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Applicable Federal Rates · January 2008

Applicable Federal Rates for January 2008

Every rate the IRS published for January 2008 in Rev. Rul. 2008-4: the short-, mid- and long-term AFR at four compounding periods, the multiples, the adjusted AFR, and the § 7520 rate. The 120% mid-term row is worked below the table.

In January 2008 the mid-term AFR was 3.58% and 120% of it was 4.31% (annual compounding), so a 72(t)/SEPP payment beginning in either of the two following months could use up to the greater of 5% and 4.31%. The § 7520 rate for the month was 4.4%.

Table 1 — Applicable Federal Rates, by compounding period
RateAnnualSemiannualQuarterlyMonthly
Short-term (3 years or less)
AFR3.18%3.16%3.15%3.14%
110% AFR3.51%3.48%3.46%3.46%
120% AFR3.83%3.79%3.77%3.76%
130% AFR4.15%4.11%4.09%4.08%
Mid-term (over 3, up to 9 years)
AFR3.58%3.55%3.53%3.52%
110% AFR3.95%3.91%3.89%3.88%
120% AFR4.31%4.26%4.24%4.22%
130% AFR4.67%4.62%4.59%4.58%
150% AFR5.40%5.33%5.29%5.27%
175% AFR6.31%6.21%6.16%6.13%
Long-term (over 9 years)
AFR4.46%4.41%4.39%4.37%
110% AFR4.91%4.85%4.82%4.80%
120% AFR5.36%5.29%5.26%5.23%
130% AFR5.81%5.73%5.69%5.66%
Table 2 — Adjusted AFR (§ 1288, tax-exempt obligations)
TermAnnualSemiannualQuarterlyMonthly
Short-term adjusted AFR3.05%3.03%3.02%3.01%
Mid-term adjusted AFR3.39%3.36%3.35%3.34%
Long-term adjusted AFR4.25%4.21%4.19%4.17%
Tables 3 and 5 — § 382 and § 7520 rates
Adjusted federal long-term rate (§ 382)4.25%
Long-term tax-exempt rate (§ 382; highest of this and the prior two months)4.34%
§ 7520 rate (annuities, life estates, remainders)4.4%

Source: IRS Rev. Rul. 2008-4, Tables 1, 2, 3 and 5 (PDF on irs.gov). Percentages are shown as the ruling prints them; nothing here is rounded or derived except the worked lines below, which are labelled as such. Rates apply to the calendar month named, under IRC § 1274(d); which month governs a given instrument depends on the Code section that uses it.

How the 120% mid-term rate is derived

The IRS applies each multiple to the semiannual mid-term AFR, then converts that semiannual rate to the other compounding periods. Multiplying the annual figure by 1.2 does not reproduce the published table; this does, within 0.01 percentage points, in every ruling since January 2000.

semiannual mid-term AFR 3.55% × 1.2 4.26% (published semiannual 120%: 4.26%) annual (1 + s/2)² − 1 4.31% (published: 4.31%) quarterly 4 × ((1 + s/2)^(1/2) − 1) 4.24% (published: 4.24%) monthly 12 × ((1 + s/2)^(1/6) − 1) 4.22% (published: 4.22%)

The § 7520 rate is the annual 120% mid-term figure rounded to the nearest 0.2%, with a tie rounding up: 4.31% → 4.4%, which is what the ruling publishes.

What these rates are for

IRC § 1274(d) requires the IRS to publish the applicable federal rates every month: the short-term rate for instruments of three years or less, the mid-term rate for over three and up to nine years, and the long-term rate beyond that, each set from the average market yield on outstanding U.S. Treasury obligations of comparable maturity. The multiples serve other Code sections: 120% of the mid-term rate caps a 72(t)/SEPP fixed-amortization or annuitization payment (Notice 2022-6) and, rounded to 0.2%, is the § 7520 rate used to value annuities, life estates and remainders; the 110%, 130%, 150% and 175% rows feed § 42, § 382, § 467 and § 468 computations. The adjusted AFR in Table 2 is the § 1288 rate for tax-exempt obligations.

Informational only, not tax, legal or financial advice. Confirm the figure against the linked ruling before relying on it.

Last reviewed: November 2026 · snapshot built 2026-10-26 from irs.gov.

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