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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Partnership granted 60 more days to file the missing duplicate "Ogden copy" of its accounting-method-change application
A partnership wanted to change a depreciation-related accounting method using the IRS's automatic-consent procedures. To do that it files a Form 3115 (Application for Change in Accounting Method) in d…
9100 relief for an estate to make late QTIP and reverse-QTIP elections its accountant omitted
After a person died, their revocable trust split into a family trust and two marital trusts (an exempt and a non-exempt marital trust) for the surviving spouse. To defer estate tax on the marital trus…
9100 relief to file a late Form 8832 electing foreign-disregarded-entity treatment
A foreign company that had become a wholly owned subsidiary of a U.S. corporation wanted to be treated as a disregarded entity (ignored as separate from its owner) for U.S. federal tax purposes, which…
9100 relief for a non-filing estate to make a late portability (DSUE) election
When someone dies, any unused portion of their federal estate-and-gift tax exclusion can be passed to their surviving spouse (the "deceased spousal unused exclusion," or DSUE, amount), but only if the…
9100 relief for a non-filing estate to make a late portability (DSUE) election
When someone dies, any unused portion of their federal estate-and-gift tax exclusion can be passed to their surviving spouse (the "deceased spousal unused exclusion," or DSUE, amount), but only if the…
120-day extension to make a late estate-tax portability (DSUE) election
When one spouse dies without using all of their federal estate and gift tax exclusion, the surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) through a "…
120-day extension to make a late estate-tax portability (DSUE) election
When one spouse dies without using all of their federal estate and gift tax exclusion, the surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) through a "…
75-day extension to elect apportionment of a consolidated section 382 limitation to a departing subgroup
Two corporate consolidated groups asked the IRS for more time to file an election that splits up a tax attribute when a subgroup leaves one group and joins another. Section 382 limits how much of a co…
120-day extension to make a late estate-tax portability (DSUE) election
When one spouse dies without using all of their federal estate and gift tax exclusion, the surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) through a "…
120-day extension to make a late QTIP election after the accountant omitted it from the estate tax return
A married couple's trust split into a Marital Trust and a non-marital (Exempt) Trust when the first spouse died, and the estate planning intended the Marital Trust to qualify as qualified terminable i…
120-day extension to file check-the-box elections disregarding six foreign subsidiaries
Under the "check-the-box" rules of Treas. Reg. § 301.7701-3, an eligible business entity can choose how it is taxed, and a single-owner entity can elect to be disregarded (treated as part of its owner…
120-day extension to make a late estate-tax portability (DSUE) election
When one spouse dies without using all of their federal estate and gift tax exclusion, the surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) through a "…
120-day extension for two foreign entities to file check-the-box classification elections
Under the "check-the-box" rules of Treas. Reg. § 301.7701-3, a foreign business entity can elect how it is classified for U.S. tax purposes by filing Form 8832: one with two or more owners can be a pa…
120-day extension to make a late estate-tax portability (DSUE) election
When one spouse dies without using all of their federal estate and gift tax exclusion, the surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) through a "…
120-day extension to make a late estate-tax portability (DSUE) election
When one spouse dies without using all of their federal estate and gift tax exclusion, the surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) through a "…
90-day extension for a consolidated group to elect to waive its NOL carryback period
When a group of affiliated corporations files one consolidated tax return and reports a net operating loss (NOL), it can normally carry that loss back to earlier years to recover past taxes, or it can…
75-day extension to elect apportionment of a consolidated section 382 limitation to a deconsolidating subgroup
Section 382 limits how much of a company's built-up losses can be used each year after an ownership change. When a subgroup that carries such a limitation leaves a consolidated group, Treas. Reg. § 1.…
Estate gets 120 more days to make a late portability (DSUE) election for the surviving spouse
When someone dies without using up their full estate-and-gift tax exemption, their surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) and add it to their…
Estate gets 120 more days to make a late portability (DSUE) election for the surviving spouse
When someone dies without using up their full estate-and-gift tax exemption, their surviving spouse can inherit the leftover amount (the deceased spousal unused exclusion, or DSUE) and add it to their…
Consolidated group gets more time to elect out of bonus depreciation after its preparer filed the extension late
Businesses that buy qualifying equipment can normally take a large "additional first year" (bonus) depreciation deduction under IRC § 168(k), but they can also elect out of it for whole classes of pro…
Consolidated group gets 75 more days to elect to waive the carryback of its net operating loss
When a consolidated group of corporations has a net operating loss, it can choose to carry that loss back to earlier years or instead waive the carryback and only carry it forward. Waiving the carryba…
IRS grants an estate a 120-day extension to make the section 663(b) "65-day rule" election
An estate made distributions to its beneficiaries within the first 65 days of a new tax year. IRC § 663(b) (the "65-day rule") lets an estate or trust elect to treat such early-year distributions as i…
IRS grants a corporate parent extra time to make the elections that close its foreign subsidiaries' tax years
A U.S. corporate parent needed to make special elections to avoid an unfavorable result under the dividends-received-deduction rules for foreign subsidiaries (§ 245A and Treas. Reg. § 1.245A-5). When …
IRS grants extra time to make a late section 338(g) election for a foreign stock purchase
When one corporation buys the stock of another, § 338 lets the buyer elect to treat the stock purchase as if it had instead bought the target's assets, which can reset the tax basis of those assets. H…
IRS grants extra time to elect out of tax-exempt-entity status so a housing project keeps its normal depreciation
A tax-exempt § 501(c)(3) housing charity owned a for-profit corporation, and that corporation was part of a partnership structure that built and operates a mixed-income (low-income housing tax credit)…
IRS grants a late estate 120 extra days to make a portability election so the surviving spouse can use the decedent's unused exclusion
When someone dies, any part of their federal estate-and-gift tax exclusion they did not use can be transferred to a surviving spouse. This transfer is called a "portability" election, and the estate m…
IRS gives a married couple 120 days to make a late election to treat all their rental real estate as one activity
Rental real estate income is normally treated as "passive," which limits when the owner can deduct losses against other income. Taxpayers who qualify as real estate professionals under § 469(c)(7) can…
IRS grants 120 days to file a late check-the-box election making a foreign subsidiary a disregarded entity
Under the "check-the-box" rules (Treas. Reg. § 301.7701-3), an eligible business entity can choose how it is taxed by filing Form 8832. A foreign entity that does not elect otherwise defaults to being…
IRS grants 120 days to file a late check-the-box election making a foreign entity a disregarded entity
Under the "check-the-box" rules (Treas. Reg. § 301.7701-3), an eligible business entity elects how it is taxed by filing Form 8832. A single-owner entity can elect to be "disregarded," meaning it is t…
IRS grants a late estate 120 extra days to make a portability election so the surviving spouse can use the decedent's unused exclusion
When someone dies, any part of their federal estate-and-gift tax exclusion they did not use can be transferred to a surviving spouse through a "portability" election. The estate makes that election by…
IRS grants an S corporation 120 days to make late QSub elections for three subsidiaries
An S corporation that owns 100% of a subsidiary can elect to treat that subsidiary as a "qualified subchapter S subsidiary" (QSub) under § 1361(b)(3). A QSub is ignored as a separate corporation, so i…
Late "portability" election allowed so a surviving spouse can use a deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion
When someone dies without using up their federal estate-tax exclusion, the unused part (the DSUE amount) can pass to the surviving spouse, but only if the estate makes a "portability" election on a ti…
Late "portability" election allowed so a surviving spouse can use a deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion
When someone dies without using up their federal estate-tax exclusion, the unused part (the DSUE amount) can pass to the surviving spouse, but only if the estate makes a "portability" election on a ti…
IRS lets a taxpayer revoke and re-make its section 59(e) elections after a rare natural event caused it to miss drilling and mining costs
An affiliated group of corporations asked the IRS for two things: permission to revoke its existing tax elections under section 59(e) and extra time to make fresh ones. Section 59(e) lets a taxpayer s…
IRS grants late-election relief to file a forgotten Rev. Proc. 2011-29 success-based-fee safe-harbor statement
When a company is bought or sold, it often pays advisers "success-based" fees that are owed only if the deal closes. Tax rules presume those fees must be capitalized rather than deducted, but Revenue …
Buyer and sellers get more time to make a late section 338(h)(10) election to treat an S corporation stock purchase as an asset sale
When a corporation buys the stock of an S corporation in a qualified stock purchase, the buyer and the selling shareholders can jointly elect under section 338(h)(10) to treat the deal as if the targe…
Bond issuer gets more time to file the carryforward election for unused private-activity-bond volume cap
States and their agencies get a yearly cap on how much tax-exempt private activity bonds they can issue. If an issuer does not use all of its allocation, it can "carry forward" the unused amount for c…
Late "portability" election allowed so a surviving spouse can use a deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion
When someone dies without using up their federal estate-tax exclusion, the unused part (the DSUE amount) can pass to the surviving spouse, but only if the estate makes a "portability" election on a ti…
Company gets more time to make the identification needed to integrate convertible notes with a hedge under Reg. § 1.1275-6
A corporation issued convertible notes and, at the same time, bought call options on its own stock to hedge the notes' conversion feature. Treasury Regulation § 1.1275-6 lets a taxpayer treat a qualif…
Company gets more time to make the identification needed to integrate convertible notes with a hedge under Reg. § 1.1275-6
A corporation issued convertible notes and, at the same time, bought call options on its own stock to hedge the notes' conversion feature. Treasury Regulation § 1.1275-6 lets a taxpayer treat a qualif…
Real estate investor gets more time to elect to treat all rental properties as one activity under section 469(c)(7)
Rental real estate is normally treated as a passive activity, but a qualifying taxpayer in a real property business can elect under section 469(c)(7) to treat all of their rental real estate interests…
Estate gets more time to make a missed QTIP marital-deduction election after the preparer put the property on the wrong schedule
When a person dies, property left in trust for a surviving spouse can qualify for the unlimited estate-tax marital deduction only if the estate makes a "QTIP" election under section 2056(b)(7) on the …
IRS denies extra time to file late Forms 3115 for an unauthorized accounting-method change
An S corporation that runs a production company switched from the cash method to an accrual method of accounting without filing the two Forms 3115 needed to obtain the Commissioner's consent, and it d…
Late "portability" election allowed so a surviving spouse can use a deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion
When someone dies without using up their federal estate-tax exclusion, the unused part (the DSUE amount) can pass to the surviving spouse, but only if the estate makes a "portability" election on a ti…
Late "portability" election allowed so a surviving spouse can use a deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion
When someone dies without using up their federal estate-tax exclusion, the unused part (the DSUE amount) can pass to the surviving spouse, but only if the estate makes a "portability" election on a ti…
Late "eligible acquisition transaction" election allowed so a partnership can recognize its full section 481(a) adjustment in the sale year
A health-care LLC taxed as a partnership sold part of its business and, by contract, changed from the cash method to an accrual method of accounting and agreed to recognize its entire section 481(a) c…
Late "portability" election allowed so a widow(er) can use a deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion
When someone dies without using up their federal estate-tax exclusion, the unused part (the DSUE amount) can pass to the surviving spouse, but only if the estate makes a "portability" election on a ti…
Corporation granted more time to make a late success-based-fee safe-harbor election
A corporation got more time to make a "success-based fee" safe-harbor election after its preparer left the required statement off the return. When a company pays fees that are contingent on closing an…
Estate granted more time to make a late portability election for a surviving spouse
An estate whose value did not require it to file a federal estate tax return missed the deadline to make a "portability" election, and the IRS granted it more time. Portability lets a surviving spouse…
Estate granted more time to make a late portability election for a surviving spouse
An estate whose value did not require it to file a federal estate tax return missed the deadline to make a "portability" election, and the IRS granted it more time. Portability lets a surviving spouse…
Partnership granted more time to make a late section 754 basis-adjustment election
A limited partnership got more time to make a section 754 election after its tax preparer inadvertently missed the deadline. A section 754 election lets a partnership adjust the tax basis of its prope…
Estate granted more time to make a late portability election for a surviving spouse
An estate whose value did not require it to file a federal estate tax return missed the deadline to make a "portability" election, and the IRS granted it more time. Portability lets a surviving spouse…
Partnership granted extra time to file the duplicate copy of its Form 3115 for a depreciation accounting-method change
To change an accounting method under the automatic-consent procedures, a taxpayer must file Form 3115 twice: attach the original to the timely filed tax return, and separately file a duplicate copy wi…
Buyer and sellers of an S corporation get extra time to make a late Section 338(h)(10) election treating the stock purchase as an asset sale
A § 338(h)(10) election lets the buyer and sellers of a corporation jointly treat a stock purchase as if the target had sold all its assets and liquidated, which often gives the buyer a stepped-up bas…
Foreign entity granted extra time to make a late check-the-box election to be a disregarded entity
Under the "check-the-box" rules, a single-owner eligible entity can file Form 8832 to elect to be disregarded (treated as part of its owner) instead of being taxed as a corporation. Here a foreign ent…
Late portability election granted so a surviving spouse's estate can use the first decedent's unused estate tax exclusion
Portability lets a surviving spouse add their late spouse's unused estate tax exclusion (the DSUE amount) to their own, but only if the deceased spouse's estate makes the election on a timely filed es…
Late portability election granted so a surviving spouse can use the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion
Portability lets a surviving spouse add their late spouse's unused estate tax exclusion (the DSUE amount) to their own, but only if the deceased spouse's estate makes the election on a timely filed es…
Late portability election granted so a surviving spouse can use the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion
Portability lets a surviving spouse add their late spouse's unused estate tax exclusion (the DSUE amount) to their own, but only if the deceased spouse's estate makes the election on a timely filed es…
Late portability election granted so a surviving spouse can use the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion
Portability lets a surviving spouse add their late spouse's unused estate tax exclusion (the DSUE amount) to their own, but only if the deceased spouse's estate makes the election on a timely filed es…
Estate granted extra time to elect out of automatic GST-exemption allocation for 2010 gifts to grandchildren's trusts
When someone makes a "direct skip" gift (for example, to a grandchild or a trust for grandchildren), the tax law automatically uses up part of the giver's generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exempt…
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.