FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Tax Court rules some MS now taxable
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Old Mar 1, 2021, 11:04 pm
  #48  
sethb
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Originally Posted by garykung
IRS does not really care how the T&Cs are written. FWIW - even you are correct, what IRS cares is who has the actual control of the points/miles, i.e. nominal owner v. beneficiary owner. Because the account holder is the beneficiary owner, IRS can in fact assess tax against him/her.
This has gone to court several times, and each time the court ruled that the airline/hotel is the owner of the miles/points and has the right to cancel the account and confiscate the miles/points. In some cases, the airline also canceled tickets that were purchased with those miles.
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