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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QTIP settlement termination received favorable tax treatment
A surviving spouse and trustee settled trust litigation by proposing to terminate an irrevocable QTIP trust and two marital QTIP trusts. The spouse would receive a support distribution and the actuari…
Court-approved QTIP trust settlement received favorable rulings
A surviving spouse and bank trustee sought rulings before completing a court-approved settlement that would terminate an irrevocable QTIP trust and two marital QTIP trusts. The spouse would receive a …
QTIP trust settlement approved for transfer-tax purposes
A surviving spouse and trustee proposed a court-approved settlement ending an irrevocable QTIP trust and two marital QTIP trusts. The spouse would receive a support distribution and the present value …
Family company agreement keeps section 2703 grandfather status
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Family company restrictions remain grandfathered under section 2703
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Pre-1990 family stock agreement remains grandfathered
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Family stock restrictions retain section 2703 grandfather protection
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Buy-sell agreement remains protected from section 2703
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Family share agreement remains grandfathered after planned changes
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Family company changes do not trigger section 2703
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Planned stock changes preserve section 2703 grandfathering
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Family company recapitalization does not end grandfathering
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Later family transfers do not alter grandfathered stock agreement
A family-owned company was governed by a stock redemption and buy-sell agreement adopted before October 8, 1990. The company and its shareholders asked whether later family transfers, administrative c…
Family-company agreement remains grandfathered after transfers and recapitalization
A family-owned company’s stock redemption and buy-sell agreement predated October 8, 1990, and therefore remained outside section 2703 unless substantially modified. The IRS ruled that later transfers…
Family-company agreement remains grandfathered after transfers and recapitalization
A family-owned company’s stock redemption and buy-sell agreement predated October 8, 1990, and therefore remained outside section 2703 unless substantially modified. The IRS ruled that later transfers…
Family-company agreement remains grandfathered after transfers and recapitalization
A family-owned company’s stock redemption and buy-sell agreement predated October 8, 1990, and therefore remained outside section 2703 unless substantially modified. The IRS ruled that later transfers…
Family-company agreement remains grandfathered after transfers and recapitalization
A family-owned company’s stock redemption and buy-sell agreement predated October 8, 1990, and therefore remained outside section 2703 unless substantially modified. The IRS ruled that later transfers…
Family-company agreement remains grandfathered after transfers and recapitalization
A family-owned company’s stock redemption and buy-sell agreement predated October 8, 1990, and therefore remained outside section 2703 unless substantially modified. The IRS ruled that later transfers…
Incomplete-gift trust committee avoids ownership, gift, and general-power treatment
An irrevocable domestic trust used a power-of-appointment committee to direct distributions among the grantor and other beneficiaries. While the committee remains in existence, the IRS found no trust …
Incomplete-gift trust committee avoids ownership, gift, and general-power treatment
An irrevocable domestic trust used a power-of-appointment committee to direct distributions among the grantor and other beneficiaries. While the committee remains in existence, the IRS found no trust …
Incomplete-gift trust committee avoids ownership, gift, and general-power treatment
An irrevocable domestic trust used a power-of-appointment committee to direct distributions among the grantor and other beneficiaries. While the committee remains in existence, the IRS found no trust …
Incomplete-gift trust committee avoids ownership, gift, and general-power treatment
An irrevocable domestic trust used a power-of-appointment committee to direct distributions among the grantor and other beneficiaries. While the committee remains in existence, the IRS found no trust …
Incomplete-gift trust committee avoids ownership, gift, and general-power treatment
An irrevocable domestic trust used a power-of-appointment committee to direct distributions among the grantor and other beneficiaries. While the committee remains in existence, the IRS found no trust …
IRS blesses an incomplete-gift non-grantor trust with a power of appointment committee
A married couple in a community property state set up an irrevocable trust funded with community property and controlled by a "power of appointment committee" made up of the spouses and several family…
Community property trust receives income, gift, estate, and basis rulings
A married couple transferred community property to an irrevocable trust that could benefit them, their descendants, and other named beneficiaries through powers shared with a power-of-appointment comm…
Community property trust receives income, gift, estate, and basis rulings
A married couple transferred community property to an irrevocable trust that could benefit them, their descendants, and other named beneficiaries through powers shared with a power-of-appointment comm…
Community property trust receives income, gift, estate, and basis rulings
A married couple transferred community property to an irrevocable trust that could benefit them, their descendants, and other named beneficiaries through powers shared with a power-of-appointment comm…
Community property trust receives income, gift, estate, and basis rulings
A married couple transferred community property to an irrevocable trust that could benefit them, their descendants, and other named beneficiaries through powers shared with a power-of-appointment comm…
Community property trust receives income, gift, estate, and basis rulings
A married couple transferred community property to an irrevocable trust that could benefit them, their descendants, and other named beneficiaries through powers shared with a power-of-appointment comm…
Trust modification preserves GST exemption without estate or gift tax
A trust created before September 25, 1985 proposed changing how assets would be held for the grantor's descendants after the primary beneficiary's death. Instead of distributing shares outright at age…
Descendant trust changes retain GST-exempt status
A grandfathered trust proposed replacing age-21 outright distributions to descendants with lifetime separate trusts for each beneficiary. The new terms would permit discretionary support distributions…
Lifetime descendant trusts preserve tax treatment
A pre-1985 irrevocable trust proposed modifying descendant shares that otherwise would have been distributed outright at age 21. The new provisions would keep each share in a lifetime discretionary tr…
Grandfathered trust may create lifetime beneficiary shares
A trust irrevocable before September 25, 1985 proposed converting descendant shares from age-21 outright distributions into lifetime separate trusts. Each trust could make discretionary support distri…
Modified descendant trusts keep GST grandfathering
A grandfathered irrevocable trust proposed holding descendant shares in separate lifetime trusts rather than distributing them outright when beneficiaries reached age 21. The modified terms would auth…
Descendant share modification avoids transfer taxes
A pre-1985 trust proposed changing descendant shares from mandatory income and outright age-21 distributions to separate lifetime discretionary trusts. Beneficiaries would receive testamentary general…
QTIP trust severance isolates spouse's disclaimer
A marital trust had been elected as qualified terminable interest property and divided into GST-exempt and GST-nonexempt shares. The trustee proposed splitting the nonexempt share into a cash trust an…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Trust reformation respected for power-of-appointment and GST tax purposes
An irrevocable trust for six children and their descendants contained a drafting error that allowed annual withdrawal rights to lapse beyond the greater of $5,000 or five percent of trust assets. A st…
Pending merger had to be considered in valuing gifted public stock
A corporate co-founder transferred publicly traded shares to a grantor retained annuity trust shortly before the company announced a merger that followed extended negotiations. The stock price rose su…
Early trust termination avoided GST and gift tax but triggered capital gain
A pre-September 25, 1985 irrevocable trust paid all income to the settlor’s son and was to distribute the remainder to his descendants. The beneficiaries obtained court approval to terminate the trust…
Early trust termination avoided GST and gift tax but triggered capital gain
A pre-September 25, 1985 irrevocable trust paid all income to the settlor’s son and was to distribute the remainder to his descendants. The beneficiaries obtained court approval to terminate the trust…
Early trust termination avoided GST and gift tax but triggered capital gain
A pre-September 25, 1985 irrevocable trust paid all income to the settlor’s son and was to distribute the remainder to his descendants. The beneficiaries obtained court approval to terminate the trust…
Early trust termination avoided GST and gift tax but triggered capital gain
A pre-September 25, 1985 irrevocable trust paid all income to the settlor’s son and was to distribute the remainder to his descendants. The beneficiaries obtained court approval to terminate the trust…
Early trust termination avoided GST and gift tax but triggered capital gain
A pre-September 25, 1985 irrevocable trust paid all income to the settlor’s son and was to distribute the remainder to his descendants. The beneficiaries obtained court approval to terminate the trust…
Trust termination avoided transfer taxes but triggered capital gain
The beneficiaries of a trust created before September 25, 1985 agreed to terminate it and divide its assets according to the actuarial value of their interests. A court approved the agreement because …
Trust termination avoided transfer taxes but triggered capital gain
The beneficiaries of a trust created before September 25, 1985 agreed to terminate it and divide its assets according to the actuarial value of their interests. A court approved the agreement because …
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.