republic-os/legal/us/code/title-26/chapter-1/section-616.md

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LegalText	26 U.S.C. § 616	Development expenditures	us	united_states_code	code_section	26	INTERNAL REVENUE CODE	1	NORMAL TAXES AND SURTAXES	616	26 U.S.C. § 616	current	119-100	2026-06-26	official	https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc26@119-100.zip	/us/usc/t26/s616	data/legal/raw/us/code/title-26/usc26.xml	3643567b83bb011808867a2ba2fe632018d40ffbb7dfcb12614f32a5d1dbe20b	a261f094809116f42a96648a3d5eee80fa010379d67412551c21dd5c900b27f4	bb2e4985a57abfe277b99b462d886edc6cec275f65be991fdab1bc63de0a93e1	2026-07-04	official	legal us-code

26 U.S.C. § 616 - Development expenditures

Text

(a) In general Except as provided in subsections (b) and (d), there shall be allowed as a deduction in computing taxable income all expenditures paid or incurred during the taxable year for the development of a mine or other natural deposit (other than an oil or gas well) if paid or incurred after the existence of ores or minerals in commercially marketable quantities has been disclosed. This section shall not apply to expenditures for the acquisition or improvement of property of a character which is subject to the allowance for depreciation provided in section 167, but allowances for depreciation shall be considered, for purposes of this section, as expenditures.

(b) Election of taxpayer At the election of the taxpayer, made in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary, expenditures described in subsection (a) paid or incurred during the taxable year shall be treated as deferred expenses and shall be deductible on a ratable basis as the units of produced ores or minerals benefited by such expenditures are sold. In the case of such expenditures paid or incurred during the development stage of the mine or deposit, the election shall apply only with respect to the excess of such expenditures during the taxable year over the net receipts during the taxable year from the ores or minerals produced from such mine or deposit. The election under this subsection, if made, must be for the total amount of such expenditures, or the total amount of such excess, as the case may be, with respect to the mine or deposit, and shall be binding for such taxable year.

(c) Adjusted basis of mine or deposit The amount of expenditures which are treated under subsection (b) as deferred expenses shall be taken into account in computing the adjusted basis of the mine or deposit, except that such amount, and the adjustments to basis provided in section 1016(a)(9), shall be disregarded in determining the adjusted basis of the property for the purpose of computing a deduction for depletion under section 611.

(d) Special rules for foreign development In the case of any expenditures paid or incurred with respect to the development of a mine or other natural deposit (other than an oil, gas, or geothermal well) located outside of the United States—

(1) subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply, and

(2) such expenditures shall—

(A) at the election of the taxpayer, be included in adjusted basis for purposes of computing the amount of any deduction allowable under section 611 (without regard to section 613), or

(B) if subparagraph (A) does not apply, be allowed as a deduction ratably over the 10-taxable year period beginning with the taxable year in which such expenditures were paid or incurred.

(e) Cross reference For election of 10-year amortization of expenditures allowable as a deduction under subsection (a), see section 59(e).

(Aug. 16, 1954, ch. 736, 68A Stat. 212; Pub. L. 94–455, title XIX, § 1906(b)(13)(A), Oct. 4, 1976, 90 Stat. 1834; Pub. L. 97–248, title II, § 201(d)(9)(C), formerly § 201(c)(9)(C), Sept. 3, 1982, 96 Stat. 420, renumbered § 201(d)(9)(C), Pub. L. 97–448, title III, § 306(a)(1)(A)(i), Jan. 12, 1983, 96 Stat. 2400; Pub. L. 99–514, title IV, § 411(b)(2)(A), (C)(i), Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat. 2226; Pub. L. 100–647, title I, § 1007(g)(7), Nov. 10, 1988, 102 Stat. 3435.)

Notes

Editorial Notes

Amendments1988—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 100–647 substituted “section 59(e)” for “section 58(i)”. 1986—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99–514, § 411(b)(2)(C)(i), inserted reference to subsec. (d). Subsecs. (d), (e). Pub. L. 99–514, § 411(b)(2)(A), added subsec. (d) and redesignated former subsec. (d) as (e). 1982—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 97–248 added subsec. (d). 1976—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 94–455 struck out “or his delegate” after “Secretary”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date of 1988 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 100–647 effective, except as otherwise provided, as if included in the provision of the Tax Reform Act of 1986, Pub. L. 99–514, to which such amendment relates, see section 1019(a) of Pub. L. 100–647, set out as a note under section 1 of this title.

Effective Date of 1986 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 99–514 applicable to costs paid or incurred after Dec. 31, 1986, in taxable years ending after such date, with transition rule, see section 411(c) of Pub. L. 99–514 set out as a note under section 263 of this title.

Effective Date of 1982 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 97–248 applicable to taxable years beginning after Dec. 31, 1982, see section 201(e)(1) of Pub. L. 97–248, set out as a note under section 5 of this title.