of the taxpayer, the intangible asset has a limited useful life. No deduction for depreciation is allowable with respect to goodwill. For rules with respect to organizational expenditures, see section 248 and the regulations thereunder. For rules with respect to trademark and trade name expenditures, see section 177 and the regulations thereunder. See sections 197 and 167(f) and, to the extent applicable, §§ 1.197-2 and 1.167(a)-14 for amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles acquired after August 10, 1993, or after July 25, 1991, if a valid retroactive election under § 1.197-1T has been made.
¶(b) Safe harbor amortization for certain intangible assets—
¶(1) Useful life. Solely for purposes of determining the depreciation allowance referred to in paragraph (a) of this section, a taxpayer may treat an intangible asset as having a useful life equal to 15 years unless—
¶(i) An amortization period or useful life for the intangible asset is specifically prescribed or prohibited by the Internal Revenue Code, the regulations thereunder (other than by this paragraph (b)), or other published guidance in the Internal Revenue Bulletin (see § 601.601(d)(2) of this chapter);
¶(ii) The intangible asset is described in § 1.263(a)-4(c) (relating to intangibles acquired from another person) or § 1.263(a)-4(d)(2) (relating to created financial interests);
¶(iii) The intangible asset has a useful life the length of which can be estimated with reasonable accuracy; or
¶(iv) The intangible asset is described in § 1.263(a)-4(d)(8) (relating to certain benefits arising from the provision, production, or improvement of real property), in which case the taxpayer may treat the intangible asset as having a useful life equal to 25 years solely for purposes of determining the depreciation allowance referred to in paragraph (a) of this section.
¶(2) Applicability to acquisitions of a trade or business, changes in the capital structure of a business entity, and certain other transactions. The safe harbor useful life provided by paragraph (b)(1) of this section does not apply to an amount required to be capitalized by § 1.263(a)-5 (relating to amounts paid to facilitate an acquisition of a trade or business, a change in the capital structure of a business entity, and certain other transactions).
¶(3) Depreciation method. A taxpayer that determines its depreciation allowance for an intangible asset using the 15-year useful life prescribed by paragraph (b)(1) of this section (or the 25-year useful life in the case of an intangible asset described in § 1.263(a)-4(d)(8)) must determine the allowance by amortizing the basis of the intangible asset (as determined under section 167(c) and without regard to salvage value) ratably over the useful life beginning on the first day of the month in which the intangible asset is placed in service by the taxpayer. The intangible asset is not eligible for amortization in the month of disposition.
¶(4) Effective date. This paragraph (b) applies to intangible assets created on or after December 31, 2003.
[T.D. 6500, 25 FR 11402, Nov. 26, 1960; 25 FR 14021, Dec. 21, 1960, as amended by T.D. 8867, 65 FR 3825, Jan. 25, 2000; T.D. 9107, 69 FR 444, Jan. 5, 2004]
Cross-references
Computed from the citations in the text of 26 CFR.
Code sections it cites
- § 248 Organizational expenditures
- § 177 Repealed
- § 197 Amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles
- § 167 Depreciation
Regulations it cites
- § 1.197-2 Amortization of goodwill and certain other intangibles.
- § 1.197-1T Certain elections for intangible property (temporary).
- § 1.263(a)-4 Amounts paid to acquire or create intangibles.
- § 1.263(a)-5 Amounts paid or incurred to facilitate an acquisition of a trade or business, a change in the capital structure of a business entity, and certain other transactions.
Cited by 5 other regulations
- § 1.45G-1 Railroad track maintenance credit.
- § 1.167(f)-1 Reduction of salvage value taken into account for certain personal property.
- § 1.263(a)-4 Amounts paid to acquire or create intangibles.
- § 1.446-1 General rule for methods of accounting.
- § 4.954-2 Foreign personal holding company income; taxable years beginning after December 31, 1986.
Amendment history
From the source citation at the end of the section, newest first. T.D. is a Treasury decision; FR is the Federal Register.
- Amended by T.D. 9107 (69 FR 444)
- Amended by T.D. 8867 (65 FR 3825)
- Amended (25 FR 14021)
- Issued by T.D. 6500 (25 FR 11402)
Where it sits in 26 CFR
- Subchapter A Income tax
- Part 1 Income taxes
- Itemized Deductions for Individuals and Corporations
Nearby sections
- § 1.166-9 Losses of guarantors, endorsers, and indemnitors incurred, on agreements made after December 31, 1975, in taxable years beginning after such date.
- § 1.166-10 Reserve for guaranteed debt obligations.
- § 1.167(a)-1 Depreciation in general.
- § 1.167(a)-2 Tangible property.
- § 1.167(a)-3 Intangibles.
- § 1.167(a)-4 Leased property.
- § 1.167(a)-5 Apportionment of basis.
- § 1.167(a)-5T Application of section 1060 to section 167 (temporary).
- § 1.167(a)-6 Depreciation in special cases.