Instructions for Form 1120-SF - Introductory Material Future Developments What's New Form 1120-SF. Increase in penalty for failure to file. Form 1120-W now historical. General Instructions Purpose of Form Who Must File When To File Private delivery services (PDSs). Extension of time to file. Who Must Sign Paid Preparer Authorization Assembling the Return Where To File Tax Payments Electronic Deposit Requirement Depositing on time. Same-day wire payment option. Estimated Tax Payments Interest and Penalties Interest. Late filing of return. Late payment of tax. Reasonable-cause determinations. The trust fund recovery penalty. Other penalties. Accounting Method Rounding Off to Whole Dollars Recordkeeping Additional Information Definitions Qualified Settlement Fund Governmental order or approval requirement. Arbitration panels. Resolve or satisfy requirement. Segregation requirement. Classification of fund prior to meeting all three requirements. Relation-back rule. Relation-back election. Qualified settlement fund treated as a corporation. Designated Settlement Fund Qualified payment. Other Definitions Administrator. Transferor. Related person. Specific Instructions Period Covered Address Employer Identification Number (EIN) Final Return, Name Change, Address Change, or Amended Return Part I. Income and Deductions Income Line 1. Taxable interest. Line 3. Capital gain net income. Line 5. Other income. Deductions Line 11. Other deductions. Line 12. Net operating loss (NOL) deduction . Part II. Tax Computation Line 14. Modified gross income. Line 16. Credits and payments. Line 17. Estimated tax penalty. Instructions for Form 1120-SF - Notices Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. Instructions for Form 1120-SF (11/2022) U.S. Income Tax Return for Settlement Funds Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise noted. Revised: 11/2022 Instructions for Form 1120-SF - Introductory Material Future Developments For the latest information about developments related to Form 1120-SF and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/Form1120SF. What's New Form 1120-SF. Form 1120-SF is not being revised. Continue to use the November 2018 revision of the Form 1120-SF with these updated instructions. Increase in penalty for failure to file. The minimum penalty for failure to file a return that is over 60 days late has increased to the smaller of the tax due or $450. See Late filing of return, later. Form 1120-W now historical. Form 1120-W, Estimated Tax for Corporations, and the Instructions for Form 1120-W are now historical. The 2022 Form 1120-W (released in 2021) and the 2022 Instructions for Form 1120-W (released in 2021) will be the last revision of both the form and its instructions. Prior versions will be available on IRS.gov. General Instructions Purpose of Form Use Form 1120-SF to report transfers received, income earned, deductions claimed, and distributions made, and to figure the income tax liability of a designated or qualified settlement fund. Who Must File All section 468B designated and qualified settlement funds must file an annual income tax return on Form 1120-SF. When To File Generally, a settlement fund must file its income tax return by the 15th day of the 4th month after the end of its tax year. However, a fund with a fiscal tax year ending on June 30 must file by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the end of its tax year. A fund with a short tax year ending in June will be treated as if the short year ended on June 30, and must file by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the end of its tax year. If the due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the fund may file on the next business day. Private delivery services (PDSs). Settlement funds can use certain PDSs designated by the IRS to meet the “timely mailing as timely filing/paying” rule for tax returns and payments. See the Instructions for Form 1120, U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return, for details. PDSs cannot deliver items to P.O. boxes. The fund must use the U.S. Postal Service to mail any items to an IRS P.O. box address. Extension of time to file. File Form 7004, Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File Certain Business Income Tax, Information, and Other Returns, to request an extension of time to file. Generally, file Form 7004 by the regular due date of the return. Who Must Sign The return must be signed and dated by the administrator of the fund. If an employee of the fund completes Form 1120-SF, the paid preparer's space should remain blank. Anyone who prepares Form 1120-SF but does not charge the fund should not complete that section. Generally, anyone who is paid to prepare the return must sign it and fill in the “Paid Preparer Use Only” area. The paid preparer must complete the required preparer information and: Note. A paid preparer may sign original or amended returns by rubber stamp, mechanical device, or computer software program. Sign the return in the space provided for the preparer's signature, and Give a copy of the return to the administrator. Paid Preparer Authorization If the fund wants to allow the IRS to discuss its tax return with the paid preparer who signed it, check the “Yes” box in the signature area of the return. This authorization applies only to the individual whose signature appears in the “Paid Preparer Use Only” section of the fund's return. It does not apply to the firm, if any, shown in that section. If the “Yes” box is checked, the fund is authorizing the IRS to call the paid preparer to answer any questions that may arise during the processing of its return. The fund is also authorizing the paid preparer to: Give the IRS any information that is missing from the return; Call the IRS for information about the processing of the return or the status of any related refund or payment(s); and Respond to certain IRS notices about math errors, offsets, and return preparation. The fund is not authorizing the paid preparer to receive any refund check, bind the fund to anything (including any additional tax liability), or otherwise represent the fund before the IRS. The authorization will automatically end no later than the due date (excluding extensions) for filing the fund's tax return. If the fund wants to expand the paid preparer's authorization or revoke the authorization before it ends, see Pub. 947, Practice Before the IRS and Power of Attorney. Assembling the Return To ensure that the fund's tax return is processed correctly, attach all schedules in alphabetical order and other forms in numerical order after Form 1120-SF. Complete every applicable entry space on Form 1120-SF. Do not write “See Attached” instead of completing the entry spaces. If more space is needed on the forms or schedules, attach separate sheets using the same size and format as the printed forms. If there are supporting statements and attachments, arrange them in the same order as the schedules or forms they support and attach them last. Show the totals on the printed forms. Enter the fund's name and employer identification number (EIN) on each supporting statement or attachment. Where To File File the fund's return at the applicable IRS address listed below. If the fund's principal business, office, or agency is located in: Use the following address: The United States Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service Center Ogden, UT 84201-0012 A foreign country or U.S. possession Internal Revenue Service Center P.O. Box 409101 Ogden, UT 84409 Tax Payments The fund must pay any tax due in full no later than the 15th day of the 4th month after the end of the tax year. Electronic Deposit Requirement Settlement funds must use electronic funds transfers to make all federal tax deposits (such as deposits of employment, excise, and income tax). Generally, electronic funds transfers are made using the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS). However, if the fund does not want to use EFTPS, it can arrange for its tax professional, financial institution, payroll service, or other trusted third party to make deposits on its behalf. Also, it may arrange for its financial institution to submit a same-day wire payment (discussed below) on its behalf. EFTPS is a free service provided by the Department of the Treasury. Services provided by a tax professional, financial institution, payroll service, or other third party may have a fee. To get more information about EFTPS or to enroll in EFTPS, go to EFTPS.gov or call 800-555-4477. To contact EFTPS using Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, dial 711 and then provide the TRS assistant the 800-555-4477 number above or 800-733-4829. Depositing on time. For any deposit made by EFTPS to be on time, the fund must submit the deposit by 8 p.m. Eastern time the day before the date the deposit is due. If the fund uses a third party to make deposits on its behalf, they may have different cutoff times. Same-day wire payment option. If the fund fails to submit a deposit transaction on EFTPS by 8 p.m. Eastern time the day before the date a deposit is due, it can still make its deposit on time by using the Federal Tax Collection Service (FTCS). To use the same-day wire payment method, the fund will need to make arrangements with its financial institution ahead of time regarding availability, deadlines, and costs. Financial institutions may charge a fee for payments made this way. To learn more about the information the fund will need to provide to its financial institution to make a same-day wire payment, go to IRS.gov/SameDayWire. Estimated Tax Payments Generally, the following rules apply to the fund's payments of estimated tax. A fund must make installment payments of estimated tax if it expects its total tax for the year (less applicable credits) to be $500 or more. The installments are due by the 15th day of the 4th, 6th, 9th, and 12th months of the tax year. If any date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the installment is due on the next business day. The fund must use electronic funds transfers to make installment payments of estimated tax. If, after the fund figures and deposits estimated tax, it finds that its tax liability for the year will be more or less than originally estimated, it may have to refigure its required installments. If earlier installments were underpaid, the fund may owe a penalty. See the instructions for Line 17. If the fund overpaid estimated tax, it may be able to get a quick refund by filing Form 4466, Corporation Application for Quick Refund of Overpayment of Estimated Tax. See section 6655 for more information on how to figure estimated taxes. Interest and Penalties Interest. Interest is charged on taxes paid late even if an extension of time to file is granted. Interest is also charged on penalties imposed for failure to file, negligence, fraud, substantial valuation misstatements, substantial understatements of tax, and reportable transaction understatements from the due date (including extensions) to the date of payment. The interest charge is figured at a rate determined under section 6621. Late filing of return. A fund that does not file its tax return by the due date, including extensions, may be penalized 5% of the unpaid tax for each month or part of a month the return is late, up to a maximum of 25% of the unpaid tax. The minimum penalty for a return that is over 60 days late is the smaller of the tax due or $450. The penalty won’t be imposed if the fund can show that the failure to file on time was due to reasonable cause. Late payment of tax. A fund that doesn’t pay the tax when due may generally be penalized ½ of 1% of the unpaid tax for each month or part of a month the tax is not paid, up to a maximum of 25% of the unpaid tax. The penalty won’t be imposed if the fund can show that the failure to pay on time was due to reasonable cause. Reasonable-cause determinations. If the fund receives a notice about penalties after it files its return, send the IRS an explanation, and we will determine if the fund meets the reasonable-cause criteria. Do not attach an explanation when the fund files its return. The trust fund recovery penalty. This penalty may apply if certain excise, income, social security, and Medicare taxes that must be collected or withheld are not collected or withheld, or these taxes are not paid. The trust fund recovery penalty may be imposed on all persons who are determined by the IRS to have been responsible for collecting, accounting for, and paying over these taxes, and who acted willfully in not doing so. The penalty is equal to the unpaid trust fund tax. See the Instructions for Form 720 or Pub. 15 (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide, for details, including the definition of responsible persons. Other penalties. Other penalties can be imposed for negligence, substantial understatement of tax, reportable transaction understatements, and fraud. See sections 6662, 6662A, and 6663. Accounting Method A designated or qualified settlement fund must use the accrual method of accounting. Rounding Off to Whole Dollars The fund may round off cents to whole dollars on its return and schedules. If the fund does round to whole dollars, it must round all amounts. To round, drop amounts under 50 cents and increase amounts from 50 cents to 99 cents to the next dollar. For example, $1.39 becomes $1 and $2.50 becomes $3. If two or more amounts must be added to figure the amount to enter on a line, include cents when adding the amounts and round off only the total. Recordkeeping Keep the fund's records for as long as they may be needed for the administration of any provision of the Internal Revenue Code. Usually, records that support an item of income, deduction, or credit on the return must be kept for 3 years from the date the return is due or filed, whichever is later. Keep records that verify the fund's basis in property for as long as they are needed to figure the basis of the original or replacement property. The fund should keep copies of all filed returns. They help in preparing future and amended returns. Additional Information See the Instructions for Form 1120 and Pub. 542, Corporations, for more information about corporations, including additional forms the fund may need to file and how to get forms and publications. Definitions Qualified Settlement Fund A fund, account, or trust (“a fund”) is a qualified settlement fund if it meets the following requirements. Governmental order or approval requirement. Resolve or satisfy requirement. Segregation requirement. Governmental order or approval requirement. To meet this requirement, the fund must be ordered by, or approved by, the United States, any state (including the District of Columbia), territory, possession, or political subdivision thereof, or any agency or instrumentality (including a court of law) of any of the foregoing, and it must be subject to the continuing jurisdiction of that governmental authority. A fund is ordered by or approved by a governmental authority when the authority issues its initial or preliminary order to establish, or grants its initial or preliminary approval of, the fund, even if that order or approval may be subject to review or revision. Generally, a governmental authority's order or approval has no retroactive effect and does not permit a fund to be a qualified settlement fund prior to the date the order is issued or the approval is granted. However, see Relation-back rule, later. Arbitration panels. An arbitration award that orders the establishment of, or approves, a fund is an order or approval of a governmental authority if: The arbitration award is judicially enforceable; The arbitration award is issued following a bona fide arbitration proceeding in accordance with rules approved by a governmental authority (such as self-regulatory organization-administered arbitration proceedings in the securities industry); and The fund is subject to the continuing jurisdiction of the arbitration panel, the court of law that has jurisdiction to enforce the arbitration award, or the governmental authority that approved the rules of the arbitration proceedings. Resolve or satisfy requirement. To meet this requirement, a fund must be established to resolve or satisfy one or more contested or uncontested claims that have resulted, or may result, from an event (or a series of related events) that has occurred and that has given rise to at least one claim asserting liability: Under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), as amended for settlement funds created before May 18, 2006; Arising out of a tort, breach of contract, or violation of law; or Designated by the IRS in a revenue ruling or revenue procedure. Generally, a fund does not meet the resolve or satisfy requirement if it is established to resolve or satisfy a liability to provide property or services unless the transferor's obligation to provide property or services is extinguished by a transfer or transfers to the fund. Note. Settlement funds created after May 17, 2006, for the purpose of resolving or satisfying liabilities under the CERCLA are exempt from tax. See section 468B(g)(2) for more information. Segregation requirement. To meet this requirement, the fund must (a) be a trust under applicable state law, or (b) keep its assets segregated from other assets of the transferor (and related persons). For example, cash held by a transferor in a separate bank account satisfies the segregation requirement. Classification of fund prior to meeting all three requirements. If a fund meets the resolve or satisfy requirement, the assets of the fund are treated as owned by the transferor of those assets until the fund also meets the governmental order and the segregation requirements. On the day the fund meets all three requirements, the transferor is treated as transferring the assets to a qualified settlement fund. Relation-back rule. If a fund meets the resolve or satisfy requirement and the segregation requirement before it meets the governmental order or approval requirement, the transferor and the administrator (defined later) may jointly elect the relation-back election (defined below) to treat the fund as coming into existence as a qualified settlement fund on the later of (a) the date the fund meets the resolve or satisfy requirement and the segregation requirement, or (b) January 1 of the calendar year in which all three requirements are satisfied. If a relation-back election is made, the assets held by the fund on the date the qualified settlement fund is treated as coming into existence are treated as transferred to the qualified settlement fund on that date. Relation-back election. Make the relation-back election by attaching a copy of the election statement to Form 1120-SF for the tax year in which the qualified settlement fund is treated as coming into existence. The statement must be signed by each transferor and the administrator. File Form 1120-SF and the election statement by the due date of Form 1120-SF, including extensions. The election statement must contain the following. The words “Regulations section 1.468B-1 Relation-Back Election” at the top of the first page. The name, address, and identifying number of each transferor. The name, address, and EIN of the qualified settlement fund. The date on which the qualified settlement fund is treated as coming into existence. A schedule describing each asset treated as transferred to the fund on the date the fund is treated as coming into existence. The schedule of assets does not have to identify the amount of cash or the property transferred by a particular transferor. Qualified settlement fund treated as a corporation. Except as otherwise provided in Regulations section 1.468B-5(b), for purposes of subtitle F of the Internal Revenue Code, a qualified settlement fund is treated as a corporation and any tax imposed under Regulations section 1.468B-2(a) is treated as a tax imposed by section 11. See Regulations section 1.468B-2(k) for more information. Designated Settlement Fund A fund, account, or trust is a designated settlement fund if it meets the following requirements. It is established by a court order and completely extinguishes the taxpayer's tort liability. No amounts may be transferred to it other than in the form of a qualified payment (defined below). It must be administered by persons, a majority of whom are independent of the taxpayer. It is established for the principal purpose of resolving and satisfying present and future claims against the taxpayer arising out of personal injury, death, or property damage. The taxpayer may not hold any beneficial interest in the income or corpus of it. The taxpayer elects to have it treated as a designated settlement fund. Qualified payment. A qualified payment is any money or property that is transferred to a designated settlement fund under a court order other than the following. Any amount that may be transferred from the fund to the taxpayer (or any related person). The transfer of any stock or indebtedness of the taxpayer (or any related person). Note. A designated settlement fund is taxed in the same manner as a qualified settlement fund. In addition, if a fund does not meet the requirements of a designated settlement fund but does meet the requirements of a qualified settlement fund, the fund is treated as a qualified settlement fund. Other Definitions Administrator. An administrator, which may include a trustee if the designated or qualified settlement fund is a trust, is (in order of priority) any of the following. The person designated or approved by the governmental authority that ordered or approved the fund. The person designated in the escrow agreement, settlement agreement, or other similar agreement governing the fund. The escrow agent, custodian, or other person in possession of the fund's assets. The transferor or, if there are multiple transferors, all of the transferors unless an agreement is signed by all of the transferors that designates a single transferor as the administrator. Transferor. A transferor is a person who transfers (or on whose behalf an insurer or other person transfers) money or property to a settlement fund to resolve or satisfy claims against that person. Related person. A related person is any person who is related to the transferor within the meaning of section 267(b) or section 707(b)(1). Specific Instructions Period Covered Enter the tax year in the space provided at the top of the form. For a calendar year, enter the last two digits of the calendar year in the first entry space. For a fiscal or short tax year return, write in the tax year at the top of the form. Address Include the suite, room, or other unit number after the street address. If the Post Office does not deliver mail to the street address and the fund or the administrator has a P.O. box, show the box number instead. If the corporation has a foreign address, include the city or town, state or province, country, and foreign postal code. Do not abbreviate the country name. Follow the country's practice for entering the name of the state or province and postal code. Employer Identification Number (EIN) Enter the fund's EIN. If the fund does not have an EIN, it must apply for one. An EIN can be applied for in the following ways. Online—Go to IRS.gov/EIN. The EIN is issued immediately once the application information is validated. By mailing or faxing Form SS-4, Application for Employer Identification Number. If the fund has not received its EIN by the time the return is due, write “Applied for” in the space for the EIN and the date the fund applied in the space for the EIN. For more details, see the Instructions for Form SS-4. Final Return, Name Change, Address Change, or Amended Return Indicate a final return, name change, address change, or amended return by checking the appropriate box. If a change in address occurs after the return is filed, use Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party — Business, to notify the IRS of the new address. See the instructions for Form 8822-B for details. Part I. Income and Deductions Income Note. Amounts transferred to the fund by or on behalf of a transferor are generally excluded from income. Line 1. Taxable interest. Enter total taxable interest received or accrued during the tax year, including any original issue discount (OID) or market discount that is includible in income during the tax year. If the fund acquired a taxable bond at a premium and elects to amortize bond premium on taxable bonds under section 171, only report the net amount of taxable stated interest on Line 1 (that is, the excess of the taxable stated interest received or accrued during the tax year over the amortized bond premium for the tax year). Do not report on Line 1 any tax-exempt interest (including tax-exempt OID). Do not offset interest expense against interest income. Note. Report tax-exempt interest (including tax-exempt OID) on line 2 of Additional Information (on page 2 of Form 1120-SF). However, if the fund acquired a tax-exempt bond at a premium, only report the net amount of tax-exempt stated interest on line 2 of Additional Information (that is, the excess of the tax-exempt stated interest received or accrued during the tax year over the amortized bond premium for the tax year, which is required under section 171). Line 3. Capital gain net income. Every sale or exchange of a capital asset must be reported in detail on Schedule D (Form 1120), Capital Gains and Losses (and Form 8949, Sales and Other Dispositions of Capital Assets, if applicable), even if there is no gain or loss. See the Instructions for Schedule D (Form 1120). Line 5. Other income. Enter any other taxable income not reported on lines 1 through 4. List the type and amount of income on an attached schedule. If the fund has only one item of other income, describe it in parentheses on the dotted line next to the entry space for line 5. Deductions Do not deduct: Expenses allocable to tax-exempt income (see section 265); Payments of claims made by the fund; and Expenses incurred by, or on behalf of, claimants or transferors. Line 11. Other deductions. Enter the total of other deductions not entered on lines 7 through 10. List the type and amount of deduction on an attached schedule. If the fund has only one item of other deduction, describe it in parentheses on the dotted line next to the entry space for line 11. Line 12. Net operating loss (NOL) deduction . Enter the total NOL carryovers from prior tax years, but do not enter more than the fund's taxable income. See Regulations section 1.468B-2(b)(4) for details. Part II. Tax Computation Line 14. Modified gross income. Modified gross income of a designated or qualified settlement fund is its gross income, as defined in section 61, computed with certain modifications. See Regulations section 1.468B-2(b) for more information. Line 16. Credits and payments. Generally, no credits or payments are allowed other than those on lines 16a through 16e. Line 17. Estimated tax penalty. A fund that does not make estimated tax payments when due may be subject to an underpayment penalty for the period of underpayment. Generally, a fund is subject to the penalty if its tax liability is $500 or more and it did not timely pay the smaller of: Its current year tax liability, or Its prior year's tax. See section 6655 for details and exceptions, including special rules for large funds. Use Form 2220, Underpayment of Estimated Tax by Corporations, to see if the fund owes a penalty and to figure the amount of the penalty. Generally, the fund does not have to file this form because the IRS can figure the amount of any penalty and bill the fund for it. See Form 2220 for other information that may apply. If Form 2220 is attached, check the box on line 17 and enter the amount of any penalty on that line. Instructions for Form 1120-SF - Notices Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States. You are required to give us the information. We need it to ensure that you are complying with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the right amount of tax. You are not required to provide the information requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its instructions must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return information are confidential, as required by section 6103. The time needed to complete and file this form will vary depending on individual circumstances. The estimated burden for business taxpayers filing this form is approved under OMB control number 1545-0123 and is included in the estimates shown in the instructions for their business income tax return. If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these time estimates or suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. You can send us comments from IRS.gov/FormComments. Or you can write to the Internal Revenue Service, Tax Forms and Publications Division, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send the tax form to this office. Instead, see Where To File , earlier.
