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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Investment advisory fees paid out of an annuity's cash value are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company wanted to offer deferred annuity contracts designed to be managed with the help of an investment adviser. The owner would authorize the company to pull the adviser's fees (cap…
Investment advisory fees paid out of an annuity's cash value are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company wanted to offer deferred annuity contracts designed to be managed with the help of an investment adviser. The owner would authorize the company to pull the adviser's fees (cap…
IRS lets a surviving spouse roll a trust-inherited IRA into her own IRA because she fully controls the trust
When a spouse dies and leaves an IRA to a trust rather than directly to the surviving spouse, the survivor usually cannot roll that IRA into her own IRA, because the money is treated as passing throug…
IRS rules advisory fees paid out of an annuity's cash value aren't a taxable distribution to the owner
When money comes out of a deferred annuity before payouts begin, § 72(e) generally treats it as an "amount received" that can be taxable to the owner. A life insurance company planned to sell fixed-in…
IRS grants a multiemployer pension plan a 5-year extension to amortize its unfunded liabilities under section 431(d)
Multiemployer pension plans must fund their promised benefits under minimum funding rules, paying down "unfunded liabilities" over set amortization periods. Section 431(d) lets a plan apply for an aut…
IRS waives the 60-day deadline to roll over a 401(k) and IRA distribution after a serious illness
When you take money out of a 401(k) or an IRA, you normally have 60 days to put it into another retirement account, or the distribution becomes taxable income. A taxpayer here missed that 60-day windo…
Investment advisory fees paid out of an annuity's cash value are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company plans to offer non-qualified deferred annuity contracts designed to be managed with the help of an investment adviser. The owner authorizes the insurer to deduct the adviser's…
Investment advisory fees deducted from an annuity's cash value are not an "amount received" by the owner under § 72(e)
A life insurance company planned to offer deferred annuity contracts designed to be managed with the help of the owner's own investment adviser, who allocates the contract's cash value among the avail…
Surviving spouse may roll a deceased spouse's estate-payable IRA into her own IRA
A person died owning a traditional IRA that named no living beneficiary, so the custodian treated the decedent's estate as the beneficiary and moved the money into a beneficiary IRA in the estate's na…
IRS waives a pension plan's minimum funding requirement for one year on COVID-19 hardship, with PBGC collateral and contribution conditions
An employer that sponsors a defined-benefit pension plan asked the IRS to waive the plan's minimum funding requirement for one plan year. Tax law lets the IRS grant this waiver when the employer faces…
Surviving spouse may roll over a deceased spouse's IRA into her own, even though the IRA passed through the estate
A surviving spouse can usually roll over a deceased spouse's IRA into her own IRA and keep deferring taxes. That is normally not allowed when the IRA is left to the estate rather than directly to the …
Spun-off company's stock stays "employer securities" for the net unrealized appreciation tax break, with the reinvestment window extended to 180 days
A publicly traded company runs a 401(k)/ESOP retirement plan whose participants hold the company's stock. When employees take employer stock out of such a plan, a special rule (net unrealized apprecia…
Follow-up confirming a standard Form 872-H and Form 56 suffice for a sub-trust, with no special-trustee signature
This short Chief Counsel email follows up on advice about extending the assessment limitations period for a retirement trust that has a sub-trust. It clarifies that the Form 872-H (consent to extend t…
Use a standard Form 872-H and Form 56 signed by the Form 5500 signatories to extend a trust's limitations period
This short Chief Counsel email advises how to extend the assessment limitations period for retirement trusts (including sub-trusts). The recommended approach is to use the standard Form 872-H (consent…
Pension plan granted seven-year approval to use its own substitute mortality tables for funding calculations
A single-employer defined benefit pension plan normally computes its minimum required funding using standard IRS mortality tables. Section 430(h)(3) lets a plan sponsor apply to use its own "substitut…
IRS waives the 60-day rollover deadline after a bank deposited a Roth payout into a traditional IRA
A taxpayer left his job and elected a direct rollover of his designated Roth account from his employer's 401(k) plan to a Roth IRA. The financial institution mistakenly deposited the money into his tr…
Investment advisory fees paid out of an annuity's cash value to the owner's adviser are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company planned to offer deferred annuity contracts designed to work with an outside investment adviser who helps the owner choose how to allocate the contract's cash value. The owner…
Investment advisory fees paid out of an annuity's cash value to the owner's adviser are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company planned to offer deferred annuity contracts designed to work with an outside investment adviser who helps the owner choose how to allocate the contract's cash value. The owner…
Letting retirees change their survivor-benefit choice within 90 days of the first payment does not break the required minimum distribution rules
A state administers several governmental defined benefit pension plans in which retirees pick a survivor benefit (for example, joint-and-100-percent or single-life) at retirement, and that choice was …
IRS approves continued use of substitute mortality tables for three pension plans
A company asked the IRS to let three defined benefit pension plans continue using substitute mortality tables that had been approved in 2018 for minimum funding calculations under IRC Section 430. One…
Trust may split two inherited IRAs among three children without current tax
A decedent died after his required beginning date, leaving his own IRA and an IRA he had inherited from an older sibling to a revocable trust that became irrevocable at death. The trust divided its re…
Surviving spouse may roll a trust-held inherited Roth IRA into her own Roth IRA
A deceased spouse named a revocable trust as the sole beneficiary of his Roth IRA. The surviving spouse was the trust’s sole trustee and beneficiary and could demand all trust principal and income. Th…
IRA owner received a waiver of the 60-day rollover deadline after an adviser failed to transfer stock
An IRA owner received company stock from a traditional IRA after its custodian resigned and intended to roll the shares into a new IRA. She relied on a chief financial officer who had previously helpe…
IRS approves pension plan substitute mortality tables
A single-employer defined benefit pension plan asked to use plan-specific substitute mortality tables for its funding calculations under Section 430. The IRS approved substitute tables for male and fe…
Rehired retirees do not create a cash-or-deferred arrangement
A governmental defined-benefit plan permitted certain retirees to return for one-year teaching contracts as special employees while continuing to receive retirement benefits. These rehired retirees ea…
IRS denies reversal of inherited IRA distribution
A trust inherited an IRA after the account owner died. Acting on the custodian's advice, the trustees moved substantially all of the IRA assets into a non-IRA account so they could trade stocks. The t…
IRS approves substitute mortality tables for a defined benefit pension plan
A taxpayer asked to use plan-specific substitute mortality tables when calculating minimum funding requirements for a defined benefit pension plan. The request covered male and female participants, bo…
Trust-held annuity treated as held for natural person
An irrevocable trust was divided into separate trusts, one of which had a single individual as its sole income and principal beneficiary. The co-trustees planned to buy a single-premium deferred annui…
Annuity-paid advisory fees are not distributions to owners
A life insurer proposed variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid deferred annuity contracts designed for owners who receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. An owner …
Annuity-paid advisory fees are not distributions to owners
A life insurer proposed variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid deferred annuity contracts designed for owners who receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. An owner …
Annuity-paid advisory fees are not distributions to owners
A life insurer proposed variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid deferred annuity contracts designed for owners who receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. An owner …
Two pension plans may use substitute annuitant mortality tables
A taxpayer asked to use plan-specific substitute mortality tables for the combined male and female annuitants of two defined benefit pension plans. The IRS found that those rates were developed under …
Pension plan may use substitute mortality tables for annuitants
A pension plan asked to use plan-specific substitute mortality tables for its male and female annuitants, excluding disabled annuitants. The IRS found that the rates were developed under the applicabl…
Two pension plans may use substitute mortality tables for annuitants
A taxpayer asked to use plan-specific substitute mortality tables for the combined male and female annuitants of two defined benefit pension plans, including disabled annuitants. The IRS found that th…
Pension plan may use substitute mortality tables for healthy annuitants
A controlled group asked to use plan-specific substitute mortality tables for the male and female healthy annuitants of one defined benefit pension plan. The IRS found that the rates were developed un…
Pension plan may use substitute mortality tables for all populations
A pension plan asked to use plan-specific substitute mortality tables for its male and female annuitants and nonannuitants, including disabled participants. The IRS found that the rates were developed…
Annuity-paid advisory fees are not distributions to owners
A life insurer proposed variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid deferred annuity contracts designed for owners who receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. An owner …
Annuity-paid advisory fees are contract expenses, not owner distributions
A life insurer planned to offer deferred annuity contracts whose owners would receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. The contracts would pay the advisers direc…
Annuity-paid advisory fees are contract expenses, not owner distributions
A life insurer planned to offer deferred annuity contracts whose owners would receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. The contracts would pay the advisers direc…
Pension plan may use substitute annuitant mortality tables
A pension plan requested plan-specific mortality tables for male and female annuitants, including disabled participants. The IRS found that the substitute rates were developed under the applicable reg…
Pension plan may use combined annuitant mortality tables
A pension plan requested a single substitute mortality table for its combined male and female annuitants, including disabled annuitants. The IRS found that the plan-specific rates were developed under…
See-through trust may split inherited IRA without current tax
An inherited IRA was payable to an irrevocable trust for two child beneficiaries after the prior beneficiary died before 2020 and before his required beginning date. Timely trust amendments required e…
See-through trust may split inherited IRA without current tax
An inherited IRA was payable to an irrevocable trust for two child beneficiaries after the prior beneficiary died before 2020 and before his required beginning date. Timely trust amendments required e…
See-through trust may split inherited IRA without current tax
An inherited IRA was payable to an irrevocable trust for two child beneficiaries after the prior beneficiary died before 2020 and before his required beginning date. Timely trust amendments required e…
Annuity-paid advisory fees are contract expenses, not distributions
A life insurer proposed variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid deferred annuity contracts designed for owners receiving ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. The contrac…
Annuity-paid advisory fees are contract expenses, not distributions
A life insurer proposed variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid deferred annuity contracts designed for owners receiving ongoing advice about allocating contract value among available options. The contrac…
Pension minimum-funding waiver approved with strict conditions
An employer in Chapter 11 sought relief from its pension plan's remaining minimum required contribution. Heavy debt-service costs had caused temporary substantial business hardship, but reduced debt, …
Annuity-paid advisory fees are contract expenses rather than taxable owner distributions
A life insurer offered variable deferred annuity contracts designed for owners who receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among investment options. Under a separate authorization, the …
Direct payment of annuity advisory fees is not a taxable receipt by the owner
A life insurer offered variable deferred annuity contracts designed to work with ongoing investment advice about allocations among the available contract options. Owners could authorize the insurer to…
Annuity-paid advisory fees are not distributions to contract owners
A life insurer planned to offer variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid nonqualified deferred annuity contracts designed for owners who receive ongoing advice about allocating contract value among availab…
IRS approves a conditional minimum funding waiver for a pension plan
An employer asked the IRS to waive the remaining minimum required contribution to its pension plan for a redacted plan year. The employer attributed its temporary substantial business hardship to proj…
IRS approves a small-benefit cash-out amendment without disturbing a multiemployer plan's funding extension
A multiemployer defined-benefit plan already had an IRS-approved extension for amortizing certain unfunded accrued liabilities. It proposed a mandatory cash-out window for terminated participants whos…
Advisory fees paid from an annuity's cash value are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company planned to offer non-qualified deferred annuity contracts (variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid) designed to be managed with the help of a paid investment adviser. The owner wo…
Advisory fees paid from an annuity's cash value are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company planned to offer non-qualified deferred annuity contracts (variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid) designed to be managed with the help of a paid investment adviser. The owner wo…
Advisory fees paid from an annuity's cash value are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company planned to offer non-qualified deferred annuity contracts (variable, fixed-indexed, and hybrid) designed to be managed with the help of a paid investment adviser. The owner wo…
IRS recognizes a church-affiliated university's pension and 403(b) plans as church plans after committee-based correction
A tax-exempt university affiliated with a church maintained a frozen defined-benefit pension plan and an ongoing § 403(b) plan. The church selected a majority of the university's trustees, could remov…
A union trust's group annuity contract is treated as held for the employees, so § 72(u) does not strip its annuity tax treatment
A collectively bargained (Taft-Hartley) benefit plan buys a group annuity contract to provide post-employment income to covered employees. A trust, run by trustees, holds legal title to the contract a…
Pension surplus may move to a replacement plan without employer-reversion tax
A public corporation terminated a defined benefit pension plan and proposed to transfer all surplus assets, after paying benefits and expenses, to its defined contribution plan. At least 95 percent of…
60-day IRA rollover deadline waived for a fraud-scheme victim
A taxpayer withdrew money from her traditional IRA but did not roll it into another retirement account within the 60 days the law normally requires. She explained that she was the victim of an interna…
Trust named as IRA beneficiary is a "see-through" trust, so payouts stretch over the surviving spouse's life
A person died before reaching age 70 1/2, leaving six IRAs whose sole beneficiary was their revocable living trust. The trust became irrevocable at death and channeled the retirement assets into a sub…
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.