What kind of ETFs can be used by individual investors to defer capital gains taxes by investing in it?

Question

I read (mirror 1, mirror 2):

Kerry's huge stock portfolio was largely held through a trust affiliated with his wife Teresa Heinz Kerry, heiress to the Heinz food processing fortune.

He reported liquidating between $4.2 million and $15 million in stock holdings last month.
Federal ethics rules could permit Kerry to defer capital gains taxes on those sales by reinvesting the money in "permitted" assets such as treasury bonds or exchange-traded funds. It was not immediately clear whether Kerry had done so or planned to.

What kind of ETFs can be used by individual investors to defer capital gains taxes by investing in it? E.g. all treasury ETFs? Some subset of it?

Franck Dernoncourt · Answer

Great answer (mirror) by penguinise:

You can't.
The article is referring to the provisions of Section 1043 of the Code, whereby you can defer the realization of capital gains, but only if:

You are an officer or employee of the Executive Branch or a judicial officer of the federal government of the United States, or a spouse or minor dependent thereof, and
You are required to sell or dispose of property in order to maintain compliance with federal law, and
You use the proceeds to purchase obligations of the United States, or other designated securities approved by the Office of Government Ethics.

The only comparable provision for regular citizens is reinvestment in a qualified opportunity zone, per Section 1400Z-2 (mirror).

What kind of ETFs can be used by individual investors to defer capital gains taxes by investing in it?

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