even if the money is legit, like someone gave me cash for no apparent reason other than they felt like it, can i buy an airplane or would the feds throw a hissy fit? can they find out? can i buy an airplane with these funds and not get into trouble with it?
but how can the irs find out? there is an FAA bill of sale, and that appears to be the only paperwork involved with a dollar amount on it...and is it required to show documentation on the source of money?
Not really. The IRS might get curious, as with any significant expenditure, so if they come knocking, you’d best have some documentation. I have a Cessna 172 that you can have for $40K…
Nobody cares, although the IRS might come asking questions.
A pilot worth his/her salt, would not take money from a source that wasn’t above reproach. They also would not pay cash for an airplane – that’s just not very smart. And if you have friends who can give away the amount of money it takes to buy an airplane, let them buy it, and then give the plane to you. Or take the money, put it in the bank, and buy the airplane. Then be able to explain the source of the money to the feds. And if you can’t feel good about the source, don’t take it….
No thats no problem if u got the cash people are happy to take it. If you are not a pilot people will catch on.
generally speaking if you buy something… say a widget, it will be the seller who has the burden of showing where the money came from, not you. In this country the gov. taxes income and sales. The deposit limit in the us is $10,000, that is to say the bank will not be required to tell any one that you just got a bunch of money until you make a lump sum deposit of over $9999.99.
…The thing I wonder is if you have enough money to be buying an airplane with cash why would you refer to Yahoo answers for help on your legal questions and not to an actual lawyer?
And while were at it, why are you posting this in the aircraft section to people who know AIRCRAFT, and not posting it to the legal section where there might be some people who know LAW?
My guess is you don’t have a plane, pilots license/pilot, or even the money to buy a plane. You just got your noggin’ thinkin’ a little faster than it should have and you got on here and posted a completely hypothetical question.
…But seriously dude don’t F@#% around with the IRS. get a lawyer.
The FAA Bill of Sale is not required to show the dollar amount. It’s customary to write “$1/OVC” (“one dollar and other valuable consideration”).
I would probably not accept $100,000 in cash from you for my airplane. I would want you to deposit it in a bank and write me a cashier’s check so I know it’s not counterfeit.
Also, most airplane purchases are done through an escrow agent. You’d have to FedEx your box of cash to the escrow company, and FedEx has no insurance for boxes of cash. The escrow company would deposit it, which would cause the $10,000 trigger to fire so the feds would be notified.
It’s not likely that you’d have tax or government problems; you’d just have trouble not looking suspicious to a seller.