Section 899 Surcharge: What FIRPTA Sellers from 'Discriminatory Tax' Countries Need to Know
Section 899 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act adds 5–20 percentage points to FIRPTA withholding for sellers from designated countries.
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Working notes from a specialty FIRPTA practice. Section 899 country impact, the 1% remittance excise tax, EFTPS mandate planning, January 2026 form revisions, state withholding comparisons, and the cases that don't fit standard playbooks.
Section 899 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act adds 5–20 percentage points to FIRPTA withholding for sellers from designated countries.
Read article →A new 1% federal excise tax (IRC §4475) on outbound transfers took effect January 1, 2026. It applies on top of FIRPTA withholding when foreign sellers wire proceeds home.
Read article →The IRS issued a mandate requiring all FIRPTA withholding to be remitted electronically via EFTPS. The mandate has been postponed — but buyers should enroll now.
Read article →The IRS revised Form 8288 effective January 2026, now requiring a separate form for each disposition and a separate 8288-A for each foreign seller.
Read article →FIRPTA is the federal layer, but several states levy their own nonresident-seller withholding on top. A side-by-side look at what foreign sellers face.
Read article →A pending Form 8288-B, a 20-day remittance window, an IRS that scrutinizes postmarks. When the closing date slips and we don't know, the buyer can face up to 25% in late-filing penalties.
Read article →Selling a U.S. property to a foreign seller on installment terms triggers special FIRPTA rules — withholding on each payment, separate Form 8288 per payment.
Read article →ITIN processing under Exception 4 (FIRPTA) currently takes 7–12 weeks at the IRS. Peak season can stretch longer.
Read article →Section 899 country lists update annually. EFTPS effective dates can shift. Form revisions ship every January. We publish updates here as they happen — no newsletter, no email capture, just a page worth bookmarking.