U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

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Instructions for Form 8801

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2006

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

Instructions for Form 8801
Credit for Prior Year Minimum Tax—Individuals, Estates, and Trusts
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless
otherwise noted.

General Instructions
Purpose of Form
Use Form 8801 if you are an individual, estate, or trust to
figure the minimum tax credit, if any, for alternative
minimum tax (AMT) you incurred in prior tax years and to
figure any minimum tax credit carryforward.

Who Should File
Complete Form 8801 if you are an individual, estate, or
trust that for 2005 had:
• An AMT liability and adjustments or preferences other
than exclusion items,
• A minimum tax credit carryforward to 2006, or
• An unallowed nonconventional source fuel credit or
qualified electric vehicle credit (see the instructions for
line 20).
File Form 8801 only if line 21 is more than zero.

Specific Instructions
The AMT is caused by two types of adjustments and
preferences —deferral items and exclusion items.
Deferral items (for example, depreciation) generally do
not cause a permanent difference in taxable income over
time. Exclusion items (for example, the standard
deduction), on the other hand, do cause a permanent
difference. The minimum tax credit is allowed only for the
AMT caused by deferral items.

Part I—Net Minimum Tax on
Exclusion Items
Line 1—Estates and Trusts
Skip lines 1 through 3 of Form 8801. Complete Parts I
and II of another 2005 Form 1041, Schedule I. For Part I
of Schedule I, take into account only exclusion items (the
amounts included on lines 2 through 6, 8, and 9, and any
other adjustments related to exclusion items included on
line 23 of Schedule I). On line 24 of Schedule I, use the
minimum tax credit net operating loss deduction
(MTCNOLD). However, do not limit the MTCNOLD to
90% of the total of lines 1 through 23 of Schedule I. (See
the instructions for line 3 on this page for how to figure
the MTCNOLD.) In Part II of Schedule I, complete lines
35 and 36 without taking into account any basis
adjustments arising from deferral items. If the amount on
Schedule I, line 29, is zero or less, enter -0- on Form
8801, line 4. Otherwise, enter on Form 8801, line 4, the
amount from Schedule I, line 29, adjusted for exclusion
items that were allocated to the beneficiary.

Line 2
Enter on this line the adjustments and preferences
treated as exclusion items (except the standard
deduction). Exclusion items are only the following AMT
adjustments and preferences: itemized deductions
(including any investment interest expense reported on
Schedule E), certain tax-exempt interest, depletion, the
section 1202 exclusion, and any other adjustments
related to exclusion items. Do not include the standard
deduction. It has already been included on line 1.
Combine lines 2 through 5, 7 through 9, 11, and 12 of
your 2005 Form 6251. Do not include any amount from
line 14 of the 2005 Form 6251. Instead, include the
exclusion item amount from the Schedule(s) K-1 (Form
1041) you received for 2005. That amount is shown in
box 12 with code J. If you included on line 26 of the 2005
Form 6251 any adjustments related to exclusion items,
also include those adjustments in the amount you enter
on line 2. Enter the total on line 2.
Exclusion items on other lines. If you included any
exclusion item on a line not listed above, include that
item in the amount you enter on line 2. For example, if
depletion was included on Form 6251 as an adjustment
on line 18 (passive activities) instead of on line 9
(depletion), include it as an exclusion item in the amount
you enter on line 2.

Line 3
Your minimum tax credit net operating loss deduction
(MTCNOLD) is the total of the minimum tax credit net
operating loss (MTCNOL) carryovers and carrybacks to
2005. Your MTCNOL is figured as follows.
Your MTCNOL is the excess of the deductions
(excluding the MTCNOLD) over the income used to
figure alternative minimum taxable income (AMTI) taking
into account only exclusion items. Figure this excess with
the modifications in section 172(d) taking into account
only exclusion items. (That is, the section 172(d)
modifications must be figured separately for the
MTCNOL.)
For example, the limitation of nonbusiness deductions
to the amount of nonbusiness income must be figured
separately for the MTCNOL using only nonbusiness
income and deductions but taking into account only
exclusion items. However, ignore the disallowance of the
deduction for personal exemptions under section
172(d)(3) because it has already been taken into account
to figure AMTI attributable only to exclusion items.
To determine the amount of MTCNOL that may be
carried to tax years other than 2005, apply sections
172(b)(2) and 172(d) with appropriate modifications to
take into account only exclusion items.

Line 4
If your filing status was married filing separately for 2005
and line 4 is more than $191,000, you must include an

Cat. No. 10600C

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Instructions for Form 8801

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additional amount on line 4. If line 4 is $307,000 or more,
include an additional $29,000 on line 4. Otherwise,
include 25% of the excess of the amount on line 4 over
$191,000. For example, if the amount on line 4 is
$211,000, enter $216,000 instead —the additional $5,000
is 25% of $20,000 ($211,000 minus $191,000).

regular tax Form 1116 (or you would have qualified for
that adjustment exception if you had completed a regular
tax Form 1116) for 2005, and
• Line 32 of Form 8801 is not more than $175,000
($87,500 if married filing separately).
To adjust your foreign source qualified dividends,
multiply your foreign source qualified dividends in each
separate category by 0.5357. Include the results on line 1
of the applicable MTFTCE Form 1116. But do not adjust
the amount of any foreign source qualified dividend you
elected to include on line 4g of Form 4952.
Individuals with capital gain distributions only. If
you had no 2005 capital gains or losses other than
capital gain distributions from box 2a of Form(s)
1099-DIV or substitute statement(s), you must adjust
your foreign source capital gain distributions before you
include those amounts on line 1 of the MTFTCE Form
1116 if you are required to adjust your foreign source
qualified dividends under the rules just described or you
would be required to adjust your foreign source qualified
dividends if you had any.
To adjust your foreign source capital gain distributions,
multiply your foreign source capital gain distributions in
each separate category by 0.5357. Include the results on
line 1 of the applicable MTFTCE Form 1116. But do not
adjust the amount of any foreign source capital gain
distribution you elected to include on line 4g of Form
4952.
Other capital gains or losses. Use Worksheet A in
the instructions for the 2005 Form 1116 to determine the
adjustments you must make to your foreign source
capital gains or losses if you have foreign source capital
gains or losses in no more than two separate categories
and any of the following apply.
• You figured your 2005 tax using the Qualified
Dividends and Capital Gain Tax Worksheet in the Form
1040 (or Form 1040NR) instructions and line 3 of that
worksheet minus the amount on line 4e of Form 4952
that you elected to include on line 4g of Form 4952 is
zero or less.
• Line 15 or 16 of your 2005 Schedule D (Form 1040)
(line 14a or 15 of Schedule D (Form 1041)) is zero or a
loss.
• You figured your 2005 tax using Schedule D (Form
1041) and line 18 of Schedule D minus the amount on
line 4e of Form 4952 that you elected to include on line
4g of Form 4952 is zero or less.
• You figured your 2005 tax using the Schedule D Tax
Worksheet in the Schedule D (Form 1040) instructions or
in the Form 1041 instructions and line 9 of that worksheet
is zero or a loss.
• You were not required to make adjustments to your
foreign source qualified dividends under the rules
described above (or you would not have been required to
make those adjustments if you had foreign source
qualified dividends).
Use Worksheet B if you:
• Cannot use Worksheet A,
• Had 2005 foreign source capital gains and losses in no
more than two separate categories, and
• Did not have any item of unrecaptured section 1250
gain or 28% rate gain or loss.
Instructions for Worksheets A and B. When you
complete Worksheet A or Worksheet B, do not use any
foreign source capital gains you elected to include on line
4g of Form 4952. Use 0.5357 instead of 0.4286 to

Line 9
If this form is for a child who was under age 14 at the end
of 2005 and at least one of the child’s parents was alive
at the end of 2005, do not enter more than the sum of the
child’s 2005 earned income plus $5,850.
A child born on January 1, 1992, is considered to be
age 14 at the end of 2005 and is therefore not subject to
this limitation.

Line 10
If you filed Form 1040NR for 2005 and had a net gain on
the disposition of U.S. real property interests, line 10
cannot be less than the smaller of that net gain or line 4.

Line 12
If you made an election to claim the foreign tax credit on
your 2005 Form 1040 (or Form 1040NR) without filing
Form 1116, enter on Form 8801, line 12, the amount
from your 2005 Form 1040, line 47 (or Form 1040NR,
line 44). Otherwise, the minimum tax foreign tax credit on
exclusion items (MTFTCE) is your 2005 AMT foreign tax
credit (AMTFTC) refigured using only exclusion items.
Follow these steps to figure your MTFTCE.
Step 1. Use a separate 2005 Form 1116 for the
MTFTCE for each separate category of income specified
at the top of Form 1116.
When applying the separate categories of income, use
the applicable AMT rate instead of the regular tax rate to
determine if any income is “high-taxed.”
Step 2. If you figured your 2005 AMTFTC using the
simplified limitation election, skip Part I and enter on the
MTFTCE Form 1116, line 16, the same amount you
entered on that line for the 2005 AMT Form 1116.
Otherwise, complete Part I using only taxable income
and exclusion items that are attributable to sources
outside the United States. If you had any 2005 foreign
source qualified dividends or foreign source capital gains
(including any foreign source capital gain distributions) or
losses, use the instructions under Step 3 to determine
whether you must make adjustments to those amounts
before you include the amounts on line 1 or line 5 of the
MTFTCE Form 1116.
Step 3. Follow the instructions below, if applicable, to
determine the amount of foreign source qualified
dividends, capital gain distributions, and other capital
gains and losses to include on line 1 and line 5 of the
MTFTCE Form 1116.
Foreign qualified dividends. You must adjust your
foreign source qualified dividends before you include
those amounts on line 1 of the MTFTCE Form 1116 if:
• Line 44 of Form 8801 is smaller than line 45, and
• Line 32 of Form 8801 is greater than zero.
But you do not need to make any adjustments if:
• You qualified for the adjustment exception under
Qualified Dividends and Capital Gain Tax Worksheet
(Individuals), Qualified Dividends Tax Worksheet
(Estates and Trusts), or Adjustments to foreign qualified
dividends under Schedule D Filers, whichever applies, in
the Form 1116 instructions when you completed your
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Instructions for Form 8801

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complete lines 11, 13, and 15 of Worksheet B and to
complete Steps 4 and 5 of the Line 15 Worksheet for
Worksheet B.
If you do not qualify to use Worksheet A or Worksheet
B, use the instructions for Capital Gains and Losses in
Pub. 514 to determine the adjustments you make.
Step 4. Complete lines 9 through 13 of the MTFTCE
Form 1116. For line 9, use the same amount you entered
on that line for 2005 for the regular tax. Use your
MTFTCE carryover, if any, on line 10.
Step 5. If you did not figure your 2005 AMTFTC using
the simplified limitation election, complete lines 14
through 16 of the MTFTCE Form 1116.
Step 6. If you did not complete Part III of Form 8801,
enter the amount from Form 8801, line 4, on line 17 of
the MTFTCE Form 1116 and go to Step 7. If you
completed Part III of Form 8801, you must complete, for
the MTFTCE, the Worksheet for Line 17 in the Form
1116 instructions to determine the amount to enter on
line 17 of the MTFTCE Form 1116 if:
• Line 44 of Form 8801 is smaller than line 45, and
• Line 32 of Form 8801 is greater than zero.
But you do not need to complete the Worksheet for
Line 17 if:
• You qualified for the adjustment exception under
Qualified Dividends and Capital Gain Tax Worksheet
(Individuals), Qualified Dividends Tax Worksheet
(Estates and Trusts), or Adjustments to foreign qualified
dividends under Schedule D Filers, whichever applies, in
the Form 1116 instructions when you completed your
regular tax Form 1116 (or you would have qualified for
that adjustment exception if you had completed a regular
tax Form 1116) for 2005, and
• Line 32 of Form 8801 is not more than $175,000
($87,500 if married filing separately).
If you do not need to complete the Worksheet for Line
17, enter the amount from line 4 of Form 8801 on line 17
of the MTFTCE Form 1116.
Instructions for MTFTCE Worksheet for Line 17.
Follow these steps to complete, for the MTFTCE, the
Worksheet for Line 17 in the Form 1116 instructions.
1. Enter the amount from Form 8801, line 4, on line 1
of the worksheet.
2. Skip lines 2 and 3 of the worksheet.
3. Enter the amount from Form 8801, line 42, on line 4
of the worksheet.
4. Multiply line 4 of the worksheet by 0.1071 (instead
of 0.2857). Enter the result on line 5 of the worksheet.
5. Enter the amount from Form 8801, line 40, on line 6
of the worksheet.
6. Multiply line 6 of the worksheet by 0.4643 (instead
of 0.5714). Enter the result on line 7 of the worksheet.
7. Complete lines 8 and 9 of the worksheet as
instructed on the worksheet.

Step 9. Keep all Forms 1116 you used to figure your
MTFTCE, but do not attach them to your tax return.
If line 13 of the MTFTCE Form 1116 is greater than
line 20 of the MTFTCE Form 1116, keep a record of the
difference. This amount is carried forward and used to
figure your MTFTCE next year.

Part II—Minimum Tax Credit and
Carryforward to 2007
Line 20
Enter the total of any nonconventional source fuel credit
and qualified electric vehicle credit not allowed for 2005
solely because of the limitations under sections
29(b)(6)(B) and 30(b)(3)(B).

Line 21
If line 21 is zero or less, you do not have a minimum tax
credit or a minimum tax credit carryforward. Do not
complete the rest of this form and do not file it.

Line 22
Follow the instructions below and refer to your 2006
income tax return to figure the amount to enter on line 22.
Form 1040. Subtract from the amount on line 44 the
total of any credits on lines 47 through 55 (not including
any credit for prior year minimum tax, clean renewable
energy bond credit, and credit for Gulf tax credit bonds).
If the result is zero or less, enter -0-.
Form 1040NR. Subtract from the amount on line 41 the
total of any credits on lines 44 through 50 (not including
any credit for prior year minimum tax, clean renewable
energy bond credit, and credit for Gulf tax credit bonds).
If the result is zero or less, enter -0-.
Form 1041, Schedule G. Subtract the total of any
credits on lines 2a through 2c (not including any clean
renewable energy bond credit and any credit for Gulf tax
credit bonds) from the sum of lines 1a and 1b. If the
result is zero or less, enter -0-.

Part III—Tax Computation Using
Maximum Capital Gains Rates
If your 2005 taxable income was zero or less, complete
lines 2 through 6 of the 2005 Qualified Dividends and
Capital Gain Tax Worksheet, lines 18 through 22 of the
2005 Schedule D (Form 1041), or lines 2 through 13 of
the 2005 Schedule D Tax Worksheet, whichever applies,
before completing Part III.
Estates and trusts. If you figured your 2005 tax using
the Qualified Dividends Tax Worksheet in the Form 1041
instructions, enter the amount from line 4 of that
worksheet on Form 8801, lines 28 and 30; skip Form
8801, line 29; and enter on Form 8801, line 35, the
amount from line 5 of that worksheet.

Step 7. Enter the amount from Form 8801, line 11, on
the MTFTCE Form 1116, line 19. Complete lines 18, 20,
and 21 of the MTFTCE Form 1116.
Step 8. Complete Part IV of the first MTFTCE Form
1116 only. Enter the amount from that MTFTCE Form
1116, line 33, on Form 8801, line 12.

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Instructions for Form 8801

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is approved under OMB control number 1545-0074 and
is included in the estimates shown in the instructions for
their individual income tax return. The estimated burden
for all other taxpayers who file this form is shown below.

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 burden for individual taxpayers filing this form

Recordkeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Learning about the law or the form . . . .
Preparing the form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying, assembling, and sending the
form to the IRS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

.
.
.

2 hr.,4
1 hr., 48
1 hr., 36
34

min.
min.
min.
min.

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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. See the
instructions for the tax return with which this form is filed.

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