§ 103.12. Net profits.
(a) Net profits shall be the net income from the operation of a business, profession or other activity after provision for all costs and expenses incurred in the conduct thereof. They shall be determined either on a cash or accrual basis in accordance with accepted accounting principles and practices.
(b) To constitute net profits, all of the following must apply:
(1) The gross profits shall be derived from one of the following:
(i) The marketing of a product or service to customers on a commercial basis or from securities employed as working capital in the business operations.
(ii) Accounts and notes receivable from sales of products or services sold in the ordinary course of the business operations.
(iii) Assets which serve an operational function in the ordinary course of business operations.
(2) The marketing activity shall be conducted with the manifest objective of achieving profitable operations.
(3) The marketing activity shall be conducted with regularity and continuity and may not be limited or exclusive.
(c) In computing net profits, a deduction will not be allowed for any item of cost, expense or liability derived or incurred in connection with, or attributable to any of the following:
(1) The ownership or disposition of assets that are held for investment purposes or otherwise serve an investment function.
(2) The trading in securities for personal purposes and not for the accounts of customers.
(3) The sale, discontinuation or abandonment of a business or segment thereof.
(4) Any tax imposed on, or measured by, gross or net earned or unearned income.
(5) An isolated or nonrecurring transaction which is not a normal or routine business activity.
(d) Choosing to form a partnership or other entity or to associate with others, receiving and reporting income or gain as the income of the partnership, entity or associates or dividing the same among its partners, beneficial owners or associates or the trading in securities for the benefit of shareholders, partners, members or associates does not of itself make the income of the partnership, entity or associates net profits.
(e) For purposes of this section, only the following participants in the stock, securities, options, derivatives, futures or commodities market are engaged in marketing of a product or service to customers:
(1) Those who maintain or provide a market place or facilities for bringing together purchasers and sellers of these financial investment products.
(2) Those who are licensed to act as their customer’s agents and charge a negotiated commission for executing transactions and do not take title to the particular positions they buy or sell.
(3) Those who devote managerial attention to the financial investment products holdings of others, or who employ other persons to assist them in that management, in the capacity of a licensed investment advisor.
(4) Licensed dealers, including financial investment product specialists and market makers, if the conditions in subparagraphs (i)—(iv) are met:
(i) The dealer maintains an inventory of financial investment products with the objective of reselling his inventories at a profit to customers or operates as a specialist or market maker.
(ii) The dealer makes market by quoting the bid and asked prices at which he is willing to buy and sell the financial investment products and by buying directly from or selling directly to customers.
(iii) The dealer’s profit is determined in whole or in part by a markup based on cost.
(iv) The dealer elects to inventory securities held for resale to customers or uses the mark-to-market system of accounting.
(5) Underwriters who facilitate initial sales of financial investment products by acting either as licensed dealers in a principal capacity or as brokers in an agency capacity.
(f) When a person operates as an investor or trader with respect to a portion of that person’s activities and as a market establishment, broker, investment counselor or dealer with respect to the rest, this section applies only to the operations as a market establishment, broker, investment counselor or dealer.
Authority The provisions of this § 103.12 amended under section 354 of the Tax Reform Code of 1971 (72 P. S. § 7354).
Source The provisions of this § 103.12 amended December 10, 1999, effective December 11, 1999, 29 Pa.B. 6249. Immediately preceding text appears at serial page (205350).
Notes of Decisions The losses of a real estate partnership which were made up of partners in a law firm, were rents rather than business profits and thus could not be set off against the profits from a law firm partnership. As such, an upward adjustment of a taxpayer’s income was upheld. Wettach v. Commonwealth, 620 A.2d 730 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1993); affirmed 677 A.2d 831 (Pa. 1995).
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