After completing a 1031 exchange, you must report the transaction to the IRS using Form 8824 to maintain the transaction's tax-deferred status.
A 1031 exchange is available to foreign sellers of real property held for productive use in a trade or business, or held for investment purposes, however, the foreign status of the person or entity selling the real property can cause some extra complications which must be addressed.
You can perform a 1031 exchange with foreign properties, so long as your relinquished and replacement properties are both located outside the United States.
How do you report Section 1031 Like-Kind Exchanges to the IRS? You must report an exchange to the IRS on Form 8824, Like-Kind Exchanges and file it with your tax return for the year in which the exchange occurred.
If during the current tax year you transferred property to another party in a like-kind exchange, you must file Form 8824 with your tax return for that year. Also file Form 8824 for the 2 years following the year of a related party exchange. See Line 7, later, for details. Section 1031 regulations.
Section 1031 is part of federal law, so it applies to federal taxes, which are the same no matter what state you're in. You can perform a 1031 exchange between business or investment properties located anywhere in the United States, so long as they meet all other 1031 requirements.
You can perform a 1031 exchange with foreign properties, so long as your relinquished and replacement properties are both located outside the United States. For example, an investment property in the Cayman Islands can be exchanged for rental property in the Cayman Islands or for investment property in New Zealand.