The Tax Benefits of Investing In Oil and gas Wells are Considerable
In an attempt to enhance domestic gas and oil production in the United States Congress implemented tax benefits for the oil and gas investor, in the 1990 Tax Act. Essentially, the tax code claims that investing in an oil or gas well is not a passive activity. And that ensures that the investor is entitled to utilize many different types of discounts to offset any income he / she can gain from her or his investment.
Drilling Charges – Intangible
There are various drilling charges that can instantly be utilized for discounts. Such kinds of tax benefits represent 60% to 80% of a well’s cost. The reductions are usually taken through the same year that the intangible expenses occurred. Some of these deductible charges are:
.work
.drilling fluids
.rig time
Completion Prices – Intangible
All of these tax benefits work much like the intangible drilling costs. The represent around 15% of a well’s total price. Practically all of the time, all of these deductions are taken during the same year which the costs occurred.
Depreciation
The equipment and some of the material used in a drilling operation is salvageable, meaning it might be resold or reused. Nonetheless, through wear and tear, it loses a part of its worth. In other words, its value depreciates. Investors can get tax benefits for the decreased value. A few of the items included are:
.pumping units
.casings
.tanks
Small Producer Tax Benefits
All these tax benefits are rewards for little investors. They are also known as depletion allowance. Basically what it does is designate 15% of the revenues that’s created by a well as un-taxable. The reason this is advantageous just to a small producer or investor is that businesses generating over 50,000 barrels a day aren’t allowed it. In addition, investors that own more than 1000 barrels a day or 6,000,000 cubic feet of gas a day are also not allowed this motivation.
Lease Fees
Investors can receive reductions for leasing mineral rights and lease operating expenses . In addition, they can also deduct any accounting charges, administrative costs, and legal charges which are incurred as a consequence of the lease. If the discount is taken in the year that these charges occur, they are 100% deductible.
The tax benefits that could possibly be received from investing in oil and gas wells are important. Because so much of the initial investment cost is defrayed by the immediate discounts investors can benefit of, there’s almost no risk capital involved. Like with anything else, it’s always a wise idea to check with an expert before investing.
Georgette Adanas has been writing articles on tax benefits since 2002.