Special Depreciation Allowance

You can take a special depreciation allowance for qualified property you place in service after September 10, 2001. The allowance is an additional deduction of 30% of the property's depreciable basis. To figure the depreciable basis, you must first multiply the property's cost or other basis by the percentage of business/investment use and then reduce that amount by any section 179 deduction and certain other deductions and credits for the property. See What Is the Basis for Depreciation? on page 23 in Publication 946 for more information on figuring depreciable basis.

The allowance is deductible for both regular tax and alternative minimum tax (AMT) purposes. There is no AMT adjustment required for any depreciation figured on the remaining basis of the property. In the year you claim the allowance (generally the year you place the property in service), you must reduce the depreciable basis of the property by the allowance before figuring your regular depreciation deduction.

Example 1. On November 1, 2001, you bought and placed in service in your business qualified property that cost $100,000. You did not elect to claim a section 179 deduction. You can deduct 30% of the cost ($30,000) as a special depreciation allowance for 2001. You use the remaining $70,000 of cost to figure your regular depreciation deduction for 2001 and later years.

Example 2. The facts are the same as in Example 1, except that you choose to deduct $24,000 of the property's cost as a section 179 deduction. You use the remaining $76,000 of cost to figure your special depreciation allowance of $22,800 ($76,000 ? 30%). You use the remaining $53,200 of cost to figure your regular depreciation deduction for 2001 and later years.

Qualified Property

To qualify for the special depreciation allowance, your property must meet the following requirements.

1. It is new property of one of the following types.
   1. Property depreciated under the modified accelerated cost recovery system (MACRS) with a recovery period of 20 years or less. See Can You Use MACRS To Depreciate Your Property and Which Recovery Period Applies? on pages 7 and 23, respectively, in Publication 946.
   2. Water utility property. See 25-year property on page 22 in Publication 946.
   3. Computer software that is not a section 197 intangible as described in Computer software on page 5 in Publication 946. (The cost of some computer software is treated as part of the cost of hardware and is depreciated under MACRS.)
   4. Qualified leasehold improvement property (defined later).
2. It meets the following tests (explained later under Tests To Be Met).
   1. Acquisition date test.
   2. Placed in service date test.
   3. Original use test.
3. It is not excepted property (explained later under Excepted Property).

Qualified leasehold improvement property. Generally, this is any improvement to an interior part of a building that is nonresidential real property, provided all of the following requirements are met.

• The improvement is made under or pursuant to a lease by the lessee (or any sublessee) or the lessor of that part of the building.
• That part of the building is to be occupied exclusively by the lessee (or any sublessee) of that part.
• The improvement is placed in service more than 3 years after the date the building was first placed in service.

However, a qualified leasehold improvement does not include any improvement for which the expenditure is attributable to any of the following.

• The enlargement of the building.
• Any elevator or escalator.
• Any structural component benefiting a common area.
• The internal structural framework of the building.

Generally, a binding commitment to enter into a lease is treated as a lease and the parties to the commitment are treated as the lessor and lessee. However, a binding commitment between related persons is not treated as a lease.

Related persons. For this purpose, the following are related persons.

• Members of an affiliated group.
• The persons listed in items (1) through (9) under Related persons on page 8 of Publication 946 (except that "80% or more" should be substituted for "more than 10%" each place it appears).
• An executor and a beneficiary of the same estate.

Tests To Be Met

To qualify for the special depreciation allowance, the property must meet all of the following tests.

Acquisition date test. Generally, you must have acquired the property either:

• After September 10, 2001, and before September 11, 2004, but only if no written binding contract for the acquisition was in effect before September 11, 2001, or
• Pursuant to a written binding contract entered into after September 10, 2001, and before September 11, 2004.

Property you manufacture, construct, or produce for your own use meets this test if you began the manufacture, construction, or production of the property after September 10, 2001, and before September 11, 2004.

Placed in service date test. Generally, the property must be placed in service for use in your trade or business or for the production of income after September 10, 2001, and before January 1, 2005.

If you sold property you placed in service after September 10, 2001, and you leased it back within 3 months after the property was originally placed in service, the property is treated as placed in service no earlier than the date it is used under the leaseback.

Original use test. The original use of the property must have begun with you after September 10, 2001. "Original use" means the first use to which the property is put, whether or not by you. Additional capital expenditures you incurred after September 10, 2001, to recondition or rebuild your property meet the original use test.

Excepted Property

The following property does not qualify for the special depreciation allowance.

• Property used by any person before September 11, 2001.
• Property required to be depreciated using ADS. This includes listed property used 50% or less in a qualified business use.
• Qualified New York Liberty Zone leasehold improvement property (defined next).

Qualified New York Liberty Zone leasehold improvement property. This is any qualified leasehold improvement property (as defined earlier) if all of the following requirements are met.

• The improvement is to a building located in the New York Liberty Zone (defined later under New York Liberty Zone Benefits).
• The improvement is placed in service after September 10, 2001, and before January 1, 2007.
• No written binding contract for the improvement was in effect before September 11, 2001.

Election Not To Claim the Allowance

You can elect not to claim the special depreciation allowance for qualified property. If you make this election for any property, it applies to all property in the same property class placed in service during the year. To make this election, attach a statement to your return indicating you elect not to claim the allowance and the class of property for which you are making the election.

When to make election. Generally, you must make the election on a timely filed tax return (including extensions) for the year in which you place the property in service.

However, if you timely filed your return for the year without making the election, you can still make the election by filing an amended return within 6 months of the due date of the original return (not including extensions). Attach the election statement to the amended return. At the top of the election statement, write "Filed pursuant to section 301.9100-2."

Revoking an election. Once you elect not to deduct the special depreciation allowance for a class of property, you cannot revoke the election without IRS consent. A request to revoke the election is subject to a user fee.

Rules for Returns Filed Before June 1, 2002

The following rules apply if you placed qualified property in service after September 10, 2001, and filed your return before June 1, 2002. The rules apply to returns for the following years.

• 2000 fiscal years that end after September 10, 2001.
• 2001 calendar and fiscal years.

Claiming the allowance. If you did not claim the allowance on your return and did not make the election not to claim the allowance, you can do either of the following to claim the allowance.

• File an amended return by the due date (not including extensions) of your return for the year following the year the property was placed in service. Write "Filed Pursuant to Rev. Proc. 2002-33" at the top of the amended return.
• File Form 3115, Application for Change in Accounting Method, with your return for the year following the year the property was placed in service. Your return must be filed by the due date (including extensions). Write "Automatic Change Filed Under Rev. Proc. 2002-33" on the appropriate line of Form 3115. You must also file a copy (with signature) of the completed Form 3115 with the IRS National Office no later than when you file the original with your return. For more information about filing Form 3115, including the address to send it to, see Revenue Procedure 2002-9, Revenue Procedure 2002-19, and Revenue Procedure 2002-33.

Example 1. You are an individual and you use the calendar year. You placed qualified property in service for your business in December 2001. You filed your 2001 income tax return before April 15, 2002. You did not claim the special depreciation allowance for the property and did not make the election not to claim the allowance. You can claim the special allowance by filing an amended 2001 return by April 15, 2003, with "Filed Pursuant to Rev. Proc. 2002-33" at the top of the amended return. You must file an amended return by April 15, 2003, even if you get an extension of time to file your 2002 tax return.

Example 2. The facts concerning your 2001 return are the same as in Example 1. In addition, you got an automatic 4-month extension of time (to August 15, 2003) to file your 2002 return. You can claim the special allowance by filing a Form 3115 (with "Filed Pursuant to Rev. Proc. 2002-33" on the appropriate line) with your 2002 return by August 15, 2003. You must also file a copy of this Form 3115 with the IRS National Office no later than when you file your 2002 return.

Electing not to claim the allowance. Generally, you have elected not to claim the special depreciation allowance for a class of property if you:

• Filed your return timely (including extensions) for the year you placed qualified property in service and indicated on a statement with the return that you are not claiming the allowance, or
• Filed your return timely and filed an amended return within 6 months of the due date of the original return (not including extensions) and indicated on a statement with the amended return that you are not claiming the allowance.

The statement must indicate that you are not deducting the special depreciation allowance and the class of property to which the election applies. The statement can be either attached to or written on the return. You can, for example, write "not deducting 30%" on Form 4562.

Deemed election. If you have not followed either of the procedures described above to elect not to claim the allowance, you may still be treated as making the election. You will be treated as making the election if you meet both of the following conditions.

• You filed your return for the year you placed the property in service and claimed depreciation, but not the special allowance, for any class of property.
• You do not file an amended return or a Form 3115 within the time prescribed for claiming the special allowance. See Claiming the allowance, earlier.

Passenger Automobiles

The limit on your depreciation deduction (including any section 179 deduction) for any passenger automobile that is qualified property (defined earlier) placed in service after September 10, 2001, and for which you claim the special depreciation allowance is increased. Generally, the limit is increased from $3,060 to $7,660. However, if the automobile is a qualified electric car, the limit is increased from $9,280 to $23,080 ($22,980 if placed in service in 2002). Table 1 shows the maximum deduction amounts for 2001.

Table 1. Maximum Deduction for 2001

¹$22,980 if you place an electric car in service in 2002.

Election not to claim the allowance. The increased maximum depreciation deduction does not apply if you elected not to claim the special depreciation allowance as explained earlier under Election Not To Claim the Allowance and Rules for Returns Filed Before June 1, 2002.

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