The Internal Revenue Service (hereinafter the “Service”) issued on March 24 of 2016 their Announcement 2016-14 addressing the transition period implementation dates in connection with the recently revised Form 3115 entitled “Application for Change in Accounting Method” which was most recently revised and released to the public in December of 2015. This presents a paradigm shift as while most tax forms and publications are updated annually, this was the first update to Form 3115 since December of 2009.
Scope and Application of Announcement 2016-14
In order to provide a reasonable transition period with proper clarity in connection to the December of 2015 release of the newly revised Form 3115, the Service indicated that it will now accept either the December of 2015 version of Form 3115 or the December of 2009 version of Form 3115 filed on or before April 19, 2016, except where the use of the December of 2015 version of Form 3115 is specifically required in guidance published within the Internal Revenue Bulletin.
In contrast, a taxpayer filing Form 3115 after April 19, 2016, must use the December of 2015 version of Form 3115. Noting, the Service encourages taxpayers to use the December of 2015 version of Form 3115 prior to April 20, 2016. It should be duly noted that regardless of the form used, taxpayers must still provide all the information required as set forth pursuant to Rev. Proc. 2015-13 (or Rev. Proc. 2011-14, 2011-4 I.R.B. 330, if the taxpayer is making a change under the transition rule in section 15.02(1)(a)(ii) of Rev. Proc. 2015- 13, 2015-5 I.R.B. 419, as modified by Rev. Proc. 2015-33, 2015-24 I.R.B. 1067).
Finally, the Service also announced that the filing locations for the duplicate Form 3115 is changing. In previous years, taxpayers were required to file a duplicate Form 3115 with the Service Center in Ogden, Utah. However, commencing in January of 2016, the duplicate copy of the December of 2015 version of Form 3115 for an automatic change request is now filed with the Service Center in Covington, Kentucky located at:
Internal Revenue Service
201 West Rivercenter Blvd.
PIN Team Mail Stop 97
Covington, KY 41011-1424
If filed prior to April 20, 2016, a taxpayer may file its duplicate copy of Form 3115 with the Service in either Ogden, Utah; or Covington, Kentucky, utilizing the December of 2009 version of Form 3115.
The December of 2015 version of Form 3115 can be accessed and downloaded at https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f3115.pdf
The IRS Announcement 2016-14 can be accessed and downloaded at https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/a-16-14.pdf
Peter J. Scalise serves as the Federal Tax Credits & Incentives Practice Leader for Prager Metis CPAs, LLC a member of The Prager Metis International Group. Peter is a BIG 4 Alumni Tax Practice Leader and has over twenty years of progressive CPA Firm experience developing, managing and leading multi-million dollar tax advisory practices on a regional, national, and global level. Peter serves on both the Board of Directors and Board of Editors for The American Society of Tax Professionals (ASTP) and is the Founding President and Chairman of The Northeastern Region Tax Roundtable, an operating division of ASTP.
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