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 note restructuring avoids foundation self-dealing
A private foundation was due to inherit a note owed by an irrevocable trust whose beneficiaries were the decedent’s family members. Directly holding the note would create self-dealing because the…
Local college scholarship procedures receive advance approval
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a scholarship program for long-time residents of a city and nearby communities attending one of 20 local undergraduate institutions. An independent…
Bundled channel receipts are not film DPGR and license fees are not overhead
A multichannel video distributor claimed the former IRC § 199 domestic production deduction for subscription packages containing licensed and limited self-produced programming. Chief Counsel…
S corporation AAA resets to zero after the post-termination period
A corporation had an S period, revoked its election, left some accumulated adjustments account balance undistributed after the post-termination transition period, and later elected S status again.…
Back-to-back CFC loans are treated as indirectly held U.S. property
Two upper-tier controlled foreign corporations funded lower-tier CFCs that promptly loaned substantially the same amounts to their U.S. parent. Routing the loans through entities with less earnings…
Retroactive REIT election fails the section 351 control test
A failed financial institution formed a single-member LLC, transferred securities to it, and later sold the LLC as part of an asset acquisition. The LLC subsequently made a retroactive election to…
Pre-2005 litigation damages do not reduce production income
A consolidated group paid court-ordered damages in post-2004 tax years for lawsuits arising from product sales made before IRC § 199 took effect. The group sought to exclude those deductions from…
Late partnership election allowed only from a later date
A foreign eligible entity was treated by default as an association after several individuals acquired it, including a U.S. tax resident. The entity missed the deadline to file Form 8832 to elect…
Late disregarded-entity election allowed only from a later date
A foreign eligible entity was wholly owned through another entity after several individuals acquired the parent, including a U.S. tax resident. The subsidiary was treated by default as an…
Late partnership election allowed only from a later date
A foreign eligible entity was indirectly owned through another entity after several individuals acquired the parent, including a U.S. tax resident. The entity was treated by default as an…
Late disregarded-entity election allowed from a later date
A foreign eligible entity with one owner was treated by default as an association taxable as a corporation. It inadvertently failed to file Form 8832 on time and asked to elect disregarded-entity…
REIT purging distributions receive section 301 treatment
A public corporation planned to elect real estate investment trust status and distribute its accumulated C corporation earnings and profits. Shareholders could choose cash or stock, but total cash…
Foreign entity receives 120 days for late partnership election
A foreign eligible entity failed to file Form 8832 on time to elect partnership classification from a redacted effective date. The IRS concluded that the entity met the standards for discretionary…
Limited testamentary power does not cause estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust property only among the settlor’s issue. The power could not be exercised for the beneficiary, the beneficiary’s creditors, the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Limited testamentary power avoids estate inclusion
A trust beneficiary held a testamentary power to appoint the trust principal and undistributed income only among the settlor's issue. The beneficiary could not appoint the property to the…
Adviser error qualifies for a late IRA rollover waiver
A surviving spouse inherited an IRA that held an annuity and asked a financial adviser to move the proceeds into her own IRA. The adviser mistakenly caused the proceeds to be placed in a non-IRA…
Surviving spouse may roll an estate-paid IRA into her own IRA
A deceased IRA owner had named a beneficiary who died before him, causing the IRA to become payable to his estate. His surviving spouse was both the estate's sole beneficiary and its personal…
Mental incapacity supports a late IRA rollover waiver
A taxpayer withdrew funds from a SEP-IRA to purchase real estate but did not restore the money within the normal 60-day rollover period. Medical and court documentation showed that a mental illness…
Bank deposit error qualifies for a late IRA rollover waiver
A taxpayer took an IRA distribution by cashier's check and told a bank representative to place the full amount in a rollover IRA invested securely. The bank instead deposited the money into a money…
Family medical crises support a late stock rollover waiver
A retirement plan distribution included cash and 10,323 shares of stock. The cash moved directly into a traditional IRA, but the stock certificates were mailed to the taxpayer's home and were not…
Competition club loses exemption for public revenue and entity-only membership
A section 501(c)(7) organization sponsored several annual competitions and operated only 21 to 27 days per year. Its events were open beyond the members of its member clubs, it advertised them…
Foundation educational loan procedures receive advance approval
A private foundation proposed educational loans for financially needy adults attending qualifying public colleges or universities at least half-time. Eligible students would pursue bachelor's…
IRS approves need-based scholarship procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a scholarship program for students at a particular school who require financial aid. The school selects recipients based on financial need, a minimum…
IRS approves local scholarship procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a scholarship program for students from a particular city and students attending a designated school system. A scholarship committee ranks applicants…
IRS approves college scholarship procedures
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve scholarships for students enrolled or planning to enroll at a designated college. Applicants must demonstrate financial need, above-average scholarship,…
IRS approves interest-free medical education loans
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve an interest-free educational loan program for medical students at a designated school. Applicants must show that financial assistance is necessary to…
IRS approves dance training grants
A private operating foundation asked the IRS to approve grants that help performance artists attend skills-enhancing dance programs. A selection committee evaluates applicants based on factors…
IRS approves renewable high school scholarships
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve scholarships for graduating seniors from public high schools in a designated area. Applicants must rank in the top quarter of their class, be U.S.…
IRS approves two statewide scholarship programs
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve a scholarship program with two parts for residents of a designated state. The first part gives one-time awards to high school seniors from each county…
IRS revokes exemption of commercially operated lodging facility
The IRS revoked the section 501(c)(3) exemption of an organization that originally planned to operate a school but later offered short-term lodging to the public. The organization also hosted…
Estate transactions and notes avoid self-dealing under safeguards
A private foundation expected to receive property through the estates and trusts of members of its founding family, all of whom were disqualified persons. The family proposed redemptions and option…
Dormant reinsurance fund loses section 501(c)(15) exemption
The IRS revoked the section 501(c)(15) exemption of a reinsurance fund formed under a state's small-employer health coverage law. During the year examined, the fund had no participants, insurance or…
Hospital system merger preserves exemption and avoids unrelated business tax
A tax-exempt hospital proposed to absorb its parent organization, an affiliated nursing home, and an affiliated management organization through a statutory merger. The hospital would survive under a…
IRS revokes credit counselor lacking charitable education
The IRS revoked the section 501(c)(3) exemption of a credit-counseling organization formed to provide free debt-management assistance and public education about financial responsibility. The…
Marriage counseling fees shift public charity classification
The IRS changed a marriage-counseling organization's public-charity classification from sections 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) to section 509(a)(2). The organization received its primary support…
IRS revokes inactive religious organization's exemption
The IRS revoked the section 501(c)(3) exemption of a religious organization whose activities had been suspended for several years. The organization reported receiving no donations and paying no…
IRS revokes exemption for failure to file annual returns
The IRS revoked the section 501(c)(3) exemption of an organization that had stopped filing Form 990. The examination requested returns for two years, but the organization did not provide them and…
Software-license royalties qualify as domestic production receipts
A taxpayer developed unique computer software and licensed it to contracting parties that combined the software with their own data to provide services to end users. The question was whether the…
Investor qualifies for Ponzi-scheme theft-loss safe harbor
An individual transferred investment money through intermediaries that placed it into a fraudulent investment arrangement. Revenue Procedure 2009-20 generally excludes someone who invested only…
Multistep corporate separation receives nonrecognition rulings
A publicly traded parent used a long series of contributions, subsidiary distributions, entity conversions, and internal restructurings to separate one business segment into a newly independent…
School bond expenditure period extended after redesign delays
A public school district issued qualified school construction bonds to build and equip a school and purchase its site. Construction bids substantially exceeded the original estimates, forcing the…
Retroactive qualified electing fund election approved
A U.S. taxpayer invested through a foreign employee co-investment company whose only asset was a minority interest in an active financial-services business. Because the investment company owned less…
Late qualified electing fund election receives consent
A U.S. employee invested in a foreign co-investment company that held a minority interest in an active investment-banking firm. Because the investment company owned less than 25 percent of the firm,…
Trust-caused S corporation termination treated as inadvertent
An S corporation's sole shareholder transferred all shares to a grantor trust and later died. Two years after the death, the trust ceased to be a permitted S corporation shareholder, which…
Missing ESBT election causes inadvertent S termination
A grantor trust owned stock in an S corporation, but its grantor-trust status later ended. Although the trust was eligible to become an electing small business trust, its trustee did not timely file…
Tribal authority qualifies as a state political subdivision
A federally recognized tribe created an authority to promote economic development, operate enterprises, attract funding, and produce revenue for public health, safety, and welfare. The tribe…
Untimely ESBT election receives inadvertent-termination relief
A trust held shares in an S corporation while it was wholly treated as owned by an individual. When grantor-trust status ended, the trust was eligible to elect small business trust status, but the…
Depression supports waiver of IRA rollover deadline
A taxpayer received an IRA distribution shortly after his wife's death and deposited it into a nonqualified account after the normal 60-day rollover period. He intended to roll the money into an…
IRA rollover waiver denied for unsupported account error
A taxpayer withdrew an IRA certificate of deposit and placed the proceeds with another financial institution, which opened a non-IRA certificate account. She said she had told a representative that…
IRA rollover waiver granted only for the traceable amount
A retiree asked the IRS to waive the 60-day deadline for rolling an IRA distribution into another IRA. The receiving financial institution mistakenly deposited the distribution into her non-IRA…
University support organization keeps exemption after buying retail center
A tax-exempt organization that supports a university bought a nearby retail center through a wholly owned limited liability company. The IRS concluded that leasing the retail space was an unrelated…
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.