Entity classification election

Article summary

For United States income tax purposes, a business entity may elect to be treated either as a corporation or as other than a corporation. This entity classification election is made by filing Internal Revenue Service Form 8832. Absent filing the form, a default classification applies. U.S. corporations of the type that can be publicly traded must be treated as corporations. There is a list of specific foreign entities that must be treated as corporations. The election is effective for Federal income tax purposes. If an entity is not classified as a corporation, it is treated as a partnership for U.S. tax purposes if it has more than one owner, or is treated as a "disregarded entity" if it has a single owner (i.e. is treated as part of the single owner). The classification of either a U.S. or non-U.S. entity for U.S. tax purposes has no effect for purposes other than U.S. income tax.

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1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
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3. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

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