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 201027058: The IRS approved limited lobbying expenditures by an employee-benefit trust
The IRS considered whether a tax-exempt employee-benefit trust could spend a small amount on lobbying about health care legislation that might affect its existence, powers, duties, or tax-exempt…
PLR 201027057: The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement after a financial institution's error
The IRS considered a married couple's request to waive the 60-day rollover deadline for the taxable portions of distributions from a qualified retirement plan. The couple intended to open rollover…
CCA 201027056: Advice on statute limitations for a TEFRA partnership proceeding
Chief Counsel Advice discusses whether a TEFRA partnership proceeding can be conducted when the partnership itself has no statute of limitations. The advice states that a proceeding can affect only…
CCA 201027055: Advice on a refund disallowance notice sent to only one joint taxpayer
Chief Counsel Advice considers whether a notice disallowing a joint refund claim starts the period for filing a refund suit when the notice names only one of the two taxpayers. The advice says the…
CCA 201027054: Advice on consistency and erroneous accounting methods
Chief Counsel Advice discusses the weight that consistent application of an accounting method may receive in determining whether the method is permissible. The advice states that consistency can be…
CCA 201027053: Advice that consistent use does not make an accounting method permissible
Chief Counsel Advice collects authorities addressing whether a taxpayer may continue using an accounting method because it has been applied consistently. The cited authorities state that consistency…
CCA 201027052: Advice on limits for hybrid accounting methods
Chief Counsel Advice compiles authorities on whether taxpayers may use hybrid accounting methods that combine cash and accrual treatment. The cited authorities state that a hybrid method must be…
CCA 201027051: State law does not control federal worker classification
Chief Counsel Advice states that state law does not dictate whether workers are employees for federal employment tax purposes. The type of entity and the way it conducts its business remain relevant…
CCA 201027050: Advice that two cases treat the issue as a nonpartnership item
Chief Counsel Advice identifies two cases that classify the issue under discussion as a nonpartnership item in a TEFRA context. The brief response cites Hang v. Commissioner and Alpha Sands. It does…
CCA 201027049: General partners must receive separate NFTL notices for partnership employment taxes
Chief Counsel Advice addresses collection actions against a general partner for partnership employment taxes. It states that, based on liability under state law, the Service can enforce a tax lien…
CCA 201027048: Advice that there is no separate partnership statute to protect
Chief Counsel Advice responds to a question about the assessment limitation period for a TEFRA partnership involving a Roth IRA partner. The response states that there is no partnership statute of…
CCA 201027047: Certified-mail notice started the two-year period for suit
Chief Counsel Advice concludes that a notice sent by certified mail and partially disallowing a claim was valid. The notice started the two-year limitation period under section 6532(a)(1). The…
CCA 201027046: Outer Continental Shelf services by nonresident aliens generally trigger employment-tax withholding
Chief Counsel Advice considers compensation paid to nonresident alien employees working on structures, vessels, and other devices involved in natural-resource activity on the United States Outer…
TAM 201027045: Retail store sale-leasebacks produced ordinary results, while tenant allowances were reimbursements
This Technical Advice Memorandum addresses a specialty retailer that constructed stores and either sold them to investors with a leaseback or built them on leased land. The IRS treated the Ground…
PLR 201027044: Foreign entity granted more time to elect disregarded-entity status
The IRS granted a foreign entity an additional 60 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as a disregarded entity for U.S. income-tax purposes. The entity had one owner and was eligible to…
PLR 201027043: Corporation granted relief for late S corporation election
The IRS granted a corporation 60 days to file Form 2553 and have its S corporation election treated as timely. The corporation had intended the election to be effective on its incorporation date,…
PLR 201027042: S corporation granted more time to elect qualified subchapter S subsidiary status
The IRS granted an S corporation 60 days to file Forms 8869 and make qualified subchapter S subsidiary elections for three subsidiaries. The corporation had intended the elections to be effective on…
PLR 201027041: Russian partner's income exempt if United States presence stays under 183 days
The IRS ruled that a Russian resident's distributive share of income from a service partnership was not taxable in the United States under Article 13 of the United States-Russian Federation income…
PLR 201027040: Spouses granted more time to allocate generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions
The IRS granted spouses 60 days to allocate their generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions to earlier transfers to an irrevocable trust. Their gift tax returns reported the transfers but did not…
PLR 201027039: Entity granted more time to elect corporation status
The IRS granted an eligible entity 60 days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as a corporation for U.S. federal tax purposes. The entity had failed to file the election timely, but the IRS…
PLR 201027038: Foreign insurers' segregated accounts qualify for variable-contract treatment
The IRS ruled that segregated accounts maintained by two foreign insurance companies would qualify as accounts segregated from general assets under section 817(d)(1). The companies had elected, or…
PLR 201027037: Corporation granted relief after S election form was not received
The IRS granted a corporation 60 days to refile Form 2553 and have its S corporation election treated as timely. The corporation represented that it had prepared and timely filed the form, but the…
PLR 201027036: Related-party structure did not prevent like-kind exchange nonrecognition
The IRS ruled that section 1031(f) would not prevent nonrecognition treatment for a controlled foreign corporation's proposed like-kind exchange using a qualified intermediary. Related companies…
PLR 201027035: Prepayment of contingent tax-benefit obligations did not create discharge-of-indebtedness income
The IRS ruled that a taxpayer did not realize cancellation-of-indebtedness income by making a lump-sum prepayment to settle its remaining contingent tax-benefit obligations. The obligations depended…
PLR 201027034: GST exemption allocations to family trusts were effective despite reporting errors
An estate asked how its generation-skipping transfer tax exemption had been allocated among trusts for descendants. The estate had reported the exemption amounts, but it did not properly identify…
PLR 201027033: IRS granted late S corporation and QSub elections
The IRS granted a corporation extra time to elect S corporation status and to elect to treat its wholly owned subsidiary as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary. The corporation had intended both…
PLR 201027032: IRS granted a late S corporation election
The IRS granted a corporation additional time to elect S corporation status effective as of an earlier intended date. The corporation had been formed under state law and intended to be treated as an…
PLR 201027031: Assignment of inherited IRAs to a foundation was not a transfer of income in respect of a decedent
An estate and trust asked about assigning two individual retirement accounts to a foundation as payment of the foundation's residuary share. One IRA had belonged to an earlier decedent and had been…
PLR 201027030: IRS approved methods for analyzing ownership changes and stock ownership
A consolidated corporate group asked how it could measure ownership shifts for purposes of section 382, which limits the use of certain tax attributes after an ownership change. The IRS approved a…
PLR 201027029: IRS granted a late S corporation election
The IRS granted a corporation additional time to make an S corporation election effective as of an earlier intended date. The corporation had been formed under state law and intended to be treated…
PLR 201027028: IRS granted a late election to treat rental real estate as one activity
The IRS granted married taxpayers extra time to elect to treat all of their interests in rental real estate as one rental real estate activity. The taxpayers were engaged in a real property business…
PLR 201027027: IRS granted extra time to file evidence of a decedent's mental disability
Trustees asked for more time to file a physician's certification and other evidence concerning a decedent's mental disability for a generation-skipping transfer tax exception. The decedent had…
PLR 201027026: IRS granted extra time to file evidence of a decedent's mental disability
The executor of an estate asked for more time to file a physician's certification and other evidence concerning a decedent's mental disability for a generation-skipping transfer tax exception. The…
PLR 201027025: IRS allowed a late election out of the installment method
The IRS allowed taxpayers to make a late election out of the installment method for a business sale. They had filed their returns using installment reporting, but later learned that a move between…
PLR 201027024: IRS granted extra time for a foreign entity to elect disregarded-entity status
The IRS granted a foreign eligible entity 60 extra days to file Form 8832 and elect to be treated as a disregarded entity for U.S. income tax purposes. The entity had intended the election to be…
PLR 201027023: IRS granted extra time to make a section 168(k)(4) election
The IRS granted a C corporation 60 days to make a late election under section 168(k)(4). That election allows an eligible corporation to forgo bonus depreciation and use the resulting amount to…
PLR 201027022: Parking facility receipts were not passive investment income
The IRS ruled that an S corporation's receipts from operating, managing, and leasing commercial parking facilities were not passive investment income for purposes of section 1362(d)(3). The…
PLR 201027021: IRS granted extra time for a foreign entity to elect disregarded-entity status
The IRS granted a foreign eligible entity 120 extra days to file Form 8832 and elect to be classified as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes. The entity had failed to file the election on…
PLR 201027020: IRS granted a late S corporation election
The IRS granted a corporation 60 days to make a late S corporation election effective as of an earlier intended date. The corporation had been formed under state law and had one shareholder, but it…
PLR 201027019: IRS granted extra time for a Canadian RRSP tax-deferral election
The IRS granted a U.S. resident 60 days to elect to defer U.S. federal income taxation on income accrued in Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plans. The taxpayer had not known that an election…
PLR 201027018: IRS granted a late election to treat rental real estate as one activity
The IRS granted married taxpayers 60 days to make a late election to treat all of their interests in rental real estate as one rental real estate activity. The taxpayers said they were in a real…
PLR 201027017: IRS granted extra time for a Canadian RRSP tax-deferral election
The IRS granted a U.S. resident 60 days to elect to defer U.S. federal income taxation on income accrued in a Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plan. The taxpayer had not known that an election…
PLR 201027016: IRS granted extra time for a Canadian RRSP tax-deferral election
The IRS granted a U.S. resident 60 days to elect to defer U.S. federal income taxation on income accrued in a Canadian Registered Retirement Savings Plan. The taxpayer had not known that an election…
PLR 201027015: Credit card rebates directed to charity were deductible contributions
The IRS ruled that credit card rebates that taxpayers could either receive in cash or direct to a charity were not gross income and could qualify as charitable contributions. The choice between cash…
PLR 201027014: S corporation election restored after an ineligible shareholder transfer
The IRS ruled that a corporation's S corporation election terminated when it transferred stock to a corporation that was not an eligible S corporation shareholder. The corporation and its…
PLR 201027013: Governmental deferred compensation plan qualified under section 457(b)
The IRS ruled that a state's restated deferred compensation plan qualified as an eligible governmental plan under section 457(b). The plan allowed eligible state employees to defer compensation,…
PLR 201027012: Foreign entity granted extra time to elect disregarded-entity status
The IRS granted a foreign entity an extension of time to elect to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes. The entity was eligible to make the election but had inadvertently…
PLR 201027011: Foreign entity granted extra time to elect disregarded-entity status
The IRS granted a foreign entity an extension of time to elect to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes. The entity was eligible to make the election but had inadvertently…
PLR 201027010: Foreign entity granted extra time to elect disregarded-entity status
The IRS granted a foreign entity an extension of time to elect to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes. The entity was eligible to make the election but had inadvertently…
PLR 201027009: Foreign entity granted extra time to elect disregarded-entity status
The IRS granted a foreign entity an extension of time to elect to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes. The entity was eligible to make the election but had inadvertently…
PLR 201027008: Foreign entity granted extra time to elect partnership status
The IRS granted a foreign entity an extension of time to elect to be treated as a partnership for federal tax purposes. The entity was eligible for that classification but had failed to timely file…
PLR 201027007: Single-employer welfare plans were not substantially similar to a listed trust transaction
The IRS ruled that a taxpayer's single-employer welfare benefit plans were not the same as, or substantially similar to, the listed transaction described in Notice 95-34. The plans used separate…
PLR 201027006: Late S corporation election treated as timely for reasonable cause
The IRS ruled that a corporation had reasonable cause for failing to timely file its Form 2553 to elect S corporation treatment. The corporation intended the election to be effective on the redacted…
PLR 201027005: Spouses granted more time to allocate GST exemptions to trust transfers
The IRS granted spouses an extension of time to allocate their generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions to lifetime transfers made to an irrevocable trust. The spouses had reported the transfers…
PLR 201027004: Renewable-energy developer granted more time to elect IDC amortization
The IRS granted a renewable-energy developer an extension of time to elect under section 59(e) to amortize intangible drilling and development costs over 60 months. The developer had delayed filing…
PLR 201027003: Marine transportation income qualified under IRC § 7704(d)(1)(E)
The IRS ruled that income earned by a publicly traded limited partnership from transporting crude oil, refined petroleum products, ethanol, biodiesel, and other qualifying products was qualifying…
PLR 201027002: Partnership granted relief for late fiscal-year election
The IRS granted a partnership an extension of time to file Form 8716 and elect a tax year ending September 30. The partnership had relied on a qualified tax professional, but its form was filed late…
PLR 201027001: Inadvertent S corporation termination from a nonresident-alien shareholder
The IRS ruled that a corporation's S corporation election terminated when it issued stock to a nonresident alien, who was an ineligible S corporation shareholder. The corporation promptly redeemed…
PLR 201026043: IRS waived the 60-day rollover deadline after a bank merger error
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for a surviving spouse who received a distribution from an IRA and intended to roll most of it into another IRA. A bank merger and changes in the…
PLR 201026042: IRS waived the 60-day rollover deadline after a family death
The IRS waived the 60-day rollover requirement for an individual who moved funds from an IRA to a non-IRA account and then missed the rollover deadline after learning that a family member had died…
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.