IRS Written Determinations
Free IRS private letter rulings, technical advice memoranda, and Chief Counsel advice with plain-English summaries and the official IRS release on every page.
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Court construction and trust division preserved GST exemption
Property from two irrevocable pre-September 25, 1985 trusts passed through exercised limited powers of appointment into a trust for a grandchild and then a further trust for six great-grandchildren an…
Trust construction and six-way division preserved GST exemption
An irrevocable pre-September 25, 1985 trust passed through exercised limited powers of appointment into a trust for a grandchild and then a further trust for six great-grandchildren and their descenda…
Parent received 120 days to correct QSub election filed on wrong form
An S corporation wholly owned a corporate subsidiary and intended to elect qualified subchapter S subsidiary status as of the acquisition date. It mistakenly filed Form 2553 instead of Form 8869, and …
Housing project received 120 days to make average-income election
The owner of a multi-building low-income housing project intended to elect the average-income minimum set-aside under § 42(g)(1)(C), as shown by contemporaneous records, but inadvertently omitted the …
REIT could make consent dividend in liquidation year
A publicly traded REIT planned to be acquired and then liquidate into the acquiring partnership. Because assumed debt exceeded asset basis, the REIT expected liquidation gain and insufficient actual d…
Supplemental ruling extended corrective-return deadline to 240 days
The IRS supplemented and modified a prior private letter ruling concerning S corporation shareholder eligibility, permitted trusts, and inadvertent termination relief. It replaced the prior ruling's l…
Supplemental ruling corrected trust taxpayer identification number
The IRS issued a short supplemental ruling to an earlier private letter ruling concerning inadvertent S corporation termination relief. The supplement changed the taxpayer identification number listed…
Partnership received 45 days to file signed duplicate Forms 3115
A partnership timely filed its return with two original Forms 3115 for automatic changes to its inventory capitalization and valuation methods. Its accountant also faxed duplicate copies to the IRS by…
Partnership received 120 days to make section 754 election after partner's death
A partner died during a partnership's taxable year, but the partnership inadvertently failed to make a valid § 754 election with that year's return. The IRS found that the partnership met the standard…
Fund received 60 days to make late QOF self-certification
A partnership was formed to operate as a qualified opportunity fund, and its operating agreement required it to self-certify by filing Form 8996. Its accounting firm timely filed Form 1065 but omitted…
Fund received 60 days for QOF election after advisor tracking error
Managers contributed eligible capital gain to a newly formed partnership that invested in a qualified opportunity zone business. They retained a CPA and firm to file the partnership return and Form 89…
Estate received 120 days to make late portability election
An estate was not otherwise required to file Form 706 based on the value of the gross estate and adjusted taxable gifts, but it failed to file timely to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unus…
Corporation received 90 days to make late IC-DISC election
A corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A and emailed it to the taxpayer, but an oversight left the f…
Surviving spouse could roll estate-paid pension lump sum into IRA
A pension participant elected a lump-sum benefit and obtained the spouse's consent to waive the joint-and-survivor annuity, but died after completing the paperwork and before payment. The plan require…
Estate received 120-day extension for portability election
An estate was not otherwise required to file Form 706 based on the value of the gross estate and adjusted taxable gifts, but it failed to file timely to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unus…
Single-member LLC receives relief for a late S election
A single-member limited liability company intended to be taxed as an S corporation from a specified date but did not timely file Form 2553. The IRS found reasonable cause for the missed election and g…
Corporation receives inadvertent-invalid-election relief
A corporation attempted to elect S corporation status while it was wholly owned by a partnership, an ineligible S corporation shareholder, and its shareholders had not consented to the election. The p…
Community festival group denied charitable exemption
An organization applied for recognition as a charity under IRC § 501(c)(3). Its main activity was an annual community festival with entertainment, vendors, rides, games, contests, a car show, and a pa…
Artist sales space denied charitable exemption
An organization sought recognition as a charity under IRC § 501(c)(3) for operating an affordable retail space where artists could display and sell their work. Artists kept most of each sale and the o…
Partnership may correct housing-credit start-year elections
A partnership intended to begin the ten-year low-income housing credit period for several buildings in the year after they were placed in service. It filed Forms 8609 but inadvertently failed to make …
Corporation's tax-exempt-controlled-entity election is treated as timely
A corporation wholly owned by a section 501(c)(3) organization was a tax-exempt controlled entity for depreciation purposes. It intended to elect under IRC § 168(h)(6)(F)(ii) not to be treated as tax …
Affiliated corporations substantially complied with consolidated-return election rules
Two affiliated corporations intended to file a consolidated federal income tax return after a represented reverse acquisition. Their preparer used the subsidiary's name and employer identification num…
Foundation's gender-equity training grants receive advance approval
A private foundation requested advance approval under IRC § 4945(g)(3) for grants supporting workshops that build organizational and communication skills for gender-equity work in an underserved forei…
International scholarships and migrant-venture grants receive advance approval
A private foundation requested advance approval for two grant programs serving people who migrate in search of economic opportunity. One program provides renewable scholarships to financially struggli…
Artist residency grant procedures receive advance approval
A private foundation requested advance approval for grants supporting three-month residencies for emerging artists from a specified continent who were completing or had recently completed postgraduate…
Renewable STEM scholarship procedures receive advance approval
A private foundation requested advance approval for renewable scholarships to graduating seniors from a partner high school who would pursue STEM majors at accredited four-year colleges or universitie…
Low-income scholarships and skills grants receive advance approval
A private foundation requested advance approval for two programs. The first offers renewable scholarships to low-income high school seniors and college students attending accredited institutions, with…
Homeowners association denied charitable exemption
A homeowners association applied for exemption as a charity under IRC § 501(c)(3). It maintained resident-only common property, operated a sewage collection and treatment system for a subdivision, col…
Democracy-promotion organization denied business-league exemption
An organization applied for exemption as a business league under IRC § 501(c)(6). Its mission was to strengthen democracy in emerging and fragile democracies through independent media, public-opinion …
Fireworks and community-events business denied charitable exemption
An organization applied for exemption as a charity under IRC § 501(c)(3). It organized community gatherings with music, vendors, entertainment, and fireworks, sold professional fireworks displays for …
Missionary vacations on a catamaran denied charitable exemption
An organization used a catamaran sailboat to give pastors, missionaries, and their families free vacations after service in challenging mission fields. Guests could snorkel, swim, fish, explore island…
Automobile club denied charitable exemption
An automobile club applied for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3), describing education about a particular vehicle brand, an annual car show and swap meet, monthly planning meetings, and quarterly meetup…
Member-controlled farmers’ market denied charitable exemption
A member-controlled farmers’ market applied for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3). Its articles did not limit its purposes to exempt purposes, and its primary activity was operating a weekly market wher…
Sports officials association denied charitable exemption
A membership association for sports officials applied for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3). It trained officials and participated in clinics and charitable events, but a significant part of its work co…
Social dinner club denied charitable exemption
A membership club applied for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3), describing its charitable purpose as promoting hospitality and community involvement. Its principal activity was a series of catered dinn…
Room-rental operation denied reinstatement of charitable exemption
An organization sought reinstatement of its IRC § 501(c)(3) exemption after automatic revocation for failing to file required annual returns or notices. It initially described plans to rehabilitate pe…
Common-area maintenance association denied charitable exemption
An association applied for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3) to maintain the common areas of a development. It charged property owners according to their square footage and used the fees for landscaping…
Member water cooperative denied charitable exemption
A utility district applied for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3) for providing water service to landowners in a particular area. Membership followed ownership of the land, the number of shares was limit…
Tourism promoter denied charitable exemption
An organization applied for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3) to promote tourism and local businesses in economically distressed areas. It planned public motorcycle, automotive, and watersports events, …
Employee bargaining association denied charitable exemption
An unincorporated employee association sought exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3) after its prior IRC § 501(c)(5) group exemption was automatically revoked. Its primary activities were negotiating and enf…
REIT receives relief for a late taxable REIT subsidiary election
A real estate investment trust and a subsidiary intended to jointly elect taxable REIT subsidiary status effective when the REIT acquired preferred interests in the subsidiary. The election was includ…
LLC receives relief for late S corporation and QSub elections
An LLC intended to be classified as a corporation and elect S corporation status from a specified date, but it did not timely file Form 2553 or Form 8832. On the same date, it acquired all the stock o…
Partnership receives 120 days to make a late section 754 election
A general partnership intended to make an IRC § 754 election for a specified tax year but did not include the election with its timely partnership return. The IRS concluded that the partnership satisf…
Live-in care payments qualify for the difficulty-of-care income exclusion
A state program asked whether Medicaid payments to personal care providers who live with the people receiving care could be excluded from the providers' income. The program operates under section 1905…
Carbon offset issuance produces qualifying REIT income
A real estate investment trust owns commercial forestland and committed part of it to a state carbon-sequestration program. The program awards tradable carbon offset credits when the owner follows lon…
Forest restoration receipts receive favorable REIT income treatment
A real estate investment trust that owns commercial forestland expected several kinds of receipts tied to managing and restoring its land. The IRS ruled that income from state-issued carbon offset cre…
Carbon credits and reforestation grants qualify as REIT income
A real estate investment trust owns commercial forestland and participates in a state carbon-sequestration program. The program awards tradable offset credits in return for long-term forest-management…
Taxpayer receives 120 days to opt out of automatic GST exemption allocation
A taxpayer made cash gifts over two years to a trust for a sibling's children and descendants. The taxpayer intended not to allocate generation-skipping transfer tax exemption to those gifts and instr…
Donor receives 120 days to undo automatic GST exemption allocations
A taxpayer and spouse created a trust for the spouse's sister's children and descendants, and the taxpayer later made cash gifts to it in two years. The couple intended not to allocate generation-skip…
S corporation receives 120 days to make a late QSub election
An S corporation acquired full ownership of another corporation and intended to treat it as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary from a specified date. It did not timely file Form 8869 to make the QSub…
Partnership receives 120 days to make a late section 754 election
A limited liability company taxed as a partnership failed to file an IRC § 754 election for the year in which an owner died holding an interest through a grantor trust. The partnership represented tha…
Parent receives 120 days to elect QSub status after a reorganization
An S corporation became the sole owner of another S corporation through a reorganization and intended the subsidiary to become a qualified subchapter S subsidiary on that date. The parent failed to ti…
LLC receives 120 days to elect corporate tax classification
A domestic limited liability company intended to be classified as an association taxable as a corporation from a specified date but failed to timely file Form 8832. The company represented that it had…
IRS approves revised nuclear decommissioning fund contribution schedule
A utility that owns a qualifying interest in a nuclear power plant requested a revised schedule of deductible contributions to its nuclear decommissioning reserve fund. The request used public utility…
Foreign loan vehicle's participation income is not effectively connected income
An international development organization planned to create a foreign corporation that would buy participations in its loans and finance those assets by issuing rated notes and subordinated interests.…
Late Form 1128 will be treated as timely filed
A taxpayer filed Form 1128 to request a change in its annual accounting period but missed the filing deadline for the short tax year. It submitted both the form and a request for discretionary relief …
Taxpayer obtains timely-filing relief for Form 1128
A taxpayer sought to change its annual accounting period but filed Form 1128 after the deadline for the required short-period return. The taxpayer submitted the form and its request for discretionary …
IRS accepts late Form 1128 for processing
A taxpayer missed the deadline for filing Form 1128 to request a change in its annual accounting period. It filed the form and requested discretionary administrative relief within 90 days after the de…
Form 1128 receives discretionary late-filing relief
A taxpayer requested permission to change its annual accounting period but did not file Form 1128 by the deadline for the short tax year. It submitted the application and a request for discretionary r…
Missed Form 1128 deadline receives filing relief
A taxpayer filed Form 1128 after the deadline for requesting a change in its annual accounting period. The taxpayer also sought discretionary relief within 90 days of the missed due date. The IRS dete…
What these documents are
- Private letter rulings (PLRs): A taxpayer asked the IRS to rule on a planned transaction before doing it. The ruling shows exactly how the IRS applied the Code to those facts.
- Technical advice memoranda (TAMs): The IRS National Office answering a question raised during an audit or other proceeding.
- Chief Counsel advice (CCAs): IRS lawyers advising their own field staff on how to apply the law.
- Determination letters: Rulings on exempt-organization matters, such as whether an organization qualifies under § 501(c)(3) or a foundation's grant procedures pass § 4945.
- Not precedent, still useful: Under 26 U.S.C. § 6110(k)(3) none of these can be cited as precedent. They remain the best public window into how the IRS actually rules on facts like yours, and practitioners read them for exactly that.