MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS
The following is a discussion of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations that may be relevant to prospective beneficial owners of our common units and, unless otherwise noted in the following discussion, is the opinion of Thompson Hine LLP, our U.S. counsel, insofar as it relates to matters of U.S. federal income tax law and legal conclusions with respect to those matters. The opinion of our counsel is dependent on the accuracy of representations made by us to them, including descriptions of our operations contained herein.
This discussion is based upon provisions of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”), U.S. Treasury Regulations, and administrative rulings and court decisions, all as in effect or in existence on the date of this prospectus filing and all of which are subject to change or differing interpretations by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) or a court, possibly with retroactive effect. Changes in these authorities may cause the tax consequences of ownership of our common units to vary substantially from the consequences described below. Unless the context otherwise requires, references in this section to “we,” “our” or “us” are references to Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
The following discussion applies only to beneficial owners of common units that own the common units as “capital assets” (generally, property held for investment purposes). The following discussion does not address all aspects of U.S. federal income taxation which may be important to particular beneficial owners of common units in light of their individual circumstances, such as (i) beneficial owners of common units subject to special tax rules (e.g., banks or other financial institutions, real estate investment trusts, regulated investment companies, insurance companies, broker-dealers, traders that elect to mark-to-market for U.S. federal income tax purposes, tax-exempt organizations and retirement plans, individual retirement accounts and tax-deferred accounts, or former citizens or long-term residents of the United States) or to beneficial owners that will hold the common units as part of a straddle, hedge, conversion, constructive sale, or other integrated transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes, (ii) partnerships or other entities classified as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes or their partners, (iii) U.S. Holders (as defined below) that have a functional currency other than the U.S. dollar or (iv) beneficial owners of common units that own 2.0% or more (by vote or value) of our common units, all of whom may be subject to tax rules that differ significantly from those summarized below. If a partnership or other entity classified as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes holds our common units, the tax treatment of its partners generally will depend upon the status of the partner, the activities of the partnership and certain determinations made at the partner level. If you are a partner in a partnership holding our common units, you should consult your own tax advisor regarding the tax consequences to you of the partnership’s ownership of our common units.
No ruling has been obtained or will be requested from the IRS, regarding any matter affecting us or holders of our common units. The opinions and statements made herein may be challenged by the IRS and, if so challenged, may not be sustained upon review in a court.
This discussion does not contain information regarding any state or local, estate, gift or alternative minimum tax considerations concerning the ownership or disposition of common units.
Each prospective beneficial owner of our common units should consult its own tax advisor regarding the U.S. federal, state, local, and other tax consequences of the ownership or disposition of common units.
Election to Be Treated as a Corporation
We have elected to be treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Consequently, among other things, U.S. Holders (as defined below) will not directly be subject to U.S. federal income tax on their shares of our income, but rather will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on distributions received from us and dispositions of common units as described below. For a further discussion of our treatment for U.S. federal income tax purposes, please see pages 30 to 32, 57 to 59, and 109 to 114 of our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, which is incorporated by reference into this prospectus.
U.S. Federal Income Taxation of U.S. Holders
As used herein, the term “U.S. Holder” means a beneficial owner of our common units that:
| • | | is an individual U.S. citizen or resident (as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes), |
| • | | a corporation (or other entity that is classified as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) organized under the laws of the United States or any of its political subdivisions, |
| • | | an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source, or |
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