# § 178. Amortization of cost of acquiring a lease
**(a)** **General rule** In determining the amount of the deduction allowable to a lessee for exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, or amortization in respect of any cost of acquiring the lease, the term of the lease shall be treated as including all renewal options (and any other period for which the parties reasonably expect the lease to be renewed) if less than 75 percent of such cost is attributable to the period of the term of the lease remaining on the date of its acquisition.
**(b)** **Certain periods excluded** For purposes of subsection (a), in determining the period of the term of the lease remaining on the date of acquisition, there shall not be taken into account any period for which the lease may subsequently be renewed, extended, or continued pursuant to an option exercisable by the lessee.
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**Source Credit**: (Added Pub. L. 85–866, title I, § 15(a), Sept. 2, 1958, 72 Stat. 1612; amended Pub. L. 99–514, title II, § 201(d)(2)(A), title XVIII, § 1812(c)(4)(B), Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat. 2139, 2835; Pub. L. 100–647, title I, § 1002(a)(9), Nov. 10, 1988, 102 Stat. 3354.)
## Editorial Notes
### Amendments
1988—Subsec. (a). substituted “the deduction allowable to a lessee for exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, or amortization” for “the deduction allowable to a lessee of a lease for any taxable year for amortization under section 167, 169, 179, 185, 190, 193, or 194”.
1986—, in amending section generally, substituted provision relating to amortization of cost of acquiring a lease, subsec. (a) setting out a general rule and subsec. (b) excluding certain periods, for former provision for depreciation or amortization of improvements made by lessee on lessor’s property, subsec. (a) setting out a general rule, subsec. (b), in case of related lessee and lessor, setting out a general rule in par. (1) and defining related persons in par. (2), and subsec. (c) setting out a reasonable certainty test.
Subsec. (b)(2)(B). , inserted before the period “and subsection (f)(1)(A) of such section shall not apply”.
## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
### Effective Date of 1988 Amendment
Amendment by effective, except as otherwise provided, as if included in the provision of the Tax Reform Act of 1986, , to which such amendment relates, see , set out as a note under .
### Effective Date of 1986 Amendment
Amendment by applicable to property placed in service after , in taxable years ending after such date, with exceptions, see sections 203 and 204 of , set out as a note under .
Amendment by not applicable to any property placed in service before , if such property placed in service as part of specified rehabilitations, and not applicable to certain additional rehabilitations, see section 251(d)(2), (3) of , set out as a note under .
Amendment by effective, except as otherwise provided, as if included in the provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1984, , to which such amendment relates, see , set out as a note under .
### Effective Date
> “The amendments made by this section [enacting this section and amending analysis preceding
>
> ] shall apply with respect to costs of acquiring a lease incurred, and improvements begun, after
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> (other than improvements which, on
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> , and at all times thereafter, the lessee was under a binding legal obligation to make).”
, , , provided that:
### Plan Amendments Not Required Until January 1, 1989
For provisions directing that if any amendments made by subtitle A or subtitle C of title XI [§§ 1101–1147 and 1171–1177] or title XVIII [§§ 1800–1899A] of require an amendment to any plan, such plan amendment shall not be required to be made before the first plan year beginning on or after , see , as amended, set out as a note under .