Another Savings Bond Question

This is a different question from the one in my other thread.

My mother died back in the 1990s and left a small amount of money (approximately $4500) to my son, who was then 5 years old. My wife and I used the money to purchase some EE savings bonds for my son. We had myself and my son listed as co-owners on the bond (my name was listed first) and for reasons that I don't recall, my social security number was listed on the bond (perhaps because my son didn't have his SSN yet).

My son is now an adult and has the bonds, which have never been redeemed and have not had any taxes paid. When he eventually cashes them in, who will the IRS consider to be responsible for the taxes? If I read the regulations properly, it seems to say that in the case of co-owners, the person who purchased the bonds owes the taxes. In this case, it was actually my wife who purchased the bonds, but she did so on our minor son's behalf using his inheritance money. On the other hand, it is my SSN that appears on the bonds.

In any case, my son agrees that because they are his bonds, he should be the one to pay the taxes. After so many years, I doubt if anyone will care to worry about who physically paid for the bonds way back when, but will the presence of my SSN on the bonds cause a problem? These are paper bonds (not electronic).

Reply to
Rick
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If your son was born before the requirement for him to have an SSN for you to list him as a dependent on your tax return, you may be ok. But it should have been listed under his number rather than yours.

Well, the 1099 will be issued under your name and SSN.

You are not actually co-owners, though that's what it appears to be. In reality you are holding the money for him as a trustee. It's really all his, and he should be paying the taxes (and will probably pay them at a lower tax rate than you would).

It doesn't have to cause a problem. You may need to file a nominee

1099 showing that, while the income will be reported as yours, it really belongs to your son. In theory that should solve the problem.

___ Stu

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Reply to
Stuart A. Bronstein

When the time comes follow the nominee procedure in the Schedule B instructions. You should also issue a 1099-INT to your son.

Phil Marti VITA/TCE Volunteer Clarksburg, MD

Reply to
Phil Marti

How does an individual "issue" a 1099-INT?

Reply to
Rick

It's just another IRS form like all the others. Get the form and follow the instructions on how to use it. Here are the instructions from the IRS website:

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___ Stu
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Reply to
Stuart A. Bronstein

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