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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Corporation gets more time to file the election to be treated as an IC-DISC after its form went missing
An interest-charge domestic international sales corporation (IC-DISC) is a special export tax vehicle that lets qualifying exporters defer some U.S. tax on export income. To claim that status, a corpo…
Grants extension for missed IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation for its parent. A misunderstanding over which adviser would file Form 4876-A caused the corp…
Media producer could integrate currency hedges with production costs
A media producer budgeted foreign production costs in local currencies and used forward contracts to lock in their U.S. dollar cost. The anticipated expenses were not yet supported by binding purchase…
Grants extra time to file a branch-profits-tax waiver
A foreign corporation had conducted a U.S. real-property leasing business through a partnership, then received and immediately sold the property and represented that it completely terminated its U.S. …
Permits a related corporation to use tax book value for interest allocation
A domestic corporation asked to change from fair market value to tax book value when valuing assets to allocate and apportion interest expense. It was related to, but not included in, another corporat…
Permits a consolidated group to use tax book value for interest allocation
A domestic parent asked for its consolidated group to change from fair market value to tax book value when valuing assets to allocate and apportion interest expense. A related domestic corporation out…
Grants extra time for an IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation for its parent. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A on time, but the only staff account…
CFC debts do not offset a related U.S. person's obligation without actual extinguishment
Chief Counsel considered how to measure a controlled foreign corporation's investment in U.S. property under section 956 when the CFC held an obligation of a U.S. person and owed money to another memb…
Export corporation receives 60 days to file a late IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation in connection with its parent's exports. Its law firm prepared Form 4876-A, but the IRS rece…
Newly formed export corporation receives 60 days to correct its IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed late in a calendar year to operate as an IC-DISC for a related agricultural-equipment exporter. Its law firm filed Form 4876-A using the corporation's first full cale…
Reinsurer receives 60 days to make late domestic-corporation election
A foreign associated reinsurance company intended to elect domestic-corporation treatment under section 953(d). Its operations manager and tax professional filed returns consistently with that treatme…
Export corporation receives 60 days to file IC-DISC election
A parent formed a domestic corporation solely to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation for export transactions. The parent relied on an accountant and law firm to orga…
Recapitalization avoids branch profits dividend equivalent
A foreign corporation indirectly owned a U.S. holding company whose earnings and profits reflected amounts previously allocated under the branch profits tax regulations. The group proposed recapitaliz…
Corporation gets more time for IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed solely to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation under a commission arrangement with its parent. Its accounting firm prepared Form 487…
Foreign corporation receives relief for two late tax elections
A foreign corporation sold its interest in a partnership holding U.S. real property and later learned that the sale produced taxable gain. It wanted to elect out of installment reporting and report th…
Corporation receives 60 days to file late IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, or IC-DISC, and hired an accounting firm to complete the required election. The corporation…
Corporation receives another extension to elect IC-DISC status
A domestic corporation formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation failed to make its initial election on time. The IRS had already granted a 60-day extension, but…
An insurer's cross-border restructuring received favorable reorganization and insurance tax rulings
A domestic insurance group proposed moving its U.S. business to a new domestic subsidiary and its foreign branch business to a new foreign insurer. The foreign insurer would elect under section 953(d)…
A corporation received more time to file its IC-DISC election after an adviser mix-up
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, or IC-DISC. Its accounting firm believed the law firm had filed Form 4876-A, while the law …
An internal error qualified for late IC-DISC election relief
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, or IC-DISC. Its accounting firm supplied Form 4876-A and filing instructions, but the corpo…
An acquired group may switch from fair market value to tax book value
A domestic parent used tax book value to apportion interest expense for its consolidated group. It acquired another corporation that had previously used fair market value, a method that ordinarily mus…
A spun-off group may change from fair market value to tax book value
A domestic consolidated group had used fair market value to apportion interest expense. After spinning off a wholly owned subsidiary, the group disposed of most of its foreign operations and represent…
A newly private group may switch to tax book value
A domestic consolidated group had used fair market value to apportion interest expense while its parent was publicly traded. A foreign corporation acquired the parent, ending its publicly traded statu…
A foreign insurer received more time for domestic and small-company elections
A foreign property and casualty insurer intended to elect under section 953(d) to be treated as a domestic corporation and under section 831(b) to be taxed as a small insurance company. Its return inc…
Worker could reelect the foreign earned income exclusion after moving countries
A U.S. taxpayer working abroad had used the foreign earned income exclusion for two years, then claimed foreign tax credits in the next year because an adviser said that approach would lower the taxpa…
Foreign insurance statement reserves approved for Subpart F calculation
A controlled foreign corporation sold life insurance and annuity contracts in its home country under local insurance regulation. Its domestic parent asked to use specified home-country statement reser…
Corporation receives 60 days to make late IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation intended from its formation to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, or IC-DISC. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A and the corporation's…
Corporation receives 60 days to file IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to serve as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation for its parent, which sold farming and agricultural products. Its accounting and law firms mis…
Foreign insurer may revoke its election to be treated as domestic
A foreign insurance company had elected under section 953(d) to be treated as a domestic corporation before a new corporate group acquired it. The company operated only in its home country and abandon…
Tribal gaming payments to children are unearned income
A tribe distributed gaming revenue to minor members under an approved per capita revenue-allocation plan. A return preparer argued that the payments were earned income for purposes of the tax rules fo…
Bond index fund may use portfolio-level currency hedge accounting
A regulated investment company held foreign-currency bonds to track a public index and used rolling one-month currency forwards to mirror the index's hedging method. Because the portfolio contained ma…
Training explains qualified derivatives dealer responsibilities
Chief Counsel training materials explain the application, documentation, withholding, reporting, and compliance duties of a qualified derivatives dealer (QDD). An eligible entity must be a qualified i…
Training explains section 871(m) and the QDD tax regime
Chief Counsel training materials explain how section 871(m) treats certain dividend-linked payments to foreign persons as U.S.-source dividends. The rules cover securities lending and sale-repurchase …
Corporation receives 60 days to correct its IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation intended to elect interest charge domestic international sales corporation (IC-DISC) status from its formation. Its accounting and law firms miscommunicated about ownership, cau…
Corporation receives relief for a late IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation and hired an accounting firm to prepare the required filings. The employee coordinating the …
Corporation receives 60 days to file late IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation and believed it had filed Form 4876-A for its first taxable year. The IRS had no valid timel…
Foreign insurer receives 60 days to elect domestic corporation treatment
A regulated foreign insurance company did not learn about the IRC § 953(d) election to be treated as a domestic corporation until its U.S. parent hired an accounting firm. The election deadline was se…
Corporation may switch to tax-book-value asset valuation
A domestic corporation and its related consolidated group had used the fair-market-value method to value assets when apportioning interest expense. After the related group acquired another consolidate…
Consolidated group may switch to tax-book-value asset valuation
A consolidated group and a related domestic corporation had used the fair-market-value method to value assets when apportioning interest expense. After the group acquired another consolidated group th…
Foreign insurance reserves may measure qualifying insurance income
A controlled foreign corporation wrote life insurance, annuity, and noncancellable or guaranteed-renewable accident and health contracts in its home country. Its regulator required audited underwritin…
Corporation receives relief for a late IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation and relied on an accounting firm to arrange the required election. Because of an apparent mi…
Corporation receives relief for a late IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its accounting firm and law firm each mistakenly believed the other would file Form 4876-A,…
Legal fees tied to pre-section 199 sales do not reduce production income
A consolidated corporate group incurred legal fees defending product-harm lawsuits involving products manufactured and sold before section 199 took effect. The group claimed that the fees should not b…
Foreign corporation receives more time to file branch profits tax waiver
A foreign corporation sold its only asset, a U.S. condominium used by its nonresident shareholders as a vacation home, and later dissolved. It believed withholding from the sale satisfied its U.S. tax…
Corporation receives more time to file its IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed solely to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its owners understood that Form 4876-A was required and relied on their law firm and…
Bond index fund may use portfolio-level tax method for currency hedges
A regulated investment company tracked an index of foreign-currency bonds whose currency exposure was offset with rolling one-month forward contracts. Because the fund held many bonds, it hedged its a…
Interest apportionment may switch to tax book value
A domestic parent corporation had used the fair market value method to value assets when apportioning interest expense. Treasury regulations generally require a taxpayer and related persons to continu…
Acquired group may switch to tax-book asset valuation
A domestic parent and its consolidated group historically used tax book value to apportion interest expense. It acquired another consolidated group that had used fair market value, a method that gener…
Corporation receives late IC-DISC election relief
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge DISC and hired an accounting firm to prepare Form 4876-A. The firm prepared the form, but the corporation failed to file it because o…
Late IC-DISC election receives 60-day extension
A domestic corporation intended to elect interest charge domestic international sales corporation status from its formation. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A, but a misunderstanding resulted i…
Couple granted late foreign earned income elections
A married couple filed joint returns while one spouse worked for an employer in a foreign country. They did not timely file Form 2555 or Form 2555-EZ to elect the section 911 foreign earned income exc…
Late IC-DISC election receives a 60-day extension
A corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A, an officer signed it, and a copy was placed in the corpora…
Foreign insurance reserves may measure Subpart F income
A domestic insurance group owned a controlled foreign corporation conducting life, annuity, and specified accident and health insurance solely in its home country. The foreign insurer asked to use res…
Foreign life insurance reserves may measure Subpart F income
A U.S. corporate group asked whether a foreign life insurance subsidiary could use reserves reported to its home-country insurance regulator when calculating Subpart F income. The subsidiary issued li…
Corporation received 60 more days to elect IC-DISC status
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A, an officer signed it, and another officer was ask…
Foreign insurer could use local statement reserves under section 954
A U.S.-owned controlled foreign corporation sold life insurance, annuity, and certain accident and health products under its home country's insurance rules. It asked to use specified reserves and rela…
Foreign insurers could use local statement reserves under section 954
Two U.S.-owned controlled foreign corporations sold life insurance and annuity products under their home country's insurance rules. They asked to use underwriting, loss, policyholder dividend, and adv…
Foreign insurers could use local reserves for section 954 income
Two U.S.-owned controlled foreign corporations sold life insurance and annuity products under their home country's insurance rules. They asked to use specified foreign statement reserves, plus related…
Late IC-DISC election received a 60-day extension
A domestic corporation intended to elect interest charge DISC status for its first tax year. The corporation and its owner relied on an accounting firm to arrange the election, but a misunderstanding …
Export corporation receives more time for IC-DISC election
A domestic corporation was formed solely to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, or IC-DISC. Its managers hired an accounting firm and a law firm to handle the requi…
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.