Treasury Regulations · 26 CFR
§ 1.863-9. Source of income derived from communications activity under section 863(a), (d), and (e).
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. § 863
Cite as 26 CFR § 1.863-9
At a glance
Read from the text and its source citation. Not part of the regulation.
- Status
- In the current eCFR
- Issued
- December 27, 2006 by T.D. 9305
- Last amended
- September 22, 2020 by T.D. 9908
- Issued under
- 26 U.S.C. § 863
- Length
- 5,374 words · about 23 min to read
- Cross-references
- cites 7 Code sections and 4 regulations; cited by 2
(i) Facts. D provides its customers in various foreign countries with access to its data base, which contains information on certain individuals' health care insurance coverage. Customer C obtains access to D's data base by placing a call to D's telephone number. Assume that C's telephone service, used to access D's data base, is provided by a third party, and that D assumes no responsibility for the transmission of the information via telephone.
(ii) Analysis. D is not paid to transmit communications and does not derive income from communications activity within the meaning of paragraph (h)(2) of this section. Rather, D derives income from provision of content or provision of services to its customers. Therefore, the rules of this section do not apply to determine the source of D's income.
(i) Facts. TC, a local telephone company, receives an access fee from an international carrier for picking up a call from a local telephone customer and delivering the call to a U.S. point of presence (POP) of the international carrier. The international carrier picks up the call from its U.S. POP and delivers the call to a foreign country.
(ii) Analysis. TC is not paid to carry the transmission between the United States and a foreign country. TC is paid to transmit a communication between two points in the United States. TC derives U.S. communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(3)(iii) of this section, which is sourced under paragraph (c) of this section as U.S. source income.
(i) Facts. TC, a domestic corporation, owns an underwater fiber optic cable. Pursuant to contracts, TC makes available to its customers capacity to transmit communications via the cable. TC's customers then solicit telephone customers and arrange to transmit the telephone customers' calls. The cable runs in part through U.S. waters, in part through international waters, and in part through foreign country waters.
(ii) Analysis. TC derives international communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(3)(ii) of this section because TC is paid to make available capacity to transmit communications between the United States and a foreign country. Because TC is a United States person, TC's international communications income is sourced under paragraph (b)(1) of this section as one-half from sources within the United States and one-half from sources without the United States.
(i) Facts. S, a United States person, owns satellites in orbit and uplink facilities in Country X, a foreign country. B, a resident of Country X, pays S to deliver B's programming from S's uplink facility, located in Country X, to a downlink facility in the United States owned by C, a customer of B.
(ii) Analysis. S derives international communications income under paragraph (h)(3)(ii) of this section because S is paid to transmit the communications between a beginning point in a foreign country and an endpoint in the United States. Because S is a United States person, the source of S's international communications income is determined under paragraph (b)(1) of this section as one-half from sources within the United States and one-half from sources without the United States.
(i) Facts. TC is paid to transmit communications from Toronto, Canada, to Paris, France. TC transmits the communications from Toronto to New York. TC pays another communications company, IC, to transmit the communications from New York to Paris.
(ii) Analysis. Under the paid-to-do rule of paragraph (h)(3)(i) of this section, TC derives foreign communications income under paragraph (h)(3)(iv) of this section because TC is paid to transmit communications between two points in foreign countries, Toronto and Paris. Under paragraph (h)(3)(i) of this section, the character of TC's communications activity is determined without regard to the fact that TC pays IC to transmit the communications for some portion of the delivery path. IC has international communications income under paragraph (h)(3)(ii) of this section because IC is paid to transmit the communications between a point in the United States and a point in a foreign country.
(i) Facts. TC is paid to transmit a call between two points in the United States, but routes the call through Canada.
(ii) Analysis. Under paragraph (h)(3)(i) of this section, the character of income derived from communications activity is determined by the two points between which the taxpayer is paid to transmit, and bears the risk of transmitting, the communications, without regard to the path of the transmission between those two points. Thus, under paragraph (h)(3)(iii) of this section, TC derives income from U.S. communications activity because it is paid to transmit the communications between two U.S. points.
(i) Facts. Under an international settlement agreement, G, a Country X international carrier, pays T to receive all calls originating in Country X that are bound for the United States and to terminate such calls in the United States. Due to Country X legal restrictions, the international settlement agreement specifies that G carries the transmission to a point outside the territory of Country X and that T carries the foreign-originating transmission from such point to the destined point in the United States. T, in turn, contracts out with another communications company, S, to transmit the U.S. portion of the communications. Tracing and identifying the endpoints of each transmission is not possible or practical. T does, however, keep records of termination fees received from G for terminating the foreign-originating calls.
(ii) Analysis. T derives communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section. Based on all the facts and circumstances, T can establish that T is paid to transmit, and bears the risk of transmitting, foreign-originating calls from a point in space or international water to a point in the United States using a reasonable method to establish the endpoints, assuming that this method is consistently applied. In this case, T can reasonably establish that T is paid to receive foreign-originating calls and terminate such calls in the United States based on the records of termination fees pursuant to an international settlement agreement. Under paragraph (h)(3)(ii)(B) of this section, a taxpayer derives income from international communications activity when the taxpayer is paid to transmit foreign-originating communications from space or international water to the United States. Thus, under paragraph (h)(3)(ii)(B) of this section, T derives income from international communications. If, based on all the facts and circumstances, T could reasonably trace and identify the endpoints, then T would have to directly establish that each call originated in a foreign country. Assuming T is able to do so, the rest of the analysis in this Example 7 remains the same. Under paragraph (h)(3)(iii) of this section, S derives income from U.S. communications activity because S is paid to transmit the communications between two U.S. points.
(i) Facts. S purchases capacity from TC to transmit telephone calls. S sells prepaid telephone calling cards that give customers access to TC's telephone lines for a certain number of minutes. Assume that S cannot establish the endpoints of its customers' telephone calls, even under the reasonable method rule of paragraph (h)(3) of this section.
(ii) Analysis. S derives communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section because S makes capacity to transmit communications available to its customers. In this case, S cannot establish the two points between which the communications are transmitted. Therefore, S's communications income is U.S. source income, as provided by paragraph (f) of this section.
(i)Facts. B provides both domestic and international long distance services in a calling plan for a limited number of minutes for a set amount each month. Tracing and identifying the endpoints of each transmission is not possible or practical. B is, however, able to establish that the calling plan generated $10,000 of revenue for 25,000 minutes based on reports derived from customer billing records. Based on minutes of use data in these reports, B is able to establish that of the total 25,000 minutes, 60 percent or 15,000 minutes were for U.S. long distance calls and 40 percent or 10,000 minutes were for international calls.
(ii) Analysis. B derives communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section. Based on all the facts and circumstances, B can establish the two points between which B is paid to transmit, and bears the risk of transmitting, the communications using a reasonable method to establish the endpoints, assuming that this method is consistently applied. In this case, B can reasonably establish that 60 percent of the income derived from the long distance calling plan is U.S. communications income and 40 percent is international communications income based on the minutes of use data derived from customer billing records to establish the endpoints of the communications. If, based on all the facts and circumstances, B could reasonably trace and identify the endpoints, then B would have to directly identify the endpoints between which B is paid to transmit the communications.
(i) Facts. D operates satellites which are designed to transmit signals through two separate ranges of signal frequencies (bands). Due to technological limitations, requirements, and practicalities, one band is designed to only transmit signals within the United States. The other band is designed to transmit signals between foreign countries and the United States. D cannot trace and identify the endpoints of each individual transmission. D does, however, track the total transmission through each band and the total income derived from transmitting signals through each band.
(ii) Analysis. D derives communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section. Based on all the facts and circumstances, D can establish the two points between which D is paid to transmit, and bears the risk of transmitting, the communications using a reasonable method to establish endpoints, assuming that this method is consistently applied. In this case, D can reasonably establish that income derived from transmissions through the first band is U.S. communications income and income derived from transmissions through the second band is international communications income based on the design of the bands to establish the endpoints of the communications.
(i) Facts. X provides its customer, C, with a virtual private network (VPN) so that C's U.S. headquarter office can connect and communicate with offices in the United States, Country X, Country Y, and Country Z. Assume that the VPN is only for communications with the U.S. headquarter office. X cannot trace and identify the endpoints of each transmission. C pays X a set amount each month for the entire service, regardless of the magnitude of the usage or the geographic points between which C uses the service.
(ii) Analysis. X derives communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section. Based on the facts and circumstances, X can establish the two points between which X is paid to transmit, and bears the risk of transmitting, the communications using a reasonable method to establish endpoints, assuming that this method is consistently applied. In this case, X can reasonably establish that one-fourth of the income derived from the VPN service is U.S. communications income and three-fourths is international communications income based on the location of the VPN ports to establish the endpoints of the communications.
(i) Facts. B, a domestic corporation, is an Internet service provider. B charges its customer, C, a monthly lump sum for Internet access. C accesses the Internet via a telephone call, initiated by the modem of C's personal computer, to one of B's control centers, which serves as C's portal to the Internet. B transmits data sent by C from B's control center in France to a recipient in England, over the Internet. B does not maintain records as to the beginning and endpoints of the transmission.
(ii) Analysis. B derives communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section. The source of B's communications income is determined under paragraph (f) of this section as income from sources within the United States because B cannot establish the two points between which it is paid to transmit the communications.
(i) Facts. The same facts as in Example 12.
Assume in addition that B replicates frequently requested sites on B's own servers, solely to speed up response time. Assume that B's replication of frequently requested sites would be considered a de minimis non-communications activity under this section.
(ii) Analysis. On these facts, because B's replication of frequently requested sites would be considered a de minimis non-communications activity, B is not required to treat the replication activity as a separate non-communications activity transaction under paragraph (h)(1) of this section. B derives communications income under paragraph (h)(2) of this section. The character and source of B's communications income are determined by demonstrating the points between which B is paid to transmit the communications, under paragraph (h)(3)(i) of this section.
(i) Facts. A, a domestic corporation, offers customers local and long distance phone service, video, and Internet services. Customers pay a flat monthly fee plus 10 cents a minute for all long-distance calls, including international calls.
(ii) Analysis. Under paragraph (h)(1)(ii) of this section, to the extent that A's transaction with its customer consists in part of non-de minimis communications activity and in part of non-de minimis non-communications activity, each such part of the transaction must be treated as a separate transaction. A's gross income from the transaction is allocated to each such communications activity transaction and non-communications activity transaction in accordance with paragraph (h)(1)(ii) of this section. To the extent A can establish that it derives international communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(3)(ii) of this section, A would determine the source of such income under paragraph (b)(1) of this section. If A cannot establish the points between which it is paid to transmit communications, as required by paragraph (h)(3)(i) of this section, A's communications income is from sources within the United States, as provided by paragraph (f) of this section.
(i) Facts. B, a domestic corporation, is paid by D, a cable system operator in Foreign Country, to provide television programs and to transmit the television programs to Foreign Country. Using its own satellite transponder, B transmits the television programs from the United States to downlink facilities owned by D in Foreign Country. D receives the transmission, unscrambles the signals, and distributes the broadcast to D's customers in Foreign Country. Assume that B's provision of television programs is a non-de minimis non-communications activity, and that B's transmission of television programs is a non-de minimis communications activity.
(ii) Analysis. Under paragraph (h)(1)(ii) of this section, B must treat its communications and non-communications activities as separate transactions. B's gross income is allocated to each such separate communications and non-communications activity transaction in accordance with paragraph (h)(1)(ii) of this section. Income derived by B from the transmission of television programs to D's Foreign Country downlink facility is international communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(3)(ii) of this section because B is paid to transmit communications from the United States to a foreign country.
(i) Facts. STS provides satellite capacity to B, a broadcaster located in Australia. B beams programming from Australia to the satellite. S's satellite picks the communications up in space and beams the programming over a footprint covering Southeast Asia.
(ii) Analysis. S derives communications income as defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section. S's income is characterized as foreign communications income under paragraph (h)(3)(iv) of this section because S picks up the communication in space, and beams it to a footprint entirely covering a foreign area. Under paragraph (d) of this section, S's foreign communications income is from sources without the United States. If S were beaming the programming over a satellite footprint that covered area both in the United States and outside the United States, S would be required to allocate the income derived from the different types of communications activity.
[T.D. 9305, 71 FR 77603, Dec. 27, 2006; 72 FR 3490, Jan. 25, 2007, as amended by T.D. 9908, 85 FR 59434, Sept. 22, 2020]
Cross-references
Computed from the citations in the text of 26 CFR.
Code sections it cites
- § 861 Income from sources within the United States
- § 863 Special rules for determining source
- § 957 Controlled foreign corporations; United States persons
- § 318 Constructive ownership of stock
- § 864 Definitions and special rules
- § 7612 Special procedures for summonses for computer software
- § 267 Losses, expenses, and interest with respect to transactions between related taxpayers
Regulations it cites
- § 1.863-8 Source of income derived from space and ocean activity under section 863(d).
- § 1.864-7 Definition of office or other fixed place of business.
- § 1.861-8 Computation of taxable income from sources within the United States and from other sources and activities.
- § 1.861-17 Allocation and apportionment of research and experimental expenditures.
Cited by 2 other regulations
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. 9908 (85 FR 59434)
- Amended (72 FR 3490)
- Issued by T.D. 9305 (71 FR 77603)
Where it sits in 26 CFR
- Subchapter A Income tax
- Part 1 Income taxes
- Regulations applicable to taxable years prior to december 30, 1996
Nearby sections
- § 1.863-4 Certain transportation services.
- § 1.863-6 Income from sources within a foreign country.
- § 1.863-7 Allocation of income attributable to certain notional principal contracts under section 863(a).
- § 1.863-8 Source of income derived from space and ocean activity under section 863(d).
- § 1.863-9 Source of income derived from communications activity under section 863(a), (d), and (e).
- § 1.863-10 Source of income from a qualified fails charge.
- § 1.864-1 Meaning of sale, etc.
- § 1.864-2 Trade or business within the United States.
- § 1.864-3 Rules for determining income effectively connected with U.S. business of nonresident aliens or foreign corporations.