This Week's Internal Revenue Bulletin

HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS ISSUE

These synopses are intended only as aids to the reader in identifying the subject matter covered. They may not be relied upon as authoritative interpretations.

Administrative

NOTICE 2018-94, page 1042. This notice extends the due dates for certain 2018 information reporting requirements for insurers, self-insuring employers, and certain other providers of minimum essential coverage under section 6055 and for applicable large employers under section 6056. Specifically, this notice extends the due date for furnishing to individuals the 2018 Form 1095-B, Health Coverage, and the 2018 Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage, from January 31, 2019, to March 4, 2019. This notice also extends transitional good-faith relief from section 6721 and 6722 penalties to the 2018 information reporting requirements under sections 6055 and 6056.

REV. RUL. 2018-32, page 1023. Interest rates: underpayments and overpayments. The rates for interest determined under Section 6621 of the code for the calendar quarter beginning January 1, 2019, will be 6 percent for overpayments (5 percent in the case of a corporation), 6 percent for underpayments, and 8 percent for large corporate underpayments. The rate of interest paid on the portion of a corporate overpayment exceeding $10,000 will be 3.5 percent.

Employment Taxes

NOTICE 2018-92, page 1038. This notice relates to amendments to sections 3401, 3402, and 3405 made by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Pub. L. No. 115-97), and the decision to delay until 2020 an overhaul of the Form W-4 that had initially been proposed for 2019. This notice provides interim guidance for 2019 on income tax withholding from wages and from retirement and annuity distributions, requests comments on certain wage withholding procedures, indicates that regulations are planned to update the wage withholding regulations to reflect changes made by the TCJA, and provides for certain miscellaneous changes consistent with current procedures. This notice continues until April 30, 2019, Notice 2018-14's temporary suspension of the requirement to furnish new Forms W-4 within 10 days for changes resulting in a reduction of allowances solely because of the TCJA.

Income Tax

NOTICE 2018-93, page 1041. This notice publishes the applicable dollar amounts under §45Q(b)(1) for purposes of determining the credit for carbon oxide sequestration under § 45Q(a)(3) and (a)(4).

REG-103163-18, page 1049. This notice of proposed rulemaking contains proposed regulations providing guidance on new discounting rules for unpaid losses and estimated salvage recoverable of insurance companies for Federal income tax purposes. The proposed regulations implement recent legislative changes to the Internal Revenue Code and make other technical improvements to the derivation and use of discount factors. The proposed regulation affect entities taxable as insurance companies.

Rev. Proc. 2018-60, page 1045. This procedure modifies Rev. Proc. 2018-31, 2018-22 I.R.B. 637, to provide procedures under section 446 and the accompanying regulations to obtain automatic consent of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue to change methods of accounting to comply with section 451(b), as amended by section 13221 of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, relating to the timing of the recognition of income for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017. In addition, for the first taxable year beginning after December 31, 2017, this procedure provides streamlined procedures for certain qualifying taxpayers to change a method of accounting under section 451(b).