美國CPA輔導 REG習題講解

【題目】Robbe, a cash basis single taxpayer, reported $50,000 of adjusted gross income last year and claimed itemized deductions of $5,500, consisting solely of $5,500 of state income taxes paid last year. Robbe's itemized deduction amount, which exceeded the standard deduction available to single taxpayers for last year by $1,150, was fully deductible and it was not subject to any limitations or phase-outs. In the current year, Robbe received a $1,500 state tax refund relating to the prior year. What is the proper treatment of the state tax refund?

a. Include $1,500 in income in the current year.

b. Include none of the refund in income in the current year.

c. Amend the prior-year's return and reduce the claimed itemized deductions for that year.

d. Include $1,150 in income in the current year.

【正確答案】d

【答案解析】Rule: IRC Section 111 provides that gross income does not include income attributable to the recovery during the taxable year of any amount deducted in any prior taxable year to the extent such amount did not reduce the amount of tax previously imposed (the tax benefit rule).

Choice "d" is correct. Under the tax benefit rule, an itemized deduction recovered in a subsequent year is included in income in the year recovered. In this question, only $1,150 of the state income taxes was actually deducted as an itemized deduction last year. The recovery is thus limited in the amount actually deducted (and not to the entire amount of the state tax refund).

Choice "b" is incorrect. The amount deducted, not $0, is included in income in the current year.

Choice "a" is incorrect. The amount originally deducted, not necessarily the entire amount of the refund, is included in income in the current year.

Choice "c" is incorrect. The amount deducted is included in income in the current year. It is not necessary to amend the prior year's return.

【學生提問】為什么是1150，而不是1500？

【教師回答】Rule: 收入不包括在今年恢復的以前年度所抵扣的金額，但是有一個限度，就是以前年度所抵扣的金額沒有降低以前年度征收的稅款。

按項目抵扣的金額在以后的年度收到了，那么應該在收到的時候納入當年的收入。在這個問題中，只有1150的州所得稅在去年作為itemized deduction實際被多抵扣掉了，因此只有實際被多抵扣掉的這1150納入今年的收入里，而不是全部的州稅收返還。

換句話說，如果他按照itemized deduction來抵扣的話，要比按standard deduction來抵扣的多1150。因為多抵扣費用，就可以少納稅。所以這多出來的1150對納稅人來說是占了便宜。但是第二年，政府把你去年抵扣的這些州所得稅返還給你了，那么也就是說，總的來看，你并沒有這部分費用，因此沒有資格來抵扣，所以當政府在今年返還給你錢的時候，你要把這部分錢納稅。

為什么只是1150的部分要納稅呢？這是因為，在去年你只多列支了1150這么多的費用，得到了1150這么多的好處。