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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IRS revokes a veterans organization's section 501(c)(19) exemption
The IRS revoked a veterans organization's exemption under section 501(c)(19), effective on the stated date. The organization had eight active members and 51 members at large, and its primary…
IRS denies a financial literacy organization's section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS denied tax-exempt status to an organization that planned to provide financial literacy tools, services to low- and moderate-income households, and consulting services to small businesses.…
IRS denies a literary publisher's section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS denied tax-exempt status to an organization that planned to publish and promote literary works, including films, books, poetry, and music. The determination found that the activities were…
IRS denies a mixed-use community development organization's section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS denied tax-exempt status to an organization proposing mixed-use housing, community development, art museums, and educational and cultural programs. The organization did not have a valid…
IRS revokes an inactive organization's section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS revoked an organization's section 501(c)(3) exemption because it failed to provide information requested during an examination. The organization reported that it had been inactive and had…
IRS revokes a childcare organization's section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS revoked a childcare organization's section 501(c)(3) exemption because its actual operations differed materially from the information used to grant exemption. The organization accepted…
IRS revokes a psychologist's section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS revoked a psychologist's section 501(c)(3) exemption after finding that the organization operated in a commercial manner and did not provide evidence of charitable activity. The examination…
IRS revokes an organization's exemption and changes its foundation classification
The IRS revoked the organization’s section 501(c)(3) exemption because it did not provide the books and records needed to establish continued qualification. The examination also found that the…
IRS approves a modified scholarship grant program
The IRS approved a private foundation’s modified scholarship grant-making program under section 4945(g)(1). The changes added extracurricular-activity achievement grants to existing leadership,…
PLR 201252018: IRS approves notice procedures for a vehicle leasing company's like-kind exchange program
The IRS ruled that a vehicle leasing company’s written notice procedures satisfied the requirements for assigning sale and purchase agreement rights to a qualified intermediary in a deferred…
PLR 201252017: IRS approves a split-off of two controlled corporations from an S corporation
The IRS ruled that a proposed transaction in which an S corporation would contribute assets to two newly formed controlled corporations and distribute their stock to different shareholder groups…
CCA 201252015: Chief Counsel advises on payments made before an assessment period expires
Chief Counsel advised that the Service assessed additional tax too late for two tax years, but should not refund the tax and interest the taxpayers paid before the assessment periods expired.…
PLR 201252014: IRS approves tax treatment for a multi-step corporate restructuring
The IRS ruled on the tax treatment of a complex restructuring by an affiliated group that wanted to separate two businesses. The proposed steps included entity conversions, a subsidiary merger,…
PLR 201252013: IRS grants late-election relief for S corporation status
The IRS ruled that a corporation had reasonable cause for failing to timely file its election to be treated as an S corporation. The corporation intended its S election to take effect when it was…
PLR 201252012: IRS approves cash-or-stock distributions by a prospective REIT
The IRS ruled that a publicly traded corporation planning to elect REIT status could make special distributions in which shareholders chose cash or common stock. The cash available for each…
PLR 201252011: IRS approves tax treatment for a cross-border acquisition and reorganization
The IRS ruled on the tax consequences of a transaction involving a publicly traded foreign target, a cross-border amalgamation, and a series of acquisitions and redemptions. The ruling treated the…
PLR 201252010: IRS allows section 1033 deferral for utility relocation reimbursements
The IRS ruled that a public utility could elect to defer gain under section 1033 on payments it received for removing and relocating utility equipment at the direction of a condemning authority. The…
PLR 201252009: IRS granted late-election relief for REIT and taxable REIT subsidiary elections
The IRS granted a real estate investment trust an extension of time to elect REIT status for a taxable year. It also allowed the REIT and its subsidiary to make a late election treating the…
PLR 201252008: IRS ruled on stock sales, distributions, and a planned corporate liquidation
The IRS ruled on a series of completed and proposed transactions among a parent company and foreign and domestic subsidiaries. The ruling addressed the tax treatment of cross-chain stock sales, a…
PLR 201252007: IRS treated an inadvertently invalid S corporation election as effective
The IRS ruled that a corporation's S corporation election was inadvertently invalid because an ineligible shareholder held an interest on the effective date. The corporation represented that the…
PLR 201252006: IRS granted late-election relief to reattribute a subsidiary's tax attributes
The IRS granted a consolidated group an extension of time to make an election reattributing a subsidiary's net operating loss carryover to the parent. The election followed a stock sale that…
PLR 201252005: IRS ruled that a public rehabilitation program did not create reportable income for property owners
The IRS ruled that a political subdivision did not have to file information returns for property owners whose privately owned infrastructure was rehabilitated through a government program. The…
PLR 201252004: IRS granted late GST trust election relief
The IRS granted a taxpayer 120 days to make a generation-skipping transfer tax election treating an irrevocable trust as a GST trust. The taxpayer had reported prior gifts but failed to make the…
PLR 201252003: IRS granted late GST trust election relief
The IRS granted a taxpayer 120 days to make a generation-skipping transfer tax election treating an irrevocable trust as a GST trust. The taxpayer had reported prior gifts but failed to make the…
PLR 201252002: IRS approved specified cross-border corporate reorganizations
The IRS approved specified federal income tax treatment for a multinational group's completed and proposed reorganizations. The ruling covered transfers of stock and assets among related…
PLR 201252001: IRS restored S corporation treatment after an inadvertent termination
The IRS ruled that a corporation's S corporation election terminated after it issued interests to ineligible shareholders and created a second class of interests. The corporation represented that…
IRS revoked an organization's § 501(c)(3) exemption for failure to substantiate operations
The IRS issued a final adverse determination revoking an organization's tax exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3), effective January 1, 2005. The organization did not provide enough information about its…
PLR 201251020: IRS approved performing-arts grant procedures for a private foundation
The IRS approved a private foundation's procedures for two performing-arts grant programs. One program would support established artists, and the other would support nominated artists with the…
IRS denied exemption and church classification for an internet-based religious organization
The IRS issued a final adverse determination concluding that a religious organization did not qualify for exemption under IRC § 501(c)(3). The organization operated primarily through the internet,…
CCA 201251017: Tenancy by the entirety does not defeat the small-partnership exception
Chief Counsel Advice addressed whether holding a partnership interest as a tenancy by the entirety affects the small-partnership exception. The advice concluded that a tenancy by the entirety is not…
CCA 201251016: Two benefit programs were treated as window benefits
Chief Counsel Advice characterized the benefits described in a Form 886-A as window benefits. The advice noted that only two programs were provided over an approximately ten-year period. Because…
CCA 201251015: Resident qualified for a treaty stipend exclusion for up to five years
Chief Counsel Advice concluded that, on the particular facts presented, a resident fell within paragraph (1)(a)(ii) of Article 19 of the applicable treaty. The resident therefore appeared eligible…
CCA 201251014: CCA addresses who is automatically the tax matters partner
Chief Counsel advice addressed who becomes a partnership's tax matters partner when no valid designation has been made. The advice states that the general partner becomes the tax matters partner…
CCA 201251013: CCA addresses designation of an indirect partner as tax matters partner
Chief Counsel advice addressed whether an indirect partner may be designated as a partnership's tax matters partner. The advice states that the Service may designate an indirect partner as tax…
CCA 201251012: CCA addresses wagering tax liability for a bookmaker using an offshore data service
Chief Counsel advice considered whether the wagering excise tax applies when a United States bookmaker uses a foreign company to receive and maintain bettors' wagering information. The foreign…
PLR 201251011: IRS grants extra time to elect corporate classification
The IRS granted an eligible business entity an additional 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be classified as an association taxable as a corporation. The entity's default federal tax…
PLR 201251010: IRS grants relief for a late S corporation election
The IRS granted a corporation relief for failing to timely elect S corporation status. The corporation intended to be treated as an S corporation from the redacted effective date, but it did not…
PLR 201251009: IRS permits revocation of an investment-income election after a software error
The IRS granted taxpayers 60 days to revoke an election that treated qualified dividends and capital gains as investment income. The taxpayers had made the election on Form 4952, but computerized…
PLR 201251008: IRS grants extra time to file a consolidated return election
The IRS granted a corporate parent and members of its affiliated group 45 days to make a consolidated return election for a short taxable year. The group missed the regulatory deadline after the…
PLR 201251007: IRS grants late S corporation election relief to an LLC
The IRS granted an eligible limited liability company relief for a late S corporation election. The company had elected to be treated as an association taxable as a corporation, intended to elect S…
PLR 201251006: IRS approves a proposed tax-free corporate separation
The IRS ruled on a proposed transaction in which a corporation would transfer one business to a newly formed controlled corporation and distribute that corporation's stock through an internal and…
PLR 201251005: IRS approves certain foreign income for a REIT's gross-income tests
The IRS ruled that certain inclusions from controlled foreign corporations and passive foreign investment companies would qualify under a real estate investment trust's 95-percent gross-income test.…
PLR 201251004: IRS grants extra time for a section 754 election
The IRS granted a limited liability limited partnership 120 days to make a late section 754 election. The partnership had failed to make the election for the year in which a member died. The IRS…
PLR 201251003: IRS addresses a subsidiary's departure from a consolidated group
The IRS ruled on a proposed transaction involving a privately held parent and several domestic and foreign subsidiaries. The parent would acquire additional stock of a subsidiary and transfer that…
PLR 201251002: IRS addresses capital contributions in a section 382 ownership change
The IRS ruled that certain capital contributions made before a corporation's ownership change would not be treated as contributions made under a plan whose principal purpose was to avoid or increase…
PLR 201251001: IRS grants extra time to allocate generation-skipping transfer tax exemption
The IRS granted a settlor 120 days to allocate available generation-skipping transfer tax exemption to a prior transfer to an irrevocable trust. The settlor had provided the relevant documents to an…
PLR 201250031: IRS declines to waive the 60-day IRA rollover requirement
The IRS declined to waive the 60-day rollover requirement for taxpayers who moved an IRA distribution into two non-IRA accounts before transferring the funds back to the IRA. The taxpayers said a…
PLR 201250030: IRS waives the 60-day IRA rollover requirement
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for a taxpayer who intended to transfer an IRA distribution to a rollover IRA, but whose bank deposited the funds into certificates of deposit and a…
Determination 201250029: IRS denies exemption for a foreclosure-prevention organization
The IRS denied exemption under IRC section 501(c)(3) to an organization that proposed foreclosure-prevention counseling, mortgage-modification assistance, affordable-housing education, and related…
Determination 201250028: IRS denies exemption for a foreclosure class-action organization
The IRS denied exemption under IRC section 501(c)(3) to an organization that planned to raise donations from foreclosure victims and finance a nationwide class-action lawsuit. The organization…
Determination 201250027: IRS denies exemption for a foreclosure prevention organization
The IRS denied tax-exempt status under IRC section 501(c)(3) to an organization that proposed foreclosure prevention and mortgage counseling services. The organization charged clients upfront fees,…
PLR 201250026: IRS approved a private foundation's scholarship grant procedures
The IRS approved a private foundation's proposed scholarship program for graduating high school students who plan to attend an accredited four-year college or university in the United States or…
PLR 201250025: IRS approves a health information exchange's related activities
The IRS ruled that a tax-exempt supporting organization could manage and facilitate a regional health information exchange and related performance-reporting program. The program combined health-plan…
PLR 201250024: IRS approves expanded membership for a voluntary employees' beneficiary association
The IRS ruled that a voluntary employees' beneficiary association (VEBA) could add common-law employees of Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations to its membership. The…
PLR 201250023: IRS approves expanded membership for a voluntary employees' beneficiary association
The IRS ruled that a voluntary employees' beneficiary association (VEBA) could add common-law employees of Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations to its membership. The…
CCA 201250022: Chief Counsel addresses stock-for-debt exchanges and unpaid loss deductions
Chief Counsel advice addressed the federal tax treatment of insolvent insurance subsidiaries that exchanged stock for debt in state insolvency proceedings. The advice concluded that…
PLR 201250021: IRS approves supplemental stock-for-stock reorganization rulings
The IRS issued supplemental rulings for a proposed acquisition in which Target shareholders would exchange their stock solely for voting stock of Controlled 11. The ruling addressed related debt…
CCA 201250020: Chief Counsel addresses disclosure of captive insurance records
Chief Counsel advice addressed whether the IRS may use return information from one taxpayer's examination in examinations of unrelated taxpayers participating in a substantially similar captive…
PLR 201250019: IRS treats mixed-use senior living facilities as qualified health care property
The IRS ruled that a real estate investment trust's mixed-use senior living communities were health care facilities under IRC section 856(e)(6)(D)(ii). The communities included independent living,…
PLR 201250018: IRS grants extra time to make a qualified subchapter S subsidiary election
The IRS granted a corporation an additional 120 days to elect to treat its wholly owned subsidiary as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary, or QSub. The corporation had intended the election to take…
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.