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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9100 extension to make a late IC-DISC election (Form 4876-A) under § 992
A newly formed corporation wanted to be treated as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation (IC-DISC), a special export-tax structure, for its first tax year. To elect that status, …
IRS rules a foreign bank's trading records count toward its U.S. booked liabilities for interest allocation
A foreign bank, organized and regulated in another country, runs part of its lending and trading business through a U.S. permanent establishment operated from representative offices. Income from that …
Foreign government institution's accident insurance, rehab clinics, and safety guidance are governmental functions, not commercial activities under section 892
A foreign government's controlled entity, a non-profit public-law institution, asked the IRS whether three of its activities would cause it to be treated as engaged in commercial activities under sect…
Extra time granted for a foreign insurer's lost 953(d) election to be taxed as a U.S. corporation
A regulated insurance company organized in a foreign country, but wholly owned inside a U.S. corporate group, wanted to be treated as a domestic corporation for U.S. tax purposes by making an election…
Consent granted for a foreign insurance company to revoke its Section 953(d) "domestic corporation" election
A foreign-incorporated insurance company had elected under Section 953(d) to be treated as a domestic (U.S.) corporation for tax purposes. That election lets certain foreign insurers be taxed like U.S…
120 days granted for a late section 865(h)(2) election to treat foreign-corporation stock-sale gain as foreign-source income under a treaty
When a U.S. resident sells stock, the gain is normally treated as U.S.-source income. But § 865(h) lets a taxpayer elect to treat gain from selling stock in a foreign corporation as foreign-source inc…
IRS grants more time to elect treaty sourcing for gain on foreign stock
A U.S. consolidated group sold stock in a foreign corporation and paid tax to the foreign country on the gain. The group reported the gain as U.S.-source income after its original return preparer did …
IRS grants a foreign insurer extra time to make a late § 953(d) election to be treated as a domestic corporation
A foreign regulated insurance company was bought by a U.S. corporate group. Under section 953(d), certain foreign insurance companies can elect to be treated as domestic (U.S.) corporations for tax pu…
Tax treaty exempts a foreign corporation's branch profits tax on the dividend equivalent amount from its U.S. LLCs
When a foreign corporation runs a U.S. branch, the U.S. charges a "branch profits tax" (Section 884) on top of the regular corporate income tax. The idea is to mimic the tax that would apply if a U.S.…
60-day extension to make a late GILTI high-tax exclusion election for a group of controlled foreign corporations
A U.S. corporation that heads a consolidated group owns a group of controlled foreign corporations (CFCs). Under the GILTI rules of section 951A, a U.S. shareholder must include a CFC's income in its …
90-day extension to file a corrected IC-DISC election (Form 4876-A)
A company set up a new corporation to serve as an interest-charge domestic international sales corporation (an IC-DISC), a type of entity that provides a tax benefit for U.S. exporters. To get IC-DISC…
Taxpayer may reelect the foreign earned income exclusion early
A U.S. citizen working abroad had elected the foreign earned income exclusion and later revoked it. The taxpayer then moved to another foreign country with a different tax rate and began working for a…
Foreign hedge fund's repo trading avoids U.S. business status but some lending fees require withholding
A foreign partnership hedge fund executed thousands of repo and reverse-repo transactions in government and corporate debt through an investment manager. Chief Counsel concluded that the fund was not …
Repo trading avoids U.S. business status and Notice 2025-63 prevents lending-fee withholding adjustment
This Chief Counsel Advice replaces an earlier memorandum about a foreign partnership hedge fund's repo and reverse-repo transactions. Chief Counsel again concluded that the fund was not a securities d…
Corporate group received 120 days to make late GILTI high-tax exclusion election
A U.S. corporate group intended to elect the high-tax exclusion when calculating global intangible low-taxed income for its controlled foreign corporations. Its timely return consistently computed GIL…
Puerto Rico property-sale sourcing rule applies at partner level
Chief Counsel considered how to source a Puerto Rico resident partner's share of gain when a partnership sells personal property. Section 865(i)(5) generally applies the personal-property sourcing rul…
Corporation received 90 days to make late IC-DISC election
A corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A and emailed it to the taxpayer, but an oversight left the f…
Foreign loan vehicle's participation income is not effectively connected income
An international development organization planned to create a foreign corporation that would buy participations in its loans and finance those assets by issuing rated notes and subordinated interests.…
Corporation received 30 days to file branch-tax election statement
A foreign parent conducted a U.S. trade or business through disregarded entities. When the lowest-tier U.S. LLC elected corporate status, its assets were treated as contributed to a new corporation un…
Corporation received 120 days to make a late GILTI high-tax election
A domestic corporation intended to make the GILTI high-tax exclusion election for a group of 29 controlled foreign corporations. Its timely return reported zero GILTI consistently with that intent, bu…
Dual citizen satisfied expatriation exception citizenship requirement
A taxpayer acquired both U.S. citizenship and citizenship in another country at birth, returned to that country shortly after birth, and lived there except during graduate studies. The taxpayer used t…
Corporation receives extra time for a foreign tax redetermination election
A domestic corporation had five foreign tax redeterminations involving two wholly owned foreign subsidiaries. It chose an election under Treas. Reg. § 1.905-5(e)(1) that would account for those change…
Corporation receives 90 days to file a missing IC-DISC election
A corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, or IC-DISC, for exports of machine components made by its parent. Its accounting firm prepared Form …
Corporation received 90 more days to file a signed IC-DISC election
A newly formed corporation intended from the outset to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its law firm filed Form 4876-A within the applicable election period, and…
Foreign insurer received 60 more days to elect domestic-corporation treatment
A foreign insurance company and its U.S. corporate parents consistently treated the insurer as though it had made an IRC § 953(d) election to be taxed as a domestic corporation and included it in thei…
Exporter gets more time to elect IC-DISC status after filing the election three days late
An interest-charge domestic international sales corporation (IC-DISC) is a special export-incentive entity that lets a related U.S. business defer some tax on export income. To be one, a corporation m…
9100 relief for late GILTI high-tax exclusion elections triggered by a treaty MAP adjustment
A US corporation owned a group of controlled foreign corporations (CFCs). US owners of CFCs generally must pay tax each year on "GILTI," a category of their foreign subsidiaries' income, but they can …
A foreign subsidiary's activities are not attributed to its U.S. parent for sourcing services income, because the subsidiary is not the parent's agent
This is Chief Counsel Advice to an Appeals officer about where a company's services income comes from, which matters for the foreign tax credit limitation under Section 904. Services income is general…
9100 relief to make late GILTI high-tax-exclusion elections for a CFC group across three years
This letter gives a corporate group more time to make a tax election tied to the GILTI rules for foreign subsidiaries. GILTI (global intangible low-taxed income) requires U.S. shareholders of controll…
Section 269 and the anti-abuse rule of Temp. Reg. § 1.245A-5T reach a check-the-box GILTI-avoidance transaction
This Chief Counsel Advice tells IRS examiners how to attack a structure a U.S. multinational used to keep eleven months of a foreign subsidiary's income out of the U.S. minimum-tax base on foreign ear…
IRS revoked a 2009 real-property-interest ruling without retroactive effect
The IRS revoked Private Letter Ruling 200923001, issued to the same taxpayer in 2009. It stated that the earlier ruling and its related discussion had been reconsidered and no longer reflected the IRS…
Acquisition currency option received special hedge integration treatment
A U.S.-dollar subsidiary bought a foreign-currency option to hedge the anticipated cost of acquiring a foreign target's shares. Ordinary integration rules did not apply because the public offer was no…
"Dealer in commodities" for the section 965 transition tax means the ordinary dictionary sense, a buyer-reseller who does not convert the commodity
A field attorney in Large Business & International asked Chief Counsel to pin down what "dealer in commodities" means for the section 965 transition tax. The 2017 transition tax taxed U.S. shareholder…
Late IC-DISC election allowed after law firm oversight
A domestic corporation was formed to serve as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation for its owner. Its chief financial officer signed Form 4876-A and sent it to the law firm hand…
Late branch profits tax election allowed
A foreign corporation reported that an increase in its U.S. net equity fully offset effectively connected earnings and profits for branch profits tax purposes. It later determined that the reported ne…
90-day extension to file a late IC-DISC election after the IRS had no record of the original
An interest-charge domestic international sales corporation (IC-DISC) is a special entity that can give U.S. exporters a tax benefit, but a company has to elect that status by filing Form 4876-A withi…
Foreign micro-captive payments may face FDAP tax adjustment
Chief Counsel addressed abusive micro-captive arrangements involving a foreign entity that had elected domestic treatment under Section 953(d). If the arrangement was not insurance, the captive was no…
Foreign corporation received more time to file its branch profits tax waiver
A foreign corporation sold its only U.S. real property and intended to completely terminate its U.S. trade or business. Its tax preparer initially believed that expected tax refunds remained U.S. asse…
Corporation received 90 days to perfect its IC-DISC election
A corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation. Its sole owner believed a prepared Form 4876-A had been properly executed and filed, but the IRS lat…
Taxpayer could reelect the foreign earned income exclusion after moving countries
A U.S. citizen had elected the foreign earned income exclusion while living in one country, then effectively revoked it by claiming a foreign tax credit. Before the usual six-year waiting period ended…
Federal and territorial returns do not violate the SCRA single-jurisdiction rule
Chief Counsel considered whether requiring a servicemember to file both a federal return and a Puerto Rico return would conflict with the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. The email concluded that the …
Late GILTI high-tax exclusion election allowed
A domestic parent and its consolidated group intended to make a retroactive GILTI high-tax exclusion election for their controlled foreign corporation group. The tax department and its accounting firm…
IC-DISC received 90 days to file its late election
A newly formed domestic corporation intended to elect interest charge domestic international sales corporation status for its first tax year. Its tax consultant prepared Form 4876-A and delivered it t…
Extension granted to complete IC-DISC election
A newly formed domestic corporation intended to elect interest charge domestic international sales corporation status for its first tax year. Its president timely filed Form 4876-A but signed only as …
Extension granted to correct missing IC-DISC shareholder signature
A domestic corporation timely filed Form 4876-A to elect IC-DISC treatment but omitted one shareholder's consent signature. The corporation believed the election was effective and consistently filed I…
Alternative wording offered for sourcing inventory sales
Chief Counsel reviewed proposed Form 5074 instructions concerning the source of gain from personal property and inventory sales. The existing language was considered defensible, but the advice offered…
Territory form example should address non-bona-fide residents
Chief Counsel commented on the personal-property instructions for Forms 8689 and 5074. The existing example described source rules for a bona fide resident of a U.S. territory, but such a resident gen…
Territory inventory sales may require source allocation
Chief Counsel read section 863(b)(2)'s production sourcing rule as applying when the taxpayer selling inventory also produced it. A taxpayer that merely purchased the property may fall under the gener…
Foreign pension and charity funds receive treaty and real-property tax exemptions
A foreign insurance and investment-management company proposed new segregated funds for tax-exempt pension plans and charitable organizations resident in a treaty country. Under local law, each fund w…
Fund's seven late first-year elections were treated as timely
A newly formed investment fund intended to make seven elections on its first regulated investment company return. The elections covered RIC status, deferral of late-year losses, post-year distribution…
Substitute interest qualified for a RIC's interest-related dividends
A sponsor asked whether substitute interest received by its exchange-traded regulated investment companies in securities lending and sale-repurchase transactions would count as qualified interest inco…
IRS grants extra time for a U.S. parent to make a late GILTI high-tax exclusion election for its foreign subsidiaries
A U.S. parent company must include in its income the "global intangible low-taxed income" (GILTI) earned by its controlled foreign corporations (CFCs). A regulation lets the parent exclude income that…
IRS lets a taxpayer reelect the § 911 foreign earned income exclusion early after a change of employers
A U.S. citizen living and working abroad had used the section 911 foreign earned income exclusion, which lets qualifying Americans overseas leave a chunk of their foreign wages off their U.S. tax retu…
After intangible-owning entities are brought back into the U.S. consolidated group, the § 367(d) "deemed royalty" payments are redetermined as excluded from income
A U.S. parent company heads a consolidated group. In earlier restructurings, the group had moved certain intangible property (patents, trademarks, know-how, and similar assets) offshore in tax-free co…
IRS grants 90 more days to file a late IC-DISC election that was never recorded
A company was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation (IC-DISC), a special export-incentive entity that earns commissions on a related business's export sales …
IRS grants 90 more days to make a late IC-DISC election after a defective Form 4876-A
A company was set up to be an interest charge domestic international sales corporation (IC-DISC), a special export-incentive entity that earns commissions on a related company's exports and gives its …
Partnership received 120 days to make a late GILTI high-tax exclusion election
A partnership that owned a controlled foreign corporation wanted to make the GILTI high-tax exclusion election for an earlier tax year. Its accounting firm prepared an administrative adjustment reques…
Corporation receives 90 days to perfect its IC-DISC election
A corporation formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation mailed Form 4876-A within the first tax year's 90-day election period. Its tax professional did not advis…
Corporation receives 90 days to make late IC-DISC election
A corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation and attempted to file Form 4876-A for its first tax year. The filing was outside the normal 90-day wi…
Corporate group receives 120 days for late GILTI high-tax election
A U.S. corporate group wanted to make the GILTI high-tax exclusion election for income of its wholly owned controlled foreign corporation. Its accounting firm recognized the benefit before the 24-mont…
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.