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Applicable Federal Rates · November 2008

Applicable Federal Rates for November 2008

Every rate the IRS published for November 2008 in Rev. Rul. 2008-50: 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 November 2008 the mid-term AFR was 2.97% and 120% of it was 3.57% (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 3.57%. The § 7520 rate for the month was 3.6%.

Table 1 — Applicable Federal Rates, by compounding period
RateAnnualSemiannualQuarterlyMonthly
Short-term (3 years or less)
AFR1.63%1.62%1.62%1.61%
110% AFR1.79%1.78%1.78%1.77%
120% AFR1.95%1.94%1.94%1.93%
130% AFR2.12%2.11%2.10%2.10%
Mid-term (over 3, up to 9 years)
AFR2.97%2.95%2.94%2.93%
110% AFR3.28%3.25%3.24%3.23%
120% AFR3.57%3.54%3.52%3.51%
130% AFR3.88%3.84%3.82%3.81%
150% AFR4.48%4.43%4.41%4.39%
175% AFR5.23%5.16%5.13%5.11%
Long-term (over 9 years)
AFR4.24%4.20%4.18%4.16%
110% AFR4.67%4.62%4.59%4.58%
120% AFR5.10%5.04%5.01%4.99%
130% AFR5.53%5.46%5.42%5.40%
Table 2 — Adjusted AFR (§ 1288, tax-exempt obligations)
TermAnnualSemiannualQuarterlyMonthly
Short-term adjusted AFR2.20%2.19%2.18%2.18%
Mid-term adjusted AFR3.35%3.32%3.31%3.30%
Long-term adjusted AFR4.94%4.88%4.85%4.83%
Tables 3 and 5 — § 382 and § 7520 rates
Adjusted federal long-term rate (§ 382)4.94%
Long-term tax-exempt rate (§ 382; highest of this and the prior two months)4.94%
§ 7520 rate (annuities, life estates, remainders)3.6%

Source: IRS Rev. Rul. 2008-50, 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 2.95% × 1.2 3.54% (published semiannual 120%: 3.54%) annual (1 + s/2)² − 1 3.57% (published: 3.57%) quarterly 4 × ((1 + s/2)^(1/2) − 1) 3.52% (published: 3.52%) monthly 12 × ((1 + s/2)^(1/6) − 1) 3.51% (published: 3.51%)

The § 7520 rate is the annual 120% mid-term figure rounded to the nearest 0.2%, with a tie rounding up: 3.57% → 3.6%, 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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