美国CPA辅导 REG习题讲解

【题目】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.

【正确答案】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.

【学生提问】为什么是1150，而不是1500？

【教师回答】Rule: 收入不包括在今年恢复的以前年度所抵扣的金额，但是有一个限度，就是以前年度所抵扣的金额没有降低以前年度征收的税款。

按项目抵扣的金额在以后的年度收到了，那么应该在收到的时候纳入当年的收入。在这个问题中，只有1150的州所得税在去年作为itemized deduction实际被多抵扣掉了，因此只有实际被多抵扣掉的这1150纳入今年的收入里，而不是全部的州税收返还。

换句话说，如果他按照itemized deduction来抵扣的话，要比按standard deduction来抵扣的多1150。因为多抵扣费用，就可以少纳税。所以这多出来的1150对纳税人来说是占了便宜。但是第二年，政府把你去年抵扣的这些州所得税返还给你了，那么也就是说，总的来看，你并没有这部分费用，因此没有资格来抵扣，所以当政府在今年返还给你钱的时候，你要把这部分钱纳税。

为什么只是1150的部分要纳税呢？这是因为，在去年你只多列支了1150这么多的费用，得到了1150这么多的好处。