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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CCA 1132023: IRS advised that relevant fuel-use factors may determine a dyed-fuel penalty
Chief Counsel Advice addressed how the IRS may determine the amount of dyed fuel held for a taxable use when assessing a penalty under IRC § 6715(a)(2). The advice stated that the Service may…
CCA 1132022: IRS advised that recognized built-in losses above the section 382 limit carry forward separately
Chief Counsel Advice addressed whether a corporation with no taxable income before recognized built-in losses could include all of those losses in its net operating loss calculation. The advice…
CCA 1132021: IRS advised on mark-to-market treatment of an energy contract
Chief Counsel Advice considered whether an energy company was a dealer in commodities and could apply mark-to-market treatment under section 475(e) to parts of a long-term electricity agreement. The…
PLR 1132020: Butane blending service income qualifies as income from processing and transporting natural resources
The IRS ruled that income earned by a publicly traded limited partnership from butane blending services was qualifying income under section 7704(d)(1)(E). The partnership stored, transported,…
PLR 1132019: IRS grants a foreign entity 120 days to elect partnership classification
The IRS granted a foreign eligible entity an additional 120 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as a partnership for federal tax purposes. The entity had failed to file the election by…
PLR 1132018: Cash distributions to employees and survivors are subject to specified reporting and payroll rules
The IRS ruled on the federal tax treatment of a public institution's proposed cash distributions to current employees and the survivors of covered employees. Payments to current employees were…
PLR 1132017: Trust modification prevents estate inclusion and does not create a gift
The IRS ruled on a court-approved modification of a revocable trust created by a married couple. The modification corrected a drafting error that directed the surviving spouse's debts, expenses, and…
PLR 1132016: Sports programming business is not predominantly an intangible property business
The IRS ruled that a corporation producing and transmitting sports programming was not conducting a trade or business consisting predominantly of developing or holding intangibles for sale or…
PLR 1132015: IRS grants 60 days to make a bonus depreciation election
The IRS granted a consolidated corporate group 60 days to make an election under section 168(k)(4) for a short taxable year. The taxpayer had filed its original return and a statement indicating the…
PLR 1132014: IRS grants 60 days to file an IC-DISC election
The IRS granted a domestic corporation 60 additional days to file Form 4876-A and elect to be treated as an interest charge domestic international sales corporation, or IC-DISC, for its first…
PLR 1132013: IRS preserves an S corporation election after a possible second-class-of-stock problem
The IRS ruled that a limited liability company that had elected S corporation treatment did not invalidate or terminate its election because of two earlier operating agreements. One later agreement…
PLR 1132012: Natural gas processing and storage income qualifies under section 7704
The IRS ruled that a publicly traded partnership's income from operating specified natural gas processing and natural resource storage facilities would qualify under section 7704(d)(1)(E). The…
PLR 1132011: Donation of broadcast licenses qualifies for a charitable deduction
The IRS ruled that a taxpayer's donation of five low-power television broadcast station licenses and related equipment to a private operating foundation was deductible under section 170(a). The…
PLR 1132010: Corporate spin-off receives rulings on reorganization tax treatment
The IRS issued a series of rulings on a proposed transaction in which a corporation would separate one business into a newly formed controlled corporation and distribute that corporation's stock to…
PLR 1132009: IRS rules on a multi-step corporate separation and spin-off
The IRS issued 46 rulings on a proposed separation of two businesses operated through a large affiliated corporate group. The plan included converting two subsidiaries into disregarded limited…
PLR 1132008: Subpart F income from a wholly owned CFC is qualifying RIC income
The IRS ruled that subpart F income attributed to a regulated investment company from its investment in a wholly owned controlled foreign corporation would constitute qualifying income under section…
PLR 1132007: Canadian retirement plan election granted a late-filing extension
The IRS granted a Canadian resident who became a U.S. resident more time to elect deferred U.S. tax treatment for income in a Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plan. The taxpayer missed the…
PLR 1132006: Late commercial revitalization deduction election treated as timely
The IRS granted a partnership more time to make the election for a commercial revitalization deduction tied to a rehabilitated building in a renewal community. The partnership had filed its return…
PLR 1132005: Late charitable deduction election granted to an estate or trust
The IRS granted a trust 120 more days to elect to treat a charitable contribution made in one tax year as paid in the prior tax year. The trustee intended to make the election but failed to do so on…
PLR 1132004: Late entity-classification election granted for a limited liability partnership
The IRS granted a limited liability partnership 120 more days to file Form 8832 and elect partnership treatment for federal tax purposes. The entity intended to make the election effective when it…
PLR 1132003: Extended CNOL carryback election granted 60-day relief
The IRS granted a consolidated corporate group 60 more days to make an election for an extended carryback period for a consolidated net operating loss. The group had missed the election deadline for…
PLR 1132002: Extended CNOL carryback election granted after acquisition
The IRS granted a corporate parent 60 more days to make an election for an extended carryback period for a consolidated net operating loss. The loss arose after the parent acquired another…
PLR 1132001: Late IC-DISC election granted after adviser oversight
The IRS granted a corporation 60 more days to file Form 4876-A and elect IC-DISC status for its first taxable year. The corporation had been formed for that purpose, but its accounting firm missed…
PLR 1131035: 60-day IRA rollover requirement waived after financial institution error
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for an older taxpayer whose retirement distribution was mistakenly deposited into a regular brokerage account instead of an IRA. The taxpayer had…
Determination 1131034: Minimum funding waiver denied as hardship was not temporary
The IRS denied a controlled group's request to waive the minimum funding standard for a pension plan. The company had liquidated assets, lacked employees, and faced a real estate downturn that…
Determination 1131033: Foundation set-aside approved for a matching restoration grant
The IRS approved a private foundation's set-aside for a matching grant to restore a historically significant property in a public park. The foundation planned to fund one third of the project cost,…
PLR 1131032: Foundation set-aside approved for matching restoration grant
The IRS approved a private foundation's set-aside for a matching grant to restore a historically and architecturally significant property in a public park. The foundation planned to fund one third…
PLR 1131031: Trust and affiliated corporation approved as one community trust
The IRS approved a community trust's plan to treat an affiliated nonprofit corporation as a component part of the trust for federal tax purposes. The trust and corporation had common governing…
PLR 1131030: Trust and affiliated corporation approved as one community trust
The IRS approved a community trust's plan to treat an affiliated nonprofit corporation as a component part of the trust for federal tax purposes. The trust and corporation had common governing…
PLR 1131029: Community-center activities and rental income excluded from UBIT
The IRS ruled that a religious organization’s planned community centers would further its exempt purposes through religious, educational, charitable, recreational, and social-service programs.…
PLR 1131028: VEBA may cover former spouses and limited impermissible benefits
The IRS ruled that a jointly administered employee-benefit fund could provide health coverage to former spouses who qualify as dependents under the tax rules. The fund could also provide health…
PLR 1131027: Supporting organization status continues after trust reorganization
The IRS ruled that a nonprofit supporting organization would continue to qualify as a section 509(a)(3) supporting organization of a trust and an affiliated corporation. The trust and corporation…
Determination 1131026: Child-care organization denied section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS finalized an adverse determination that a home-based child-care organization did not qualify for exemption under section 501(c)(3). The organization’s governing body consisted of a family,…
Determination 1131025: Teacher-supply website denied section 501(c)(3) exemption
The IRS finalized an adverse determination that a nonprofit website facilitating classroom-supply donations did not qualify for exemption under section 501(c)(3). Donors could use the website to…
Other 1131024: IRS revoked an organization’s section 501(c)(3) exemption for private benefit and inactive charitable operations
An organization recognized as a public charity under section 501(c)(3) was examined after its founder continued handling funds and property after resigning. The IRS found that the organization had…
PLR 1131023: Factoring receivables did not convert ordinary business income into subpart F income
A taxpayer asked whether a controlled foreign corporation's factoring of certain receivables would create foreign personal holding company income under section 954. The IRS concluded that the…
PLR 1131022: IRS granted late-election relief for S corporation status
A corporation asked the IRS to treat its late S corporation election as timely. The corporation intended to be treated as an S corporation from a specified effective date but did not file the…
PLR 1131021: IRS granted relief for an inadvertently late S corporation election
A corporation asked the IRS to recognize its S corporation election from an earlier effective date after the election was inadvertently filed late. The IRS found reasonable cause for the failure and…
PLR 1131020: IRS granted more time to make elections for Canadian retirement plans
Two taxpayers who moved from Canada to the United States had Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plans and had not made the election to defer U.S. taxation on accrued income. The IRS found that…
PLR 1131019: IRS allowed a retroactive qualified electing fund election for PFIC shares
A domestic partnership asked to make a retroactive qualified electing fund election for shares in a foreign corporation that it later learned might be a passive foreign investment company. The…
PLR 1131018: IRS allowed a retroactive qualified electing fund election for PFIC shares
A domestic partnership asked to make a retroactive qualified electing fund election for shares in a foreign corporation that it later learned might be a passive foreign investment company. The…
PLR 1131017: IRS granted more time to make an election for Canadian RRSP accounts
A U.S. resident with Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plan accounts asked for more time to make the election that defers U.S. taxation on income accrued in those accounts. The taxpayer had…
PLR 1131016: IRS granted more time to file a consolidated return election
A new parent company asked for more time to elect to file a consolidated federal income tax return with its subsidiaries after the original affiliated group changed. The IRS found that the parent…
PLR 1131015: IRS treated an inadvertently terminated S corporation election as continuing
A corporation's S corporation election terminated after it issued a second class of stock. The corporation represented that the termination was inadvertent, that it took steps to qualify again as a…
PLR 1131014: IRS approved dividing an irrevocable trust into separate beneficiary subtrusts
A trustee proposed dividing an irrevocable trust created before September 25, 1985 into separate subtrusts, one for each of the grantor's three children and their descendants. The IRS concluded that…
PLR 1131013: IRS granted more time to allocate GST tax exemption to a trust transfer
A donor transferred property to an irrevocable trust for descendants but did not allocate generation-skipping transfer tax exemption to the transfer. The donor and spouse had relied on tax…
PLR 1131012: IRS granted more time to allocate GST tax exemption to a trust transfer
A spouse transferred property to an irrevocable trust for descendants but did not allocate generation-skipping transfer tax exemption to her share of the transfer. The donor and spouse had relied on…
PLR 1131011: IRS disregarded an unnecessary QTIP election for a marital trust
An estate elected to treat a marital trust as qualified terminable interest property, or QTIP, on its federal estate tax return. The estate represented that the election was unnecessary because the…
PLR 1131010: IRS classified qualifying district-cooling equipment as 7-year property
A power-generation company asked how to depreciate tangible property used in a district-cooling system. The system circulated chilled water through underground pipes to customer buildings,…
PLR 1131009: IRS granted extra time to waive a consolidated NOL carryback
A parent company intended to elect to relinquish the entire carryback period for a consolidated group's net operating loss but missed the regulatory filing deadline. The IRS found that the parent…
PLR 1131008: IRS allowed independent-producer treatment despite a related retailer
An oil and gas exploration company was part of a consolidated group that also included a related natural-gas retailer. The producer sold its production to unrelated persons, and the retailer bought…
PLR 1131007: IRS excluded adult foster-care payments from income
A corporation received state payments for adult foster care provided by its sole shareholder in the shareholder's home. The corporation paid the foster-care amounts to the shareholder after paying…
PLR 1131006: IRS approved a QPRT modification and related gift treatment
A person had transferred a residence to a qualified personal residence trust and retained a term interest to occupy it. The trust beneficiaries proposed modifying and restating the trust to let them…
PLR 1131005: IRS granted relief for a late S corporation election
A company intended to elect S corporation status for a specified effective date but did not timely file Form 2553. The IRS found that the company had reasonable cause for the late election and…
PLR 1131004: IRS granted more time for homeowners association elections
A homeowners association's accounting firm filed Forms 1120 instead of the required Forms 1120-H for two taxable years. After discovering the error, the association requested additional time to…
PLR 1131003: IRS approved refined-coal credit conclusions for additive-treated coal
A partnership produced refined coal by mixing feedstock coal with additives intended to reduce nitrogen oxide and mercury emissions. The partnership asked whether its process produced refined coal…
PLR 1131002: IRS granted more time to elect to treat rental real estate interests as one activity
The taxpayer was in a real property business and qualified to elect to treat all interests in rental real estate as one rental real estate activity. The taxpayer filed a return without the statement…
PLR 1131001: IRS approved qualifying-income treatment for commodity-linked notes and foreign-subsidiary income
An investment company seeking regulated investment company treatment planned to invest in commodity-linked notes and a wholly owned foreign subsidiary. It asked whether income from the notes and the…
IRS revoked an organization's tax-exempt status because its scholarship program served private family interests
The IRS issued a final adverse determination revoking an organization's exemption under section 501(c)(3). The organization operated a scholarship program limited to descendants of immigrants…
PLR 1130017: IRS explained the taxable and excludible portions of pension annuity payments
A taxpayer receiving pension annuity benefits had previously transferred one-third of the contract's present value to an IRA. The taxpayer asked how employee contributions that had already been…
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.