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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Developer receives extension to file alternative cost method request
A real estate developer used Revenue Procedure 92-29's alternative cost method for common improvements and attached the required request and limitations consent to its timely return. Its employee comp…
Developer receives extension to file alternative cost method request
A real estate developer used Revenue Procedure 92-29's alternative cost method for common improvements and attached the required request and limitations consent to its timely return. Its employee comp…
Developer receives extension to file alternative cost method request
A real estate developer used Revenue Procedure 92-29's alternative cost method for common improvements and attached the required request and limitations consent to its timely return. Its employee comp…
Developer receives extension to file alternative cost method request
A real estate developer used Revenue Procedure 92-29's alternative cost method for common improvements and attached the required request and limitations consent to its timely return. Its employee comp…
Developer receives extension to file alternative cost method request
A real estate developer used Revenue Procedure 92-29's alternative cost method for common improvements and attached the required request and limitations consent to its timely return. Its employee comp…
Developer receives extension to file alternative cost method request
A real estate developer used Revenue Procedure 92-29's alternative cost method for common improvements and attached the required request and limitations consent to its timely return. Its employee comp…
Taxpayer receives extension for success-based-fee safe harbor election
A corporation incurred a success-based financial advisory fee when it acquired another company's stock. The taxpayer relied on a return preparer to advise it about elections, but neither the taxpayer …
Taxpayer receives extension for alternative minimum tax credit election
A consolidated corporate group had unused alternative minimum tax credits from years before 2006 but failed to elect the Section 168(k)(4) regime for three rounds of extension property. The group's ta…
Employer receives extension to update separate-line-of-business notices
An employer historically tested its retirement plans using two qualified separate lines of business. After acquisitions and employee transfers changed its controlled group, it relied on legal advice t…
Foreign entity receives extension for disregarded-entity election
A wholly owned foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity from its formation date but failed to file Form 8832 on time. The entity represented that it acted reasonably and in good f…
Foreign entity receives extension for disregarded-entity election
A foreign eligible entity wanted disregarded-entity treatment from the date its classification became relevant but did not timely file Form 8832. The IRS found that the requirements for discretionary …
Small insurer receives extension for Section 831(b) election
An insurance company had qualified for exemption as a small insurer under Section 501(c)(15) in earlier years. Its return preparer discovered shortly before the filing deadline that gross receipts for…
Foreign entity receives extension for disregarded-entity election
A wholly owned foreign eligible entity intended to be classified as disregarded from its formation date but failed to file Form 8832 on time. The IRS concluded that the requirements for discretionary …
Foreign entity received extra time for disregarded-entity election
A foreign eligible entity failed to file Form 8832 on time to elect disregarded-entity status for federal tax purposes. It requested a discretionary extension under Treas. Reg. § 301.9100-3. The IRS f…
Estate received time for trust severance and reverse QTIP election
An estate timely elected QTIP treatment for a marital trust but failed to divide it into GST-exempt and nonexempt trusts or make a reverse QTIP election. The trustee had relied on tax professionals wh…
Foreign entity received late disregarded-entity election relief
A foreign eligible entity and its member intended the entity to be treated as disregarded for federal tax purposes from its formation date. The entity inadvertently failed to file Form 8832 on time. T…
Estate received time for alternate valuation election
An estate timely filed Form 706 within one year after its filing deadline, including extensions, but its attorney omitted the Section 2032 alternate valuation election. The executor asked for discreti…
Foreign entity received time for disregarded-entity election
A foreign eligible entity failed to file Form 8832 on time to elect disregarded-entity status from its formation date. The IRS concluded that the entity satisfied the discretionary relief standards in…
Foreign entity received late classification election relief
A foreign eligible entity and its owner intended the entity to be treated as disregarded for federal tax purposes from its formation date, but Form 8832 was not filed on time. The IRS found that the s…
Missed Form 8832 deadline received discretionary relief
A foreign eligible entity and its owner intended the entity to be treated as disregarded for federal tax purposes from its formation date, but the entity did not file Form 8832 on time. The IRS found …
Entity received 120 days to file late Form 8832
A foreign eligible entity and its owner intended the entity to be treated as disregarded for federal tax purposes from its formation date, but Form 8832 was not filed on time. The IRS concluded that t…
Partnership received time for Section 754 election after partner's death
A general partnership intended to make a Section 754 election after one of two spouses who owned a partnership interest as community property died. The partnership did not timely file the return makin…
Late tax-year change application was treated as timely
A domestic corporation filed Form 1128 late when seeking to change from a calendar tax year to a tax year ending March 31. It requested discretionary deadline relief soon after missing the due date fo…
New affiliated group received time for consolidated-return election
A parent corporation created a new affiliated group through an acquisition and intended to file a consolidated return, but did not timely make a valid election under Treas. Reg. § 1.1502-75(a)(1). The…
REIT received time for taxable-subsidiary election
A REIT owned a foreign company and foreign property companies whose intercompany interest deductions were affected by new foreign tax rules. Relying on its tax adviser's analysis, the REIT did not tim…
Partnership received time for election after technical termination
A limited liability company taxed as a partnership underwent a technical termination under former Section 708(b)(1)(B) when one owner sold membership interests to two buyers. The partnership intended …
Affiliated entities received more time to elect alternative depreciation
An individual owned several pass-through entities that used the general depreciation system for property placed in service during a redacted tax year. Using the alternative depreciation system instead…
Partnership received 120 days to make a late Section 754 election
A limited partnership failed to include a Section 754 election with its return for the year in which one partner sold its interest to another party. The partnership represented that the omission was i…
Late election out of bonus depreciation was treated as timely
A partnership intended to elect out of additional first-year depreciation for every class of qualified property placed in service during its initial tax year. Its partnership agreement required that c…
Landlord received more time for a tenant-improvement disposition election
A partnership owned an office building and removed an earlier tenant's improvements while preparing the space for a new tenant. Its accounting firm knew about the tenant change and build-out but did n…
Partnership received relief for a late Section 754 election
A limited liability company treated as a partnership underwent a technical termination after a transfer of ownership interests. It intended to make a Section 754 election in connection with that trans…
Pass-through entities could make a late bonus depreciation opt-out
An individual wholly owned several pass-through entities that claimed additional first-year depreciation on qualified property. Those deductions flowed through to the owner, contributed to a net loss,…
Partnership received 120 days for a late Section 754 election
A partner died, causing that partner's interest and a terminating trust's separate interest in a partnership to pass to new owners. The partnership relied on its tax adviser and did not know that it c…
Consolidated group could file a late waiver of its loss carryback
A corporate parent intended to waive the entire carryback period for its consolidated group's net operating loss. The group's returns consistently treated the waiver as effective, but the required ele…
Foreign entity received more time for a disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity and its sole owner had been unaware that an entity-classification election was needed to obtain disregarded-entity treatment. The entity requested permission to file Form 8832 late wi…
Late check-the-box election received 120-day relief
A foreign entity and its sole owner did not realize that they needed an entity-classification election to treat the entity as disregarded for U.S. federal tax purposes. They sought a late Form 8832 el…
Foreign entity could retroactively elect disregarded status
A wholly owned foreign entity and its owner had not known that a Form 8832 election was required to obtain disregarded-entity treatment. The entity asked to make the classification election late with …
Export commission company received more time to elect IC-DISC status
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, selling its owner's industrial products to foreign buyers on commission. Its accounting fir…
Estates could make late GST exemption allocations to family trusts
A married couple made gifts to two irrevocable trusts for their sons and descendants in three years before 2001. They timely filed gift tax returns and elected to split the gifts equally, but their ta…
Partnership received 120 days to make a late Section 754 election
A limited partnership timely filed its federal tax return but inadvertently failed to include an election under Section 754. The partnership represented that it acted reasonably and in good faith and …
REIT received a second extension for subsidiary elections
A REIT and two subsidiaries intended to elect taxable REIT subsidiary status and had already obtained an IRS extension to file Forms 8875. The law firm, accounting firm, and in-house advisor each mist…
Taxpayers received 45 days to file a duplicate Form 3115
A married couple changed the accounting methods of a wholly owned disregarded entity and filed the original Form 3115 with their timely return. Their accounting firm failed to mail the required duplic…
Spouse received late GST exemption allocation relief
A decedent created an irrevocable trust for children and their descendants, and the spouses elected to split the original gift. The gift-tax returns failed to allocate either spouse's generation-skipp…
Foreign entity received late partnership election relief
A foreign entity with two owners intended to be classified as a partnership from its formation date but did not timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the entity satisfied the requirements for …
Foreign entity obtained late disregarded-status relief
A foreign eligible entity intended to be classified as disregarded for federal tax purposes from a specified date but failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the entity met the require…
Grants 120 days to make late partnership basis election
A partnership wanted a section 754 election after a general partner died, but its tax return was filed without the election because it relied on its tax adviser. The partnership represented that it ac…
Grants estate 120 days to elect alternate valuation
An estate timely filed Form 706 within one year after its due date, but the CPA preparing the return failed to check the box electing alternate valuation under section 2032. The CPA stated that the om…
Grants 120 days to file omitted section 754 election
A foreign corporation treated as a partnership for U.S. tax purposes intended to make a section 754 basis-adjustment election with its return, but failed to file a properly executed election. The enti…
Grants 120 days for late farmland special-use valuation election
An estate included farmland, but the accountant preparing its timely Form 706 did not advise the co-executors to elect special-use valuation under section 2032A. An attorney later discovered that the …
Grants extra time to elect consolidated-return filing
A parent corporation and its affiliated subsidiaries failed to make a timely election to file a consolidated federal income tax return. The parent showed that it had reasonably relied on a qualified t…
Grants extra time for a multiple-building housing-credit election
A taxpayer intended three low-income housing buildings to form one multiple-building project but inadvertently failed to make that election on the buildings' Forms 8609. Section 42 ordinarily treats a…
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. …
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…
Grants extra time for a partnership's section 754 election
A partnership underwent a technical termination after an owner acquired an additional interest. The partnership intended to elect under section 754 to adjust the basis of partnership property for the …
Partnership receives 120 days to make a late Section 754 election
A lower-tier partnership sought extra time to make a section 754 election after a partner in its upper-tier partnership died. Both partnerships timely filed their returns, but an adviser inadvertently…
Upper-tier partnership receives 120 days to make a late Section 754 election
An upper-tier partnership sought extra time to make a section 754 election after one of its partners died. The upper-tier partnership and a lower-tier partnership timely filed their returns, but an ad…
REIT group receives 90 days to make late taxable REIT subsidiary elections
A company planning to qualify as a REIT acquired interests in six health care companies that had previously been taxable REIT subsidiaries of another REIT. New joint elections on Form 8875 were requir…
Late return still makes timely election out of bonus depreciation after filing-extension error
A corporate group decided not to claim additional first-year depreciation on seven-year property placed in service during a short tax year. Its return preparer believed it had timely filed Form 7004, …
Subsidiaries receive relief for late elections out of bonus depreciation
Two subsidiaries decided not to claim additional first-year depreciation on five-year and seven-year property placed in service during a short tax year. Their corporate parent's return preparer believ…
Estate receives 120 days to allocate GST exemption after incorrect gift-splitting returns
A husband funded four trusts for his children, and the spouses elected to split their gifts equally under section 2513. Their gift tax returns mistakenly reported three-fourths of the total gift to th…
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.