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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PLR 201312021: IRS grants more time to decline bonus depreciation
The IRS granted a corporation 60 days to make a late election not to deduct additional first-year depreciation under section 168(k)(5). The corporation had claimed 100-percent bonus depreciation but…
PLR 201312020: IRS rules on two issues in a nonprofit parent's proposed distribution
The nonprofit parent's taxable holding company proposed to distribute stock of a controlled corporation to the parent. The IRS ruled that the distribution would satisfy the requirement that…
PLR 201312019: IRS grants more time to waive a consolidated group's loss carryback
The IRS granted a successor corporation 45 days to make a late election for a consolidated group to waive the entire carryback period for a consolidated net operating loss. The taxpayer had failed…
PLR 201312018: IRS grants more time to elect out of automatic GST exemption allocation
The IRS granted a taxpayer 120 days to elect out of the automatic allocation of generation-skipping transfer tax exemption to transfers made to a trust. The taxpayer's gift tax return did not…
PLR 201312017: IRS approves a complex separation, spin-off, and merger plan
The IRS approved specified federal tax treatment for a large corporate separation in which a parent would separate one business from its remaining businesses, distribute stock of a controlled…
PLR 201312016: IRS restores a corporation's S election after an inadvertent termination
The IRS ruled that a corporation would continue to be treated as an S corporation after a share transfer may have terminated its S election. The transfer violated an agreement, but the corporation…
PLR 201312015: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312014: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312013: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312012: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312011: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312010: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312009: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312008: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312007: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312006: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312005: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312004: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312003: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312002: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201312001: IRS grants more time to classify an LLC as a corporation
The IRS granted a limited liability company 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as an association, meaning a corporation, for federal tax purposes. The LLC had missed the deadline for…
PLR 201311045: IRS approves a five-year automatic amortization extension for a multiemployer plan
The IRS approved a five-year automatic extension for a multiemployer plan to amortize unfunded liabilities. The extension applies to the eligible amortization charge base identified in the request.…
PLR 201311044: IRS approves a five-year automatic amortization extension for a multiemployer plan
The IRS approved a five-year automatic extension for a multiemployer plan to amortize unfunded liabilities. The extension applies to eligible amortization charge bases identified in the application.…
PLR 201311043: IRS waives the 60-day rollover deadline after misleading tax advice
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for an elderly taxpayer who moved an IRA distribution into a non-IRA trust account after receiving misleading advice from a CPA and financial adviser.…
PLR 201311042: IRS waives the 60-day rollover deadline after a plan failed to explain rollover rights
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for a surviving spouse who received a lump-sum distribution from an employer plan. The IRS found that the plan sponsor’s failure to explain the…
PLR 201311041: IRS waives the 60-day rollover deadline after checks were mailed to the wrong address
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for a taxpayer whose plan distribution checks were mailed to an incorrect address by a financial institution. The taxpayer retrieved the checks shortly…
PLR 201311040: IRS approves a conditional waiver of a pension plan's minimum funding contribution
The IRS approved a conditional waiver of a plan’s required minimum funding contribution for the plan year ending December 31, 2011. The waiver covered the remaining unpaid contribution and required…
PLR 201311039: IRS waives the 60-day rollover deadline after a financial institution distributed the wrong assets
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement after a financial institution mistakenly transferred shares instead of the requested cash amount from an IRA. The taxpayer did not discover the error…
PLR 201311038: IRS waives the 60-day rollover deadline for a taxpayer with a disabling mental condition
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for a taxpayer whose mental condition impaired the ability to make financial decisions during the rollover period. The taxpayer represented that the…
PLR 201311037: IRS waives rollover deadlines for a married couple affected by a mental condition
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for three IRA distributions received by a married couple. The wife’s mental condition impaired her ability to make financial decisions, and the couple…
PLR 201311036: IRS rules that endowment units do not generate UBTI
The IRS ruled that a charitable remainder trust’s proposed contractual units in an educational organization’s endowment would not generate unrelated business taxable income. The units would provide…
PLR 201311035: IRS rules donated nonvoting stock is permitted business holding
The IRS ruled that a supporting organization’s nonvoting stock in a corporation would be permitted holdings under IRC § 4943 after a related foundation received a specified portion of the…
PLR 201311034: IRS rules that two foundation grants are not self-dealing
A private foundation asked whether two grants would be treated as self-dealing under IRC § 4941. One proposed grant would fund a healthcare research center built on a university campus. The other…
IRS finalizes denial of tax-exempt status for a financial education organization
The IRS finalized its proposed adverse determination that an organization did not qualify for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3). The organization planned to provide financial education and financial…
IRS determination 201311032: IRS rules that contractual endowment units do not generate UBTI
The IRS ruled that a charitable remainder trust’s proposed contractual units in an educational organization’s endowment would not generate unrelated business taxable income. The units would give the…
IRS determination 201311031: IRS approves expanded training and advertising activities for a labor organization
The IRS ruled that a training trust exempt as a labor organization could amend its governing document to add safety training, professional development, and advertising and marketing activities. The…
Determination 201311030: IRS denies exemption to a research organization with commercial and insider-benefit concerns
The IRS denied tax-exempt status under IRC § 501(c)(3) to a proposed research organization developing and commercializing a medical device. The organization was controlled by the founder and family…
IRS determination 201311029: IRS finalizes denial of exemption for a mortgage counseling organization
The IRS finalized its adverse determination that a mortgage counseling organization did not qualify for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3). The organization’s activities included mortgage mitigation…
IRS determination 201311028: IRS finalizes denial of exemption for an organization with insufficiently described operations
The IRS finalized its adverse determination that an organization did not qualify for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3). The IRS said the organization had not described its operations in enough detail…
CCA 201311027: CCA concludes that disclosure of third-party return information is not authorized
Chief Counsel advice addressed whether third-party return information could be disclosed in an IRS examination under IRC § 6103(h)(4)(B) or (C). The advice explained that disclosure may be allowed…
CCA 201311025: CCA explains AAR filing and refund-petition periods
Chief Counsel advice explains that section 6227 generally provides three years to file an administrative adjustment request, including for affected carryover years. After an AAR is filed, section…
CCA 201311024: CCA distinguishes ocean activity income from transportation income
Chief Counsel advice addresses the source of income from chartering and moving a vessel. If a day rate covers only moving the vessel from Norway to the Gulf, the income should be characterized as…
CCA 201311023: CCA advises that the taxpayer is generally bound by transaction form
Chief Counsel advice addresses whether a taxpayer could use the substance-over-form doctrine to recast a transaction. The advice states that taxpayers are generally bound by the form they chose,…
CCA 201311022: CCA concludes that class-representative incentive payments are wages
Chief Counsel advice considers incentive awards paid to named plaintiffs in an employee class-action settlement. The advice concludes that the awards are remuneration arising from the employment…
Prepaid FDIC assessments are not currently deductible
The Office of Chief Counsel considered whether a consolidated group could deduct prepaid FDIC assessments for two taxable years. It concluded that the prepaid assessment was part of a capital…
PLR 201311020: IRS allows late filing of a Form 8716 tax-year election
The IRS granted a taxpayer relief for a late-filed Form 8716, which elects a tax year other than a required tax year. The taxpayer had hired a qualified tax professional, but the form was not filed…
PLR 201311019: IRS allows late filing of a Form 8716 tax-year election
The IRS granted a taxpayer relief for a late-filed Form 8716, which elects a tax year other than a required tax year. The taxpayer had hired a qualified tax professional, but the form was not filed…
PLR 201311018: IRS approves changes to stock-based compensation methods in a cost sharing arrangement
The IRS granted a taxpayer consent to change how it measures and identifies employee stock options and restricted shares for a cost sharing arrangement. The taxpayer sought to use an elective method…
PLR 201311017: IRS grants late-election relief for LLC classification and S corporation status
The IRS granted a limited liability company additional time to elect classification as an association taxable as a corporation and to file an S corporation election. The company had failed to timely…
PLR 201311016: IRS grants late-election relief under section 754
The IRS granted a partnership an additional 120 days to make a late election under IRC section 754. The partnership had failed to make the election after interests were transferred because its tax…
PLR 201311015: IRS grants relief for a late S corporation election
The IRS granted a corporation relief for a late Form 2553 S corporation election. The corporation's sole shareholder intended the corporation to be an S corporation from its incorporation date, but…
PLR 201311014: IRS grants extra time to make a PFIC mark-to-market election
The IRS granted a corporate taxpayer's U.S. subsidiary an additional 60 days to make a mark-to-market election for stock in a passive foreign investment company. The subsidiary had not received the…
PLR 201311013: IRS grants extra time for a foreign entity classification election
The IRS granted a parent company 120 days to file Form 8832 for a wholly owned foreign entity to be treated as disregarded for federal tax purposes. The entity had failed to make the election on…
PLR 201311012: IRS grants extra time to attach an accounting method change form
The IRS granted a taxpayer 30 days to attach an original Form 3115 to an amended federal income tax return for a subsidiary's accounting method change involving tort liabilities. The taxpayer's…
PLR 201311011: IRS approves continued treatment of nuclear decommissioning funds after restructuring
The IRS ruled that qualified nuclear decommissioning funds would remain qualified after a corporate restructuring that converted a subsidiary into a disregarded limited liability company. The ruling…
PLR 201311010: IRS treats subsidiary as joining a consolidated return despite a missing Form 1122
The IRS determined that a subsidiary should be treated as having joined its parent's short-year consolidated federal income tax return even though the return did not include the subsidiary's Form…
PLR 201311009: IRS grants late REIT and taxable REIT subsidiary elections
The IRS treated a timberland investment trust's late election to be taxed as a real estate investment trust as timely made for one tax year. It also granted the trust and its subsidiary extra time…
PLR 201311008: IRS grants extra time for a foreign entity classification election
The IRS granted a foreign entity 120 days to file Form 8832 electing to be treated as an association taxable as a corporation for federal tax purposes. The entity had intended that classification…
PLR 201311007: IRS allows correction of a low-income housing project location
The IRS allowed a state housing credit agency and a project developer to correct the location listed in a low-income housing credit carryover allocation agreement. The agreement identified the…
PLR 201311006: IRS excludes physical-injury settlement distributions from reporting and withholding
The IRS ruled that damages distributed to victims of a described incident were excluded from the recipients' gross income because they arose from physical injuries or physical sickness. The damages…
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.