US federal-tax pass-through status under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code, available to BDCs and other registered investment companies that (a) earn at least 90% of gross income from dividends, interest, and gains, and (b) distribute at least 90% of taxable income annually to shareholders. RIC status avoids corporate-level taxation — pre-tax NII flows directly to shareholders as dividends — and is the structural reason BDC dividend yields can sustainably exceed 8%–10%.