The Internal Revenue Service has released the Applicable Federal Rates (AFRs) for February 2018. AFRs are published monthly and represent the minimum interest rates that should be charged for family loans to avoid tax complications.
Here are the rates for February 2018:
|
|
Annual |
Semiannual |
Quarterly |
Monthly |
|
Short-term |
1.81% |
1.80% |
1.80% |
1.79% |
|
Mid-term |
2.31% |
2.30% |
2.29% |
2.29% |
|
Long-term |
2.66% |
2.64% |
2.63% |
2.63% |
The Section 7520 interest rate for February 2018 is 2.8 percent. The Section 7520 interest rate is the interest used in a common estate tax planning technique called a “grantor retained annuity trust” or “GRAT.” In general, the lower the interest rate, the more effective the transaction is for reducing estate taxes.