The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 provided for certain economically distressed census tracts to be designated Qualified Opportunity Zones (QOZ) for the purpose of attracting investment. A Qualified Opportunity Fund (QOF) is a corporation or partnership created for the purpose of investing in QOZs.
With respect to tax return preparation, QOF investments have the following features:
- Capital gains are deferred until December 31, 2026 or until the interest in the fund is disposed of, whichever occurs first;
- Investments held for 5 years receive a 10% step-up in tax basis, and investments held for 7 years, i.e., the investment began before 2020, receive an additional 5% step-up in tax basis;
- For an investment disposed of after being held for 10 years, the basis will be equal to the fair market value on the date of disposition.
Form 8997 must be filed with the tax return if the taxpayer held a QOF investment at any point during the year. To access Form 8997 in Keystone Tax Solutions Pro, from the Main Menu of the tax return (Form 1040) select:
- Income
- Capital Gains/Loss (Sch D)
- Other button
- Form 8997 – Qualified Opportunity Funds Investments Statement
Form 8997 has four parts that may require entries:
- Part I: Total QOF investment holdings at beginning of tax year. List here the QOF investments held at the beginning of the year, including the amount of short-term and long-term deferred gain remaining in each;
- Part II: Current tax year capital gains deferred by investing in QOF. List here this year’s short-term and long-term deferred capital gains from QOF investments;
- Part II: QOF investments disposed of during current tax year. List here the QOFs disposed of during the year, including the amount of deferred short-term and long-term gain that will be included in taxable income;
- Part IV: Total QOF investment holdings at year end due to deferrals. List here QOF investments held at the end of the year, including for each QOF the amount of short-term and long-term deferred gain.
Note: This is a guide Form 8997 in the Keystone Tax Solutions Pro program. This is not intended as tax advice.
Additional Information: