Election to amortize start-up expenditures

The Service has issued final regulations (T.D. 8797) concerning startup expenditures for active trades or businesses under Section 195. They provide rules and procedures for electing to amortize such expenditures. The final regs clarify earlier proposed regulations in that an election statement may not be revised to include expenditures that a taxpayer has treated on the tax return in a manner inconsistent with their treatment as start-up expenditures. The final regs retain the requirement from the proposed regs that a separate statement with the requisite information be attached to the taxpayer's return. The regs apply to elections filed on or after Dec. 17, 1998.