26 U.S.C. § 638 — Continental shelf areas

For applying this chapter, including sections 861(a)(3) and 862(a)(3) when personal services are performed, to mines, oil and gas wells, and other natural deposits—

(1) “United States,” when used geographically, includes the seabed and subsoil of submarine areas next to United States territorial waters over which the United States has exclusive rights under international law to explore and exploit natural resources; and

(2) “foreign country” and “possession of the United States,” when used geographically, include the seabed and subsoil of submarine areas next to the territorial waters of that foreign country or possession over which the foreign country—or the United States, for a possession—has exclusive rights under international law to explore and exploit natural resources. For a foreign country, this paragraph applies only if it directly or indirectly exercises taxing jurisdiction over that exploration or exploitation. A foreign country does not become a country bordering the United States merely because this section applies.