Interest rates remain the same for the second quarter of 2019

The IRS has announced that interest rates will remain the same for the calendar quarter beginning April 1, 2019, as they were in the first quarter of 2019. The rates will be:

• 6% for overpayments [5% in the case of a corporation];

• 3.5% for the portion of a corporate overpayment exceeding $10,000;

• 6% for underpayments; and

• 8% for large corporate underpayments.

Under the Internal Revenue Code, the rate of interest is determined on a quarterly basis. For taxpayers other than corporations, the overpayment and underpayment rate are the federal short-term rate plus 3 percentage points.

Generally, in the case of a corporation, the underpayment rate is the federal short-term rate plus 3 percentage points and the overpayment rate is the federal short-term rate plus 2 percentage points. The rate for large corporate underpayments is the federal short-term rate plus 5 percentage points. The rate on the portion of a corporate overpayment of tax exceeding $10,000 for a taxable period is the federal short-term rate plus 0.5%.

The interest rates announced today are computed from the federal short-term rate determined during January 2019 to take effect Feb. 1, 2019, based on daily compounding.

Revenue Ruling 2019-05 announcing the rates of interest will appear in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2019-11, dated March 11, 2019.