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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Foundation set-aside approved for an education building
A private foundation asked to treat funds reserved for constructing a multi-purpose education building as a qualifying distribution under IRC § 4942(g)(2). The building will consolidate and expand an …
Educational prototype contest grant procedures approved
A private foundation sought advance approval under IRC § 4945(g)(3) for grants awarded through an educational prototype-design competition. Teams will build a prototype and develop a related fundraisi…
College scholarship procedures approved
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a scholarship program for undergraduate and graduate students at accredited United States colleges and universities. Recipients will be selected using aca…
Individual artist grant procedures approved
A private foundation requested advance approval for grants supporting individual working artists across visual, performing, literary, media, and interdisciplinary fields. Applicants must show a sustai…
IRS approves a foundation's scholarship procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve its procedures for a scholarship program serving graduating seniors from a particular school. Eligible students must meet a grade-point threshold, partici…
IRS approves an employer-related scholarship program
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a scholarship program for dependents of employees of a related employer. The program will make non-renewable awards to graduating high school seniors purs…
IRS approves two children's mental health research fellowship programs
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve two fellowship programs for children's mental health research. One program supports researchers studying the causes, prevention, and treatment of ADHD and…
IRS approves student travel and hardship fellowships
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a fellowship program for students who show promise but lack the resources to pursue educational and career opportunities. Awards may cover travel for stud…
IRS approves consolidation of related private foundations
A private foundation organized as a charitable trust proposed to transfer all its assets to a related private foundation organized as a nonprofit corporation. The foundations were controlled by the sa…
IRS pre-approves a foundation's three scholarship programs
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it will award scholarships under three separate programs. This step matters because grants a private foundation makes to individuals for …
IRS pre-approves a foundation's competitive educational-fellowship grants
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, the procedures for its educational grant program, which funds highly selective fellowships and seminars for undergraduates, recent graduates,…
Advance approval of a private foundation's civil-engineering scholarship procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it selects scholarship winners. This step matters because IRC Section 4945 hits a private foundation with an excise tax on "taxable expenditures,"…
Advance approval of a private foundation's fellowship-residency grant procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it runs an educational grant program under IRC Section 4945(g)(3). Under Section 4945, a private foundation's grants to individuals for study or s…
Advance approval of a need-and-merit scholarship program's procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it selects scholarship winners under IRC Section 4945(g)(1). This matters because a private foundation's grants to individuals for study are "taxa…
Advance approval of grant procedures for an emerging-sports-photographers program
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it awards grants to emerging sports photographers under IRC Section 4945(g)(3). Under Section 4945, a foundation's grants to individuals for study…
Advance approval of a heritage-based scholarship program's procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it selects scholarship winners under IRC Section 4945(g)(1). Under Section 4945, a foundation's grants to individuals for study are "taxable expen…
IRS pre-approves a science foundation's individual travel-grant procedures under § 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation that supports researchers in the earth and planetary sciences asked the IRS to pre-approve the procedures it uses to award travel grants to individual scientists. Under IRC § 4945…
IRS pre-approves a foundation's scholarship-award procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve the procedures for its scholarship program before making any awards. Under IRC § 4945, scholarship grants a private foundation makes to individuals ar…
IRS approves a foundation's five-year set-aside to acquire art under § 4942(g)(2)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a "set-aside" of funds under IRC § 4942(g)(2). Private foundations must pay out a minimum amount each year, and those payouts are called qualifying distri…
IRS lets a private foundation recompute § 4942 distribution carryovers from a below-market charitable lease, reaching a closed year
A private foundation bought rural land and leased it to a public charity (X) for a nominal rent, giving X the right to buy the land at a deep discount. That kind of below-market charitable lease shoul…
IRS approves a foundation's scholarship procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, the way it selects and awards scholarships. Private foundations normally owe an excise tax under IRC § 4945 on grants to individuals for stud…
IRS approves an expanded foundation scholarship program under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation that already had IRS approval for a scholarship program wanted to expand who can apply and to change how the program is run. Because private foundations owe an excise tax under IR…
IRS approves a foundation's STEM educational-grant procedures under § 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it awards educational grants tied to a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) program. Private foundations owe an excis…
IRS approves a foundation's scholarship procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it selects and awards scholarships. Private foundations owe an excise tax under IRC § 4945 on grants to individuals for study unless the …
IRS approves a foundation's multi-year fellowship for bereaved students under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it awards a multi-year college fellowship. Private foundations owe an excise tax under IRC § 4945 on grants to individuals for study unle…
IRS approves a foundation's school-district scholarship and teacher-grant procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it selects and awards two education programs tied to one school district. Private foundations normally owe an excise tax under IRC § 4945…
IRS approves a foundation's scholarship procedures for employees' children under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it selects and awards scholarships. Private foundations normally owe an excise tax under IRC § 4945 on grants to individuals for study, b…
IRS approves a foundation's environmental-fellowship grant procedures under § 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it selects and awards grants. Private foundations normally owe an excise tax under IRC § 4945 on grants to individuals for study or simil…
IRS rules stock sales tied to a family foundation are not self-dealing until the trustee irrevocably names the foundation
A family controls a closely held corporation and also funds a private foundation. Each family member has a revocable trust that, at death, could direct company stock to the foundation, but only if the…
IRS rules stock sales tied to a family foundation are not self-dealing until the trustee irrevocably names the foundation
A family controls a closely held corporation and also funds a private foundation. Each family member has a revocable trust that, at death, could direct company stock to the foundation, but only if the…
IRS rules stock sales tied to a family foundation are not self-dealing until the trustee irrevocably names the foundation
A family controls a closely held corporation and also funds a private foundation. Each family member has a revocable trust that, at death, could direct company stock to the foundation, but only if the…
IRS rules stock sales tied to a family foundation are not self-dealing until the trustee irrevocably names the foundation
A family controls a closely held corporation and also funds a private foundation. Each family member has a revocable trust that, at death, could direct company stock to the foundation, but only if the…
IRS rules stock sales tied to a family foundation are not self-dealing until the trustee irrevocably names the foundation
A family controls a closely held corporation and also funds a private foundation. Each family member has a revocable trust that, at death, could direct company stock to the foundation, but only if the…
IRS grants advance approval of a private foundation's scholarship-award procedures under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve the procedures it uses to award scholarships to individual students, which IRC § 4945(g)(1) requires. Without advance approval, grants a private found…
Advance approval of a foundation's healthcare-scholarship procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, the procedures it uses to award scholarships. This approval matters because private foundations owe an excise tax on "taxable expenditures," …
Set-aside approved for a matching grant to restore a historic property
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a "set-aside" under IRC § 4942(g)(2). Private foundations must pay out a minimum amount each year, but a set-aside lets a foundation earmark money now for…
Advance approval of a foundation's scholarship procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
Private foundations owe an excise tax on "taxable expenditures," and a grant to an individual for study or travel is a taxable expenditure unless the IRS approves the foundation's grant-making procedu…
Advance approval of a foundation's educational grant procedures for women's health research under § 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation must get IRS advance approval of the way it awards grants to individuals, or the grants can trigger an excise tax as "taxable expenditures." Here a foundation asked the IRS to pre…
Approval of a private foundation's § 4942(g)(2) set-aside to fund restoration of a historic property
Private foundations must pay out a minimum amount each year for charitable purposes. Instead of paying immediately, a foundation can "set aside" money for a specific project and still have it count to…
Advance approval of a foundation's scholarship procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it will pick students for scholarships. Private foundations normally owe an excise tax when they give grants to individuals for study, unless the …
Advance approval of a memorial scholarship's procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation set up a memorial scholarship honoring a specific person and asked the IRS to approve in advance how it will pick recipients. Private foundations owe an excise tax on grants to in…
Advance approval of need-based supplemental educational grant procedures under § 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation that already runs a tuition scholarship program asked the IRS to pre-approve a new grant program that gives its scholarship recipients supplemental, need-based help so they can ac…
Advance approval of a foundation's educational grant (student-debt) procedures under 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation runs a program that pays down the student-loan debt of optometrists who work in underserved areas, provide free care, and treat many Medicaid patients. Private foundations normall…
Advance approval of a foundation's paid engineering-internship grant procedures under 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation runs a paid summer internship program for engineering students, placing them with small construction and engineering firms for on-the- job training. Because private foundations ow…
Advance approval of an employer-related scholarship program under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation runs a scholarship program for the employees of a related company and their dependents, and it asked the IRS to bless its selection procedures in advance. The IRS approved them. T…
Advance approval of a foundation's scholarship (4945(g)(1)) and educational-grant (4945(g)(3)) procedures
A private foundation runs two award programs and asked the IRS to approve both in advance. The first is a scholarship program for students at accredited colleges and universities, approved under IRC §…
Advance approval of a foundation's undergraduate scholarship procedures under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation runs a named scholarship program for undergraduates pursuing a degree in a particular field of study, and it asked the IRS to approve its award procedures in advance. The IRS appr…
Advance approval of a foundation's scholarship procedures for graduates of a specific school (4945(g)(1))
A private foundation runs a scholarship program for high school students and graduates of a particular school within a specific school district, to help them pursue post-secondary education. It asked …
Advance approval of grant procedures funding teachers' advanced degrees (4945(g)(1) and (g)(3))
A private foundation runs a grant program that helps teachers at religious day schools in a particular region pursue advanced degrees and certificates. It asked the IRS to approve its award procedures…
Advance approval of a private foundation's two county scholarship programs under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve the way it picks scholarship winners. Foundations need this sign-off because IRC § 4945 taxes "taxable expenditures," and a grant to an individual for…
Advance approval of an employer-related scholarship program under 4945(g)(1) using the facts-and-circumstances test
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve a scholarship program for the children of a particular company's employees. These "employer-related" scholarships get extra scrutiny because they can …
Advance approval of a private foundation's scholarship program for young women under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it selects scholarship winners. Foundations need this approval because IRC § 4945 taxes "taxable expenditures," and a grant to an individual for s…
Advance approval of a private foundation's scholarship program for members of an affiliated entity under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it selects scholarship winners. Foundations need this approval because IRC § 4945 taxes "taxable expenditures," and a grant to an individual for s…
Advance approval of a foundation's scholarship procedures under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, the procedures it will use to award scholarships. That approval matters because Section 4945 taxes a private foundation's "taxable expenditur…
Advance approval of a foundation's scholarship and cultural-grant procedures under 4945(g)
A private foundation tied to a Native shareholder community asked the IRS to pre-approve how it hands out scholarships and cultural grants. Private foundations owe an excise tax on "taxable expenditur…
Advance approval of a foundation's field-specific county scholarship procedures under 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve how it awards a scholarship for students pursuing a degree in a particular field who live in or graduated from two specified counties. Private foundat…
IRS pre-approves a foundation's statewide academic scholarship procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, the procedures for an academic scholarship program for students in a single state. Under IRC Section 4945, a private foundation's grants to i…
IRS pre-approves a company foundation's employer-related scholarship programs for employees' children and local residents
A company-affiliated private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, two scholarship programs: one for the children of the company's employees, and one for residents of certain counties in th…
IRS pre-approves a foundation's travel and workshop grants for educators in an invention-education network
A private foundation runs a program that supports a network of educators, nonprofit leaders, and researchers working in a specialized field of education. It asked the IRS to approve, in advance, the p…
Early termination of a charitable lead annuity trust, paying the undiscounted remaining annuities to a donor-advised fund, triggers no foundation excise taxes
A charitable lead annuity trust (CLAT) pays a fixed amount to charity each year for a set term, and whatever is left at the end goes to a private beneficiary. This CLAT pays its annuity to a donor-adv…
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.