Internal Revenue Code · 26 U.S.C.
§ 814. Contiguous country branches of domestic life insurance companies
Official text, no changes From the Office of the Law Revision Counsel, release point 119-121 (current through Public Law 119-121 (October 9, 2026)). Compare it with the official text at uscode.house.gov (external site).
Cite as 26 U.S.C. § 814
At a glance
Read from the text, the source credit and the official notes. Not part of the law.
- Status
- In force
- Added
- July 18, 1984 by Pub. L. 98–369
- Last amended
- December 22, 2017 by Pub. L. 115–97
- Amendments
- 2 dated changes in the source credit
- Length
- 8 subsections · 1,270 words · about 6 min to read
- Defines
- 2 terms
- Cross-references
- cites 4; cited by 0 Code sections and 0 other regulations
If the aggregate fair market value of all the invested assets and tangible property which are separately accounted for by the domestic life insurance company in the branch account established pursuant to subsection (c) exceeds the aggregate adjusted basis of such assets for purposes of determining gain, then the domestic life insurance company shall be treated as having sold all such assets on the first day of the first taxable year for which the election is in effect at their fair market value on such first day. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the net gain shall be recognized to the domestic life insurance company on the deemed sale described in the preceding sentence.
Any payment, transfer, reimbursement, credit, or allowance which is made from a separate account established pursuant to subsection (c) to one or more other accounts of a domestic life insurance company as reimbursement for costs incurred for or with respect to the insurance (or reinsurance) of risks accounted for in such separate account shall be taken into account by the domestic life insurance company in the same manner as if such payment, transfer, reimbursement, credit, or allowance had been received from a separate person.
Except as provided in subparagraph (B), any amount directly or indirectly transferred or credited from a branch account established pursuant to subsection (c) to one or more other accounts of such company shall, unless such transfer or credit is a reimbursement to which paragraph (1) applies, be added to the income of the domestic life insurance company.
For purposes of this paragraph, in the case of a prior taxable year beginning before January 1, 1984, the term “tentative LICTI” means life insurance company taxable income determined under this part (as in effect for such year) without regard to this paragraph.
No income, war profits, or excess profits taxes paid or accrued to any foreign country or possession of the United States which is attributable to income excluded under subsection (a) shall be taken into account for purposes of subpart A of part III of subchapter N (relating to foreign tax credit) or allowable as a deduction.
For purposes of sections 881, 882, and 1442, each contiguous country life insurance branch shall be treated as a foreign corporation. Such sections shall be applied to each such branch in the same manner as if such sections contained the provisions of any treaty to which the United States and the contiguous country are parties, to the same extent such provisions would apply if such branch were incorporated in such contiguous country.
A taxpayer may make the election provided by this subsection with respect to any contiguous country for any taxable year. An election made under this subsection for any taxable year shall remain in effect for all subsequent taxable years, except that it may be revoked with the consent of the Secretary. The election provided by this subsection shall be made not later than the time prescribed by law for filing the return for the taxable year (including extensions thereof) with respect to which such election is made, and such election and any approved revocation thereof shall be made in the manner provided by the Secretary.
At the election of a domestic stock life insurance company which has a contiguous country life insurance branch described in subsection (b) (without regard to the mutual requirement in subsection (b)(3)), the assets of such branch may be transferred to a foreign corporation organized under the laws of the contiguous country without the application of section 367. Subsection (a) shall apply to the stock of such foreign corporation as if such domestic company were a mutual company and as if the stock were an item described in subsection (c). Subsection (e)(2) shall apply to amounts transferred or credited to such domestic company as if such domestic company and such foreign corporation constituted one domestic mutual life insurance company. The insurance contracts which may be transferred pursuant to this subsection shall include only those which are similar to the types of insurance contracts issued by a mutual life insurance company. Notwithstanding the first sentence of this subsection, if the aggregate fair market value of the invested assets and tangible property which are separately accounted for by the domestic life insurance company in the branch account exceeds the aggregate adjusted basis of such assets for purposes of determining gain, the domestic life insurance company shall be deemed to have sold all such assets on the first day of the taxable year for which the election under this subsection applies and the net gain shall be recognized to the domestic life insurance company on the deemed sale, but not in excess of the proportion of such net gain which equals the proportion which the aggregate fair market value of such assets which are transferred pursuant to this subsection is of the aggregate fair market value of all such assets.
(Added Pub. L. 98–369, div. A, title II, § 211(a), July 18, 1984, 98 Stat. 744; amended Pub. L. 105–34, title XI, § 1131(c)(1), Aug. 5, 1997, 111 Stat. 980; Pub. L. 115–97, title I, § 14301(c)(5), Dec. 22, 2017, 131 Stat. 2222.)
Terms defined here
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Cross-references
Computed from the citations in the text of Title 26 and 26 CFR.
This section cites 4 other sections
Amendment history
From the source credit and the official notes, newest first.
Where it sits in the Code
- Subtitle A Income Taxes
- Chapter 1 NORMAL TAXES AND SURTAXES
- Subchapter L Insurance Companies
- Part I LIFE INSURANCE COMPANIES
- Subpart D Accounting, Allocation, and Foreign Provisions
Nearby sections
- § 811 Accounting provisions
- § 812 Definition of company’s share and policyholder’s share
- § 813 Repealed
- § 814 Contiguous country branches of domestic life insurance companies
- § 815 Repealed
Official notes
Show the Law Revision Counsel's notes (amendments, effective dates)
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2017—Subsec. (f)(1). Pub. L. 115–97 redesignated subpar. (A) as par. (1), struck out subpar. (A) heading “In general”, and struck out subpar. (B). Prior to amendment, text of subpar. (B) read as follows: “For purposes of sections 78 and 902, where any amount is added to the life insurance company taxable income of the domestic life insurance company by reason of subsection (e)(2), the contiguous country life insurance branch shall be treated as a foreign corporation. Any amount so added shall be treated as a dividend paid by a foreign corporation, and the taxes paid to any foreign country or possession of the United States with respect to such amount shall be deemed to have been paid by such branch.”
1997—Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 105–34 struck out “or 1491” after “section 367”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
New Section 814 Treated as Continuation of Section 819A
Pub. L. 98–369, div. A, title II, § 217(a), July 18, 1984, 98 Stat. 762, as amended by Pub. L. 99–514, § 2, Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat. 2095, provided that:
“For purposes of section 814 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 [formerly I.R.C. 1954] (relating to contiguous country branches of domestic life insurance companies)—“(1) any election under section 819A of such Code (as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act [July 18, 1984]) shall be treated as an election under such section 814, and“(2) any reference to a provision of such section 814 shall be treated as including a reference to the corresponding provision of such section 819A.”
Effective Date of 2017 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 115–97 applicable to taxable years of foreign corporations beginning after Dec. 31, 2017, and to taxable years of United States shareholders in which or with which such taxable years of foreign corporations end, see section 14301(d) of Pub. L. 115–97, set out as a note under section 78 of this title.
Effective Date
Section applicable to taxable years beginning after Dec. 31, 1983, see section 215 of Pub. L. 98–369, set out as a note under section 801 of this title.