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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Estate receives 120 days to make late portability election
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The surviving spouse, acting as personal representative,…
Estate receives 120 days to make late portability election
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the decedent's gross estate was…
Estate receives extension to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion. The decedent's gross estate, including lifetime taxable gifts, was…
Late portability election treated as timely
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold missed the deadline to elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate later filed Form 706 and…
Estate receives 120 days for portability election
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold failed to file Form 706 by the deadline for electing portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount. Because the estate was not otherwise…
Unneeded QTIP election voided, but spouse becomes GST transferor
An estate made a QTIP election for a marital trust even though the spouse already held a qualifying lifetime income interest and a testamentary general power of appointment. Because the election was…
Estate receives extra time to elect portability for a surviving spouse
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the decedent's gross…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability for a surviving spouse
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the decedent's gross…
Estate receives 120 days to make a late portability election
An estate failed to file Form 706 by the deadline for electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The estate represented that the decedent's gross estate, including…
Estate gets 120 days to file a late portability election
An estate missed the Form 706 deadline for electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. It represented that the decedent's gross estate, after considering taxable gifts,…
Estate receives 120 days after missing the portability requirement
An estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. It represented that the decedent's estate, after taxable gifts,…
Estate receives late portability relief after overlooking the election
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and preserve the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. It represented that the estate, including taxable gifts, was below…
Retained trust powers leave the transfer incomplete without taxing committee members
A grantor created an irrevocable trust for the grantor and other beneficiaries, with distributions controlled through retained powers and a beneficiary distribution committee. The IRS concluded that…
Retained trust powers keep the transfer incomplete without taxing committee members
A grantor created an irrevocable trust for the grantor and other beneficiaries, with distributions controlled through retained powers and a beneficiary distribution committee. The IRS concluded that…
Retained trust powers keep the transfer incomplete without taxing committee members
A grantor created an irrevocable trust for the grantor and other beneficiaries, with distributions controlled through retained powers and a beneficiary distribution committee. The IRS concluded that…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused estate and gift tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The personal representative stated that the…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the decedent's gross…
Estate receives portability election relief
An estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the gross estate and taxable gifts…
Trust transfers remain incomplete gifts and committee powers avoid estate inclusion
A grantor created an irrevocable trust with distribution powers shared among the grantor, a beneficiary committee, and a corporate trustee. The IRS concluded that the grantor's retained consent,…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
A decedent's estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spousal unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The co-trustees represented that the gross estate,…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
A decedent's estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spousal unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that its gross value, including…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
A decedent's estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spousal unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that its gross value, including…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
A surviving spouse serving as executor did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount. The spouse represented that the estate was below the section 6018…
Late estate tax return is treated as timely for portability
A decedent's estate relied on a law firm that filed Form 706 after the deadline for electing portability of the deceased spousal unused exclusion amount. The estate represented that its gross value,…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
A decedent's estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spousal unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that its gross value was below…
Estate receives more time to elect portability of unused exclusion
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused estate and gift tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The executor represented that the gross estate…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that its gross value,…
Estate receives 120 days to make portability election
An estate failed to file a timely Form 706 electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion. The surviving spouse, acting as executor, represented that the estate's value…
Estate receives 120 days for QTIP and GST elections
A decedent's will divided the residuary estate between GST-exempt and GST-nonexempt marital trusts for the surviving spouse. The return preparer mistakenly reported the combined value as passing…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
A surviving spouse relied on a qualified tax professional to file the estate tax return needed to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount, but the return was not filed on…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline and later discovered that it had missed the election allowing the surviving spouse to use the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The executor…
Estate receives late portability election relief
A decedent's estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the gross estate,…
Estate receives late portability election relief
A decedent's estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The personal representative stated that the gross…
Estate receives 120-day extension to elect portability
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The decedent's gross estate, including lifetime taxable gifts,…
Estate receives 120-day portability-election extension
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The estate was represented to be below the basic exclusion amount after accounting for…
Estate receives 120-day portability-election extension
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The decedent's gross estate, including lifetime taxable gifts, was represented to be…
Trust executor receives 120-day portability-election extension
A decedent's assets were held in a revocable trust, and the successor trustee served as executor under section 2203. The estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent's…
Estate receives 120-day portability-election extension
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The decedent's gross estate, including lifetime taxable gifts, was represented to be…
Estate receives portability relief after temporary procedure expired
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability and did not discover the omission until after December 31, 2014, the extended deadline provided by Revenue Procedure 2014-18. The…
Estate receives 120-day portability-election extension
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The decedent's gross estate, including lifetime taxable gifts, was represented to be…
Surviving-spouse executor receives portability-election extension
A surviving spouse serving as executor failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount. The executor represented that the estate was below the basic…
Division into three family trusts preserves tax attributes
An irrevocable trust for three daughters and their descendants had a zero generation-skipping transfer tax inclusion ratio. A state court conditionally approved dividing it into three equal trusts,…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The executor represented that the gross estate and…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The executor represented that the gross estate and…
Unnecessary QTIP election is treated as null and void
An estate made a qualified terminable interest property election for a trust that was intended to use the decedent's unified credit. The election was unnecessary because the estate tax would have…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The executor represented that the gross estate was…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to transfer the decedent’s unused estate tax exclusion to the surviving spouse. The spouse had reasonably relied on a qualified tax professional who failed…
Estate receives more time to elect portability of unused exclusion
An estate below the federal estate-tax filing threshold missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. Because the…
Estate receives 120-day extension to elect portability
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold missed the deadline to elect portability of the decedent's unused estate and gift tax exclusion to the surviving spouse. The estate discovered the…
Estate receives extension to elect portability
An estate below the estate tax filing threshold missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. Because the election deadline for an…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate that was not otherwise required to file an estate tax return missed the deadline to elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. Because the estate…
Estate gets 120 days to elect portability of unused exclusion
A decedent's estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the deceased spousal unused exclusion amount. The surviving spouse, acting as executor, represented that the estate…
Extension granted for estate portability election
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent’s unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. Because the estate represented…
Trust reformations respected for gift and estate tax
A married couple created an irrevocable trust for their children, but several provisions mistakenly retained amendment, distribution, and reversionary powers inconsistent with their intent to make…
Estate receives portability-election extension
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the deceased spouse’s unused exclusion amount. The surviving spouse, acting as executor,…
Portability-election extension granted despite taxable gifts
An estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent’s unused exclusion amount. The surviving spouse, acting as personal representative, disclosed that the decedent had made…
Late estate-tax portability election granted
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The executor represented that the gross estate,…
Late estate-tax portability election is treated as timely
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold failed to file Form 706 on time to transfer the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The surviving spouse later filed…
Estate receives 120 days to make portability election
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. Because that estate was not otherwise…
QTIP trust severance and spouse's renunciations receive favorable rulings
A court divided a marital QTIP trust into two separate trusts, and the surviving spouse planned to renounce all interests in one divided trust and a related disclaimer trust. The IRS ruled that the…
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.