Greetings All,
I have what I hope to be an honest to goodness simple PFIC question, specifically regarding Form 8621.
As background – In 2014, I foolishly invested in several funds via a Stocks and Shares ISA. Within a couple of weeks, I learned about the tax implications and pulled all the money out. Because the markets were bear-ish, I made a gain on a number of the funds held within the ISA. There were no dividends or reinvestment income from any of the funds – the only profit I made was from divesting the funds themselves.
Because each fund was bought and sold within one accounting year (2014), it seems that I can use the excess distribution rules and not bother with any elections. (I am fine with listing the profit as “Other Income” and having it taxed at a marginal rate.)
With this in mind, it seems that I need to fill out Part V of the form for each fund that produced a profit. A case study at:
http://hodgen.com/pfic-excess-distribution-rules-same-year/ [nofollow] indicates that I need to note the profit on Line 15f, create an explanatory statement for Line 16a, and the total profit again on line 16b, as it is all allocable to the current tax year. (The Hodgen site lists Line 10f because it is from a couple of years ago before Section 1 was added to Form 8621. The relevant instructions to distributions, however, remain the same.)
My question is whether I need to enter anything into Line 15a. I believe that I don't, as there were no distributions (i.e., dividends, interest, etc.), only profit from the sale. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?
Many thanks in advance for any assistance / guidance offered! I've since moved my investments back to the States so won't have this problem in future years.
