Form 8281 Information Return for Publicity Offered Original Issue

Form

8281

(Rev. December 2006)

Information Return for Publicly Offered
Original Issue Discount Instruments

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

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OMB No. 1545-0887

File two copies of the form and any attachments.

1a Issuer’s name

2

Issuer’s taxpayer identification number

1b Present address (including number, street, apt. or suite no., or P.O. box, city or town, state, and ZIP code)

3a Name of representative (see instructions)

3b Telephone number
(

)

3c Present address (if different from issuer’s)

4

CUSIP number

7 Type of instrument (see instructions)

5

8

Issue date

Issue price (percent of principal amount)

6

Maturity date

9 Stated interest rate (see instructions)— Check if variable
or contingent

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10

Interest payment dates

11

Amount of OID for entire issue

14

Description of debt instruments. Attach a schedule of OID per $1,000 principal amount for the life of the instrument. If the principal amount is
other than $1,000, indicate the actual OID per principal amount per year. The schedule must be based on a 6-month accrual period. It must
show the daily portion of OID for each accrual period and the total OID for each calendar year. For additional requirements, see the instructions.

12

Yield to maturity

13

Stated redemption price at maturity of the entire issue. If the redemption price of each
debt instrument within the issue is other than $1,000, indicate the stated redemption
price of each debt instrument.

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this return, including accompanying schedules and statements, and, to the best of my
knowledge and belief, it is true, correct, and complete.

Signature

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Title

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General Instructions
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless
otherwise noted.

Purpose of Form
Use Form 8281 if you are the issuer of publicly offered debt
instruments having original issue discount (OID) to provide the
information required by section 1275(c).

Who Must File
An issuer of a publicly offered debt instrument (obligation) having
OID, such as a bond, debenture, or note, must file Form 8281.
For Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see back of form.

Date

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Publicly offered debt instruments also may include:
1. Serial obligations.
2. Debt instruments issued in exchange for other debt instruments
or for stock.
3. A debt instrument sold together with options or warrants (an
investment unit).
4. Sinking fund instruments.
5. Convertible instruments.
An obligation registered with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) is a publicly offered debt instrument. An
obligation exempt from SEC registration may be publicly offered. See
Regulations section 1.1275-1(h).
Cat. No. 62024G

Form

8281

(Rev. 12-2006)

Form 8281 (Rev. 12-2006)

Page

Exceptions. Do not file this form for the following:
1. Regular interests of a real estate mortgage investment conduit
(REMIC) or collateralized debt obligations (CDOs). REMICs and
issuers of CDOs must file Form 8811, Information Return for Real
Estate Mortgage Investment Conduits (REMICs) and Issuers of
Collateralized Debt Obligations.
2. Instruments on which OID is de minimis, as defined in section
1273(a)(3) and Regulations section 1.1273-1(d).
3. Tax-exempt obligations (interest on them is not taxable).
4. Short-term obligations (those that mature in 1 year or less from
their issue date).
5. Certificates of deposit (CDs) issued by banks or other financial
institutions.
6. CDs that are sold by brokers or other middlemen.
7. A public offering of stripped bonds or stripped coupons,
including instruments issued under the Department of the Treasury’s
STRIPS program and instruments that constitute ownership interests
in U.S. Treasury securities.

When To File
File Form 8281 within 30 days after the date of issuance of an OID
debt instrument. File a separate Form 8281 for each issue.

Where To File
Send two copies of Form 8281 and any attachments to:
Internal Revenue Service
Form 8281 Project
SE:W:CAR:MP:T, IR-6406
1111 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20224

Definitions
Original issue discount means the excess of the stated redemption
price at maturity over the issue price.
Stated redemption price at maturity means the sum of all
payments provided by the debt instrument other than qualified
stated interest payments. Generally, qualified stated interest is stated
interest unconditionally payable in cash at least annually at a single
fixed rate.
Issue price, in the case of publicly offered instruments not issued
for property, means the first price at which a substantial amount of
such instruments was sold to the public (excluding bond houses and
brokers).
For more information about OID instruments and the OID reporting
requirements, see Pub. 1212, Guide to Original Issue Discount (OID)
Instruments.

Penalty
An issuer who fails to timely file Form 8281 will be subject to a
penalty of 1% of the aggregate issue price of the debt instruments,
unless such failure is due to reasonable cause and not to willful
neglect. The maximum penalty with respect to any issue is $50,000.

Specific Instructions
For serial obligations, complete boxes 1 through 3 and attach a list
showing the information for boxes 4 through 14 for each obligation
within the series. For all other obligations, complete all boxes.
To revise a form, write “Revised” across the top of this form and
staple a copy of the previously filed form to this form. Complete all
boxes on this form.
Boxes 3a, 3b, and 3c. Enter the name, address, and telephone
number of an official or representative of the issuing company who
has personal knowledge of this offering and who can be contacted if
additional information is needed.
Box 4. Enter the Committee on Uniform Security Identification
Procedures (CUSIP) number assigned to the instruments.
Box 5. Enter the date the issue was first sold to the public at the
issue price.
Box 7. Enter the type of instrument including:
● A fixed rate debt instrument (including a zero coupon debt
instrument),
● A variable rate debt instrument,
● A contingent payment debt instrument, or

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● An inflation-indexed debt instrument.
Box 8. Enter the issue price as a percentage of the principal
amount. For example, XYZ bonds were first offered to the public at
$900 with a principal amount of $1,000. The issue price of $900
expressed as a percentage of principal is 90. If the percentage is
100 or more, explain in box 14.
If the instrument is part of an investment unit or exchange
offering, attach a description of the method used to determine the
issue price.
Box 9. Enter the annual stated interest rate or coupon rate. If zero,
enter “0.” If the interest rate is variable or contingent, check the
appropriate box and explain in box 14 how the rate will be
determined.
Box 10. Enter the interest payment dates.
Box 11. Enter the amount of OID for the entire issue. For example, if
the issue price for the entire issue totals $890,000, and the stated
redemption price at maturity totals $1 million, the OID for the entire
issue is $110,000.
Box 12. Enter the yield to maturity as a percentage rounded to two
decimal points. For example, if the yield to maturity is 9.5784%,
enter 9.58%. The yield to maturity should be based on semiannual
compounding. If the debt instrument is a variable rate debt
instrument, enter the yield to maturity of the equivalent fixed rate
debt instrument. If the debt instrument is a contingent payment debt
instrument, enter the comparable yield.
Box 14. Provide a complete description of the instrument, including
any terms and conditions (for example, put or call options) that could
affect the stated payment schedule of the instrument. For a
contingent payment debt instrument, provide the projected payment
schedule. In addition, indicate whether the instrument is:
● Part of an investment unit,
● Issued in an exchange offering described in section 368(a), or
● Part of a serial issue.
You may provide two copies of the prospectus or offering circular
instead of the required description.
To compute the OID allocable to a debt instrument having a short
accrual period, you may use any reasonable method. Indicate what
method you used.
You must attach two copies of the schedule of OID per $1,000
principal amount for the life of the instrument. However, if the
principal amount is other than $1,000, indicate the actual OID per
principal amount per year and specify the actual principal amount.
The schedule must be based on a 6-month accrual period. It must
show the daily portion of OID for each accrual period and the total
OID for each calendar year.
Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the information on
this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States.
You are required to give us the information. We need it to ensure
that you are complying with these laws and to allow us to figure and
collect the right amount of tax.
You are not required to provide the information requested on a
form that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form
displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a
form or its instructions must be retained as long as their contents
may become material in the administration of any Internal Revenue
law. Generally, tax returns and return information are confidential, as
required by section 6103.
The time needed to complete and file this form will vary depending
on individual circumstances. The estimated average time is:
Recordkeeping
5 hr., 1 min.
Learning about the
law or the form
30 min.
Preparing, copying,
assembling, and
sending the form to the IRS
37 min.
If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these time
estimates or suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be
happy to hear from you. You can write to the Internal Revenue
Service, Tax Products Coordinating Committee,
SE:W:CAR:MP:T:T:SP, 1111 Constitution Avenue, NW, IR-6406,
Washington, DC 20224. Do not send this form to this address.
Instead, see Where To File above.

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