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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Foreign entity received more time to elect partnership status
A foreign eligible entity intended to be classified as a partnership for federal tax purposes but did not timely file Form 8832. It represented that the failure did not result from tax avoidance or…
Foreign entity received more time to elect partnership status
A foreign eligible entity intended to be classified as a partnership for federal tax purposes but failed to timely file Form 8832. It represented that the failure was not motivated by tax avoidance…
Foreign entity received more time to elect disregarded status
A foreign eligible entity intended to be treated as disregarded from its owner for federal tax purposes but failed to timely file Form 8832. It represented that the failure did not result from tax…
Foreign entity received more time to elect disregarded status
A foreign eligible entity intended to be disregarded from its owner for federal tax purposes but failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the entity met the standards for regulatory…
Corporation denied late tax-year change after missing 90-day limit
A domestic corporation instructed its accounting firm to change its tax year, but internal miscommunications caused the firm to miss the filings needed for a timely Form 1128. The error was…
S corporation received more time for two QSub elections
An S corporation wholly owned two subsidiaries and intended to elect qualified subchapter S subsidiary status for both. Because of inadvertence, it did not timely file Form 8869 for either…
Opportunity fund received 21 more days to file Form 8996
This supplemental ruling modified an earlier private letter ruling concerning a qualified opportunity fund election. Because of events outside the taxpayer's control, the IRS granted 21 additional…
Estate received more time to elect portability of unused exclusion
An estate that was not otherwise required to file an estate tax return did not timely elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount. The IRS concluded that the estate met the…
REIT received more time to elect out of bonus depreciation
A real estate investment trust intended not to claim additional first-year depreciation for several classes of qualified property. Its return reflected no depreciation for that property, but the…
Limited partnership received more time to elect partnership status
A domestic limited partnership had previously elected corporate classification and later intended to change back to partnership status. It did not timely file Form 8832, although it and its owners…
Foreign entity received more time to elect disregarded status
A foreign entity with one shareholder intended to be disregarded from its owner for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the regulatory…
Opportunity fund received 21 more days to file Form 8996
This supplemental ruling modified an earlier private letter ruling concerning a qualified opportunity fund election. Because of events outside the taxpayer's control, the IRS granted 21 additional…
Seven foreign entities received more time to elect partnership status
Seven foreign eligible entities intended to be classified as partnerships for federal tax purposes but did not file Form 8832 for their intended effective dates. Each entity asked for an extension…
LLC received more time to elect corporate tax status
A limited liability company intended to be classified as an association taxable as a corporation but inadvertently failed to file Form 8832 on time. The IRS found that the regulatory requirements…
Foreign entity received more time to elect partnership status
A foreign eligible entity intended to be treated as a partnership for federal tax purposes but failed to file Form 8832 on time. The IRS concluded that the entity met the standards for regulatory…
Partnership received more time to self-certify as an Opportunity Fund
A partnership was formed to operate as a Qualified Opportunity Fund but missed the deadline to file its first Form 1065 and accompanying Form 8996. Its managers knew that Form 8996 was required but…
Partnership received more time to self-certify as an Opportunity Fund
A partnership formed to operate as a Qualified Opportunity Fund relied on an accounting firm to file its initial partnership return and Form 8996. The firm obtained an extension but failed to…
Estate received more time to elect portability
An estate was not otherwise required to file an estate tax return but failed to file Form 706 on time to transfer the decedent's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The IRS concluded…
REIT received 90 days to make a late taxable REIT subsidiary election
A real estate investment trust and its subsidiary asked for extra time to file a joint election treating the subsidiary as a taxable REIT subsidiary effective from the REIT's intended start date.…
Opportunity fund received 60 days to make late self-certification election
A partnership formed to invest in qualified opportunity zone property failed to timely file both its partnership return and Form 8996, which was required to self-certify as a qualified opportunity…
Foreign entity received 120 days to make a late disregarded-entity election
A foreign eligible entity failed to timely file Form 8832 to be treated as disregarded from its single owner for federal tax purposes. The IRS found that the entity satisfied the standards for…
Corporation received 45 days to file its original accounting-method change form
A corporation changed from S corporation to C corporation status and determined that it could no longer use the cash method as its overall accounting method. Its CPA prepared an automatic change to…
Foreign entity gets more time to elect partnership status
A foreign limited liability partnership that is eligible to choose how it is classified for U.S. federal tax purposes wanted to be treated as a partnership effective a specific date. To make that…
Taxpayer was denied extra time to request an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for extra time to file Form 1128 to change its annual accounting period. The request came more than 90 days after the form's due date. The IRS concluded that the taxpayer had not…
Taxpayer was denied extra time to request an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for extra time to file Form 1128 to change its annual accounting period. The request came more than 90 days after the form's due date. The IRS concluded that the taxpayer had not…
Taxpayer was denied extra time to request an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for extra time to file Form 1128 to change its annual accounting period. The request came more than 90 days after the form's due date. The IRS concluded that the taxpayer had not…
Taxpayer is denied extra time to file Form 1128 for an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for an extension to file Form 1128 and change its annual accounting period under IRC § 442. The application was due with the short-period return, but the taxpayer did not seek…
Taxpayer is denied extra time to file Form 1128 for an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for an extension to file Form 1128 and change its annual accounting period under IRC § 442. The application was due with the short-period return, but the taxpayer did not seek…
Taxpayer is denied extra time to file Form 1128 for an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for an extension to file Form 1128 and change its annual accounting period under IRC § 442. The application was due with the short-period return, but the taxpayer did not seek…
Taxpayer is denied extra time to file Form 1128 for an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for an extension to file Form 1128 and change its annual accounting period under IRC § 442. The application was due with the short-period return, but the taxpayer did not seek…
Taxpayer is denied extra time to file Form 1128 for an accounting-period change
A taxpayer asked for an extension to file Form 1128 and change its annual accounting period under IRC § 442. The application was due with the short-period return, but the taxpayer did not seek…
Spouses get 120 days to allocate GST exemption to transfers made before 2001
Two spouses created separate irrevocable trusts for their children and descendants before 2001, then made additional cash transfers to both trusts that had generation-skipping transfer tax…
Spouses get 120 days to allocate GST exemption to transfers made before 2001
Two spouses created separate irrevocable trusts for their children and descendants before 2001, then made additional cash transfers to both trusts that had generation-skipping transfer tax…
Estate gets 120 days to make a late portability election
An estate was not otherwise required to file Form 706 because the decedent's gross estate and adjusted taxable gifts were represented to be below the filing threshold. The estate nevertheless needed…
Spouse gets 120 days to opt out of automatic GST exemption allocation
A donor created and funded an irrevocable trust for the donor's children and their descendants, and the donor and spouse elected to split the gift. Their tax professional prepared their gift tax…
Donor gets 120 days to opt out of automatic GST exemption allocation
A donor created and funded an irrevocable trust for the donor's children and their descendants, and the donor and spouse elected to split the gift. Their tax professional prepared their gift tax…
Estate gets 120 days to make a late portability election
An estate was not otherwise required to file Form 706 because the decedent's gross estate and adjusted taxable gifts were represented to be below the filing threshold. The estate nevertheless needed…
REIT received 60 days to elect out of bonus depreciation
A real estate investment trust intended to elect out of additional first-year depreciation for its 5-year and 15-year property under Section 168(k)(7). Its return preparer did not claim bonus…
Corporation received 45 days to file a late tax-year change request
A domestic corporation had used an S corporation tax year until a foreign corporation acquired all of its stock, terminating the S election. The new shareholder signed Form 1128 to change the…
Opportunity fund received 60 days to file a late self-certification
A partnership was formed to qualify as a qualified opportunity fund and invest indirectly in opportunity-zone property. Its planned business acquisition was delayed into the following year, and its…
Taxpayers received 60 days to make a late qualified-stock rollover election
One spouse sold shares of a company the spouse had co-founded and invested part of the proceeds in another company within 60 days. The taxpayers intended to elect under Section 1045 to defer gain by…
Estate received 120 days to make a late portability election
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. It represented that the estate was not otherwise required to file an…
Estate received late relief to sever a marital trust for GST tax purposes
An estate intended to divide a marital trust into generation-skipping transfer tax exempt and non-exempt shares and made related entries on its timely Form 706. Its advisers failed to explain that…
Homeowners association received more time to make two Section 528 elections
A homeowners association failed to file Forms 1120-H for two tax years because its officers relied on a tax professional and did not fully understand the association's federal filing requirements. A…
Estate received 60 more days to make a QTIP election
A decedent's estate intended to claim the estate tax marital deduction for all property placed in a marital trust for the surviving spouse. The estate's lawyer claimed the deduction on a timely Form…
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.…
Two partnerships received more time to make Section 754 elections
Two partnerships failed to attach Section 754 elections to their returns for the year a common partner died. The IRS found that both partnerships satisfied the standards for regulatory-election…
Tax-exempt controlled corporation received more time to make a depreciation election
A corporation wholly owned by a Section 501(c)(3) organization was a tax-exempt controlled entity and the managing member of a partnership. The corporation intended to elect under Section…
Partnership received more time to make a Section 754 election
A partnership intended to make a Section 754 election but did not attach a valid election to its return by the deadline. The IRS found that the partnership satisfied the standards for…
Foreign entity gets more time to elect disregarded-entity status
A foreign business entity that is eligible to choose how it is classified for U.S. federal tax purposes wanted to be treated as a "disregarded entity" (that is, ignored as separate from its single…
Partnership received more time to make a Section 754 election
A partnership missed the deadline to make a Section 754 election after the death of a partner's spouse in a community property state. The IRS concluded that the partnership satisfied the standards…
Entity received more time to elect corporate tax classification
An eligible business entity intended to be treated as an association taxable as a corporation but did not timely file Form 8832. The entity represented that it acted reasonably and in good faith and…
Estate received 120 days to make a late portability election
An estate that was not otherwise required to file an estate tax return missed the deadline for electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The estate asked for an…
Estate received 120 days to elect portability
An estate that was not otherwise required to file Form 706 failed to make a timely portability election for the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The estate requested discretionary relief…
Foreign entity received 120 days for late disregarded-entity election
A foreign eligible entity intended to elect treatment as an entity disregarded from its owner but did not timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the entity satisfied the standards for…
Company received 120 days for late foreign disregarded-entity election
A foreign eligible entity intended to be treated as disregarded from its sole owner but inadvertently missed the deadline for filing Form 8832. The entity represented that it acted reasonably and in…
Foreign company received 120 days to file Form 8832
A foreign company intended to elect disregarded-entity treatment from a specified date but failed to file Form 8832 on time. It represented that it acted reasonably and in good faith and that…
Amended Form 8996 was treated as a timely QOF election
A partnership formed to invest in qualified opportunity zone property timely filed Form 1065 but omitted Form 8996. Neither the partnership representative nor the experienced CPA who prepared the…
Housing project received 120 days to make omitted average-income elections
The owner of a multi-building low-income housing project intended to elect the average-income minimum set-aside under Section 42(g)(1)(C). Contemporaneous records showed that intent, but the owner…
Partnership received 120 days to make late Section 754 election
A limited partnership failed to file a Section 754 election for the tax year in which a partner died while owning an interest through a grantor trust. The partnership represented that it had relied…
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.