General Valuation Rule

You must use the general valuation rule to determine the value of most fringe benefits. Under this rule, the value of a fringe benefit is its fair market value.

Fair market value. The fair market value of a fringe benefit is the amount an employee would have to pay a third party in an arm's-length transaction to buy or lease the benefit. Determine this amount on the basis of all the facts and circumstances.

Neither the amount the employee considers to be the value of the fringe benefit nor the cost you incur to provide the benefit determines its fair market value.

Employer-provided vehicles. In general, the fair market value of an employer-provided vehicle is the amount the employee would have to pay a third party to lease the same or a similar vehicle on the same or comparable terms in the geographic area where the employee uses the vehicle. A comparable lease term would be the amount of time the vehicle is available for the employee's use, such as a 1-year period.

Do not determine the fair market value by multiplying a cents-per-mile rate times the number of miles driven unless the employee can prove the vehicle could have been leased on a cents-per-mile basis. (However, see Cents-Per-Mile Rule, next.)

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