Anti-dumping and anti-subsidy rules are a powerful tools that Belgian/EU goods manufacturers can employ to support their business. Anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures take the form of additional import duties that are due on competing imported goods. These duties, which are in force for an average of 12 years and are at an average level of 30%, reduce the import volume of imported goods by an average of 85%. They thus significantly reshape markets for prolonged periods.

On 15 September 2023, the IRS released private letter ruling 202337007 (PLR). The PLR provides that a conversion of an entity disregarded for federal income tax purposes into a domestic corporation does not, by itself, give rise to a deemed exchange of debt.

On 9 March 2024, the Biden Administration released its proposed budget for fiscal year 2025, and the Treasury Department released its General Explanations of the Administration’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Proposals, commonly known as the “Greenbook.” Many of the proposals in this year’s Greenbook appeared in earlier years, but a few proposals are new or modified. Due to the divided Congress and competing political priorities during a general election year, there is little chance that any of the Greenbook proposals will be passed into law in 2024. However, the Greenbook illustrates the consistency of the President’s tax policy objectives during his first term and maps out priorities for a possible second term.

On 5 March 2024, Treasury and the IRS published Treas. Reg. § 1.48D-6 (“Final Regulations”), which implements the section 48D(d) election allowing eligible taxpayers to treat the amount of the advanced manufacturing investment credit (“CHIPs Credit”) established under the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors Act of 2022 as a payment against Federal income tax liabilities, i.e., a “direct pay election” For eligible taxpayers seeking to treat the CHIPs Credit allowed in any tax year as a payment against Federal income tax liabilities in lieu of claiming the credit, the Final Regulations generally retain the structure and framework for administering the election laid out in proposed and temporary regulations, with welcome modifications to clarify key issues relating to the limitations for making the elective payments, the ‘denial of double benefits’ rule, and the election’s pre-filing requirements.