Ezel / IRS Rulings / 201027051

CCA 201027051: State law does not control federal worker classification

Number
201027051
Outcome
Advice
Document type
Chief Counsel Advice
IRS subject
Common Law Tests
Topics
Employment taxes
Code sections
§ 3121
Ruling dated
June 7, 2010
Publicly released
July 9, 2010
Source
View Official PDF

Apply this to your situation

This page covers legal advice the IRS Office of Chief Counsel wrote for IRS staff, issued in 2010, which can't be cited as precedent. Ask about your situation and see what the current Code and IRS guidance say, with citations.

Currency note: this determination was released in 2010
Statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later IRS guidance may have changed the analysis since then. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, threshold, or position mentioned here.
Not precedent. Under 26 U.S.C. § 6110(k)(3), this written determination may not be used or cited as precedent. It is advice from the IRS Office of Chief Counsel to IRS personnel on the facts they presented, and identifying details were redacted by the IRS before release. The official IRS release (linked on this page as a PDF) is the authoritative source.
About this page: The plain-English summary and ruling snapshot below were written by Ezel based on the official IRS release. The full text is the IRS's own document.
View official IRS release (PDF)

Plain-English summary

Chief Counsel Advice states that state law does not dictate whether workers are employees for federal employment tax purposes. The type of entity and the way it conducts its business remain relevant facts, and state-law provisions may help illuminate those facts. The advice does not decide a specific worker-classification case.

Ruling snapshot

  • Question: Does state law determine whether workers are employees for federal employment tax purposes?
  • Outcome: advice given
  • Key authorities: IRC § 3121

Full text (IRS public release)

ID: CCA_2010060716083241 Number: 201027051
Release Date: 7/9/2010
Office: -----------------------------
UILC: 3121.04-01

From: ---------------
Sent: Monday, June 07, 2010 4:08:34 PM
To: -----------------------------
Cc: ---------------------------------------
Subject: RE: question

-------- --My answer is that state law does not dictate application of federal employment taxes. While it is relevant to look at the type of entity involved and how they conduct their business (and state law provisions may shed some light on those facts), the state laws do not dictate whether the workers are employees or not. If you want to discuss a specific case please let me know.

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