This paper explores the interpretational alternatives and legislative proposals to key issues relating to income taxation of securitization transactions. The key issues are as follows: (ⅰ) whether the transfer of assets by sponsor to securitization ...
This paper explores the interpretational alternatives and legislative proposals to key issues relating to income taxation of securitization transactions. The key issues are as follows: (ⅰ) whether the transfer of assets by sponsor to securitization vehicles is characterized as a sale or a financing, (ⅱ) What are the tax standards distinguishing trust as pass-through entity(hereinafter called 'pass-through trust') from trust as legal entity(hereinafter called 'legal entity trust') and how pass-through trust as securitization vehicle is to be taxed, (ⅲ) Whether securitization vehicles as legal entities are subject to special regimes of collective investment vehicles and how partnership as securitization vehicle is to be taxed, (ⅳ) How corporation as securitization vehicle is to be taxed, (ⅴ) How special regimes as to securitization vehicles of real estate mortgages are to be established.
The conclusions to be drawn on the first issue mentioned above are as follows.
The following standards will work as general tax standards of distinguishing a sale from a financing in the context of securitization transactions. First, the substantial burden and benefits of securitization assets should be transferred from sponsor to securitization vehicles. Second, sponsor may not have control of securitization assets after transfer. Third, the part of securitization assets or securitization assets pools may be transferred to securitization vehicles but the tax standards thereof should be applied on an entire basis only to the transferred securitization assets.
The above-mentioned general tax standards may well be transformed into concrete tax standards according to the following transaction patterns. First, the transfer with no strings means the transfer after which the sponsor has no continuing links such as servicing agreements, make-up arrangements etc, which transfer will be characterized as a sale. Second, there may be servicing agreement, clean-up-call agreement or repurchase(or exchange) obligations due to breach of representations between sponsor and securitization vehicles as continuing links, which links may not be against the sale treatment in general. Third, credit enhancement arrangements in itself may not be against the sale treatment, unless sponsor is already in some serious delinquencies or other risk-related symptoms. Fourth, the sponsor's guarantees relating to prepayment and market value in itself may not be against the sale treatment, unless there is substantial likelihood that the transferred assets will be back to the sponsor in case of guarantee relating to market value. Fifth, the call option at the sponsor's discretion under the specified condition in itself may not be against the sale treatment, unless the exercise of the call option is economically compelled at the time of transfer and the sponsor can exercise the option at his full discretion. And if the sponsor has put option and call option together exercisable simultaneously under the same exercise price, it will be appropriate to characterize the relevant transfer as a financing. Sixth, the sponsor may have substitution rights to substitute the similar assets for the securitization assets in the vehicles at his disposal, the transfer with which will be characterized as a financing unless the substitution rights is for replacing the defective securitization assets with the similar assets. Seventh, it will be easier to characterize the transfer with sponsor's retention of interest rate strips as a sale of the other interests than the transfer with put option relating to risks of prepayment with regard to the transferred assets. Eighth, if the amount of excess servicing beyond reasonable compensation represents a fixed number of basis points of interest on securitization assets, the amount will be recharacterized as stripped coupons, which may not be against the sale treatment. If not, the amount will be recharacterized as the sponsor's continuing links with the securitization assets, which is likely to be a financing factor. Ninth, there may be swap contract between the sponsor and securitization vehicles, which in itself may not be against the sale treatment, unless the payments under the swap contract are linked to those of securitization assets or the swap contract is characterized as total return swap.
The conclusions to be drawn on the second issue mentioned above are as follows.
In general, the securitization trust is to be classified as legal entity, if it meets the following requirements: [(1) the trust is engaged in business activities other than investment activities or (2) it is an investment trust and either is empowered by the trust instrument to manage trust assets to enhance the return of certificates holders, or, with certain exceptions, has multiple ownership classes] and (3) it does not belong to an agency arrangement.
If the securitization trust does not belong to a legal entity, it is taxed as grantor trust, the taxation of which is to be as follows. First, the trust itself is not obliged to pay taxes on its income. Second, it is appropriate to introduce the concept of constructive beneficiaries. Third, it is inappropriate to prohibit foreigners and foreign corporations from being the holders of pass-through certificates of grantor trust. Fourth, the holders of pass-through certificates are to be taxed at the time when income is attributed to the trust in the same manner as under the current INCOME TAX ACT and CORPORATE TAX ACT.
The conclusions to be drawn on the third issue mentioned above are as follows.
The non-qualifying securitization vehicles including partnership under 'ASSET-BACKED SECURITIZATION ACT' shall not be subject to the special tax regimes of collective investment vehicles based on the concept of FINANCIAL INVESTMENT SERVICES AND CAPITAL MARKETS ACTS, even if the non-qualifying securitization vehicles seem to be included in the concept of collective investment vehicles thereof in perspective of literal interpretation.
The securitization vehicles under the special regimes of partnership are to be taxed as follows. First, the securitization trust as legal entity shall be able to elect the application of special regimes of partnership. Second, the requirements ensuring the relevant attributes of securitization vehicles are to be added in the application of special regimes of partnership to securitization transactions. Third, the concept of capital account is to be introduced to govern distribution of profits and losses especially in issuing multiple interests. Fourth, the securitization vehicles of debts need special provisions addressing problems in distributing profies and losses between IO investors and PO investors. Fifth, guaranteed payments are to be treated as expense items in principle. Sixth, the transfer of partnership interests is to be considered as the transfer of stocks. Seventh, the partnership interests as pass-through debt certificates are to be treated as debt. Eighth, partnership may well be treated as corporation in case partnership is listed, but it may not be the case if the income attributed to partnership is mainly composed of particular income which is subject to the final withholding taxation or the conditional aggregate taxation of interests and dividends to other ordinary income. Ninth, partners are to elect the same method regarding recognition of profits and losses as partnership, except when partners disclose the discrepancies between partnership's method and partners' methods.
The conclusions to be drawn on the fourth issue mentioned above are as follows.
The integration in case of securitization corporations is to be designed as follows. First, the dividend-paid deduction method(hereinafter called 'DPD') is to be applied to securitization corporations for the purpose of integrating corporate-level taxation and investor-level taxation. Second, the requirements ensuring the relevant attributes of securitization vehicles are to be added in application of special regimes to securitization transactions. Third, DPD should be applied only if corporations distribute at least 90% of earnings and profits(hereinafter called 'E&P') to stockholders. Fourth, corporations should not be obliged to accumulate earned surplus reserve. Fifth, carry-over earned surplus may not be added to current E&P in calculating total E&P. Sixth, overcollateralization and spread account should be deducted in calculating E&P. Seventh, corporations should file with director of tax office the documents identifying the existence of debt and creditors. Eighth, the qualification of directors and auditors should be inspected in a resonable manner. Ninth, corporation should submit the application of income deduction with tax return to get DPD treatment. Tenth, DPD should not be applied in case there is no feasibility in securitization scheme, there are infringements against the DPD requirements, there is no stockholder-level tax or corporation is incorporated in private placement and governed by two or less individual stockholders, to which cases the provisions of gross-up, dividend tax credit and dividend-received deduction are not to be applied, either.
The withholding system relating to securitization corporations should be designed as follows. First, securitization corporations may not be regarded as financial institutions in application of withholding provisions just because they are engaged in securitization transactions. Second, the trustee company of fund management should be obliged to withhold the payment to investors instead of securitization corporation. Third, securitization corporations should not be subject to addition surcharges relating to the second withholding due to false identification of beneficial owners if they pay due regard to the first withholding.
The provisions of credit for foreign-paid tax relating to securitization corporations should be designed as follows. First the special provision of credit for foreign tax amount paid by indirect investment companies is to be applied to securitization corporations as well. Second, the credit for foreign underlying taxes may as well not be applied to securitization corporations.
The dividends resolved but not distributed by special purpose companies under 'ASSET-BACKED SECURITIZATION ACT' may as well not belong to unrelated-business prepayments of stockholders thereof and the dividends by special purpose companies are to be recognized at resolution date thereof, not distribution date, by stockholders thereof.
The conclusions to be drawn on the fifth issue mentioned above are as follows. First, real estate mortgage investment conduits(hereinafter called 'REMIC') are forced to recognize asset obligation and liability obligation on the same basis, or accrual method. Second, REMIC may as well not be subject to withholding by payers of interest income. Third, REMIC should include trust and partnership, as well as corporations. Fourth, REMIC should meet all the requirements(interest test, asset test and arrangement test) to get the qualified REMIC treatments and the interests to REMIC are to be classified into regular interests and residual interests. Fifth, REMIC may as well be subject to no entity-level tax. Sixth, the REMIC-level income is to be taxed as dividend on the residual interest holders' level at the same time as the income is accrued on REMIC, to which cases the provisions of gross-up, dividend tax credit and dividend-received deduction should not be applied. Seventh, the income on residual interests is to be recognized on a accrual basis only in case of corporate investors. Eighth, the income derived from transfer of residual interests is to be treated as dividend. Ninth, the holding period taxation of income amount under 'Article 46 of INCOME TAX ACT' is to be applied to the income from transfer of regular interests. Tenth, REMIC is to be treated as domestic corporation for the purpose of applying withholding and other procedural provisions. Eleventh, prohibited transaction tax, tax on contributions and tax on income from foreclosure property in the U.S. legislation need to be assessed on Korean REMIC infringing the particular requirements. Twelfth, non-qualified REMIC is to be treated as corporation to which integration method is not applied. Thirteenth, prepayment assumption catch-up method may as well be applied to asset mortgages and regular interests of REMIC. Fourteenth, asset mortgages and regular interests of REMIC with variable interests may as well be taxed differently, according to the classification of CPDIs(contingent payment debt instruments) and VRDIs(variable payment debt instruments). Fifteenth, the tax basis of regular interests should be allocated between coupons and principal based on relative fair market values in case of bond stripping. Sixteenth, the dividend income of residual interest holders is to be represented as the product of number of residual interests and residual income on REMIC per residual interest. Seventeenth, the income from transfer of residual interests is to be considered as dividend, to which market discounts and market premiums are included only in case of corporate holders. Eighteenth, the losses to be recognized by residual interest holders are to be limited to the adjusted basis of the interest as of the first to occur of the closing date or the disposition date. Nineteenth, excess inclusion taxation in the U.S. legislation may well be introduced to ensure that REMIC's phantom income is taxed to the residual interest holders. Twentieth, residual interests may well have no negative value. Twenty-first, it needs to take more additional considerations into account to extend special provisions of REMIC to securitization vehicles of financial assets other than real estate mortgages.