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 201005053: The section 6652(j) penalty applies once for each certification failure
This internal IRS Chief Counsel email considers the penalty for failing to provide a certification required for a qualified residential rental project. The question was whether IRC § 6652(j), as…
CCA 201005052: Heirs may receive the executor's estate tax return information
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses competing estate tax returns and requests for return information. The advice concludes that a child's estate tax return was invalid because it was…
CCA 201005051: IPO price and control premium affect basis allocation in a planned spin-off
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice considers how a parent company's tax basis should be allocated after a planned two-step spin-off. The first spin-off distributed stock of a controlled company…
CCA 201005050: A timely FPAA keeps the statute open for an unidentified indirect partner
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses the limitations period for an indirect partner whose identity is not yet known. It concludes that when the partner is an unidentified indirect…
CCA 201005049: An SS-10 should use the legal name on the return
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses which taxpayer name should appear on an SS-10 used to extend a limitations period. It states that the general rule is to use the name shown on the…
CCA 201005048: An original return is required for an interest-free section 6205 adjustment
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses when an employment-tax adjustment may receive interest-free treatment under IRC § 6205. It states that an original return must have been filed before…
CCA 201005047: TEFRA procedures support choosing one position and assessing accordingly
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice responds to another question about TEFRA partnership procedures. The writer agrees with the position under discussion but says it may not be necessary to take…
CCA 201005046: Section 7436 requirements precede assessment of a section 6020(b) return
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses returns prepared by IRS personnel in worker-classification cases. It states that revenue officers may prepare returns under IRC § 6020(b), but the…
CCA 201005045: An FPAA may recharacterize partnership debt for one tax year
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses a proposed FPAA for the 2007 partnership year. It says the FPAA may recharacterize debt as a capital contribution because each partnership year is a…
CCA 201005044: An FPAA establishes loan treatment before partner-level adjustments
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses the treatment of a loan to a partnership in a TEFRA proceeding. It says an FPAA must be issued to the partnership to establish the treatment of the…
CCA 201005043: Subtitle D excise taxes are outside the TEFRA partnership procedures
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses whether subtitle D excise taxes fall within the TEFRA partnership procedures. It agrees that they do not. The advice states that the TEFRA procedures…
CCA 201005042: An exam may disclose only third-party return information directly related to the issue
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses disclosure of an ex-wife's return information during an examination of an ex-husband's return. It says IRC § 6103(h)(4)(C) permits disclosure of…
CCA 201005041: A refund check may be sent to an authorized attorney or agent
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses where the Service may send a taxpayer's refund check. It explains that Treas. Reg. § 301.6402-2(f)(1) permits a check payable to the taxpayer to be…
CCA 201005040: A partner's inconsistency notice or election can require TEFRA procedures and an FPAA
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses the effect of a partner's response to an inconsistency involving partnership items. It says that if the partner files a statement identifying the…
CCA 201005039: Pre-2007 work opportunity credits cannot offset alternative minimum tax
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses carryforwards of the work opportunity tax credit under IRC § 51. It explains that legislation added the § 51 credit to the specified credits that may…
CCA 201005038: A settlement after partnership items convert is authorized under section 7121
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses settling a large TEFRA adjustment with a direct partner. It says the Service may settle with the partner, but the authority for the settlement is IRC…
CCA 201005037: Revenue Procedure 94-69 does not apply to an IC taxpayer
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice considers whether Rev. Proc. 94-69 applies to a taxpayer classified by Exam as an IC taxpayer. It says no. The procedure provides special methods for taxpayers…
CCA 201005036: A return filed after its due date is filed on the date received
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses the filing date of a return and the effect of a suspension period under IRC § 7508. It concludes that the early-return rule in IRC § 6501(b) does not…
CCA 201005035: Prior cases support the validity of the check-the-box regulations
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice responds to a request for help with a taxpayer's position paper. The advice says the taxpayer appears to be challenging the validity of the check-the-box…
CCA 201005034: Section 6205 does not make a section 6662 penalty interest-free
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses whether interest accrues on an accuracy-related penalty when an employment-tax adjustment is made under IRC § 6205. It concludes that interest still…
CCA 201005033: Delegation Order 4-19 covers TEFRA settlement agreements
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses authority to sign TEFRA settlement agreements. It states that Delegation Order 4-19 delegates authority to sign TEFRA settlement agreements,…
CCA 201005032: Signed partner agreements can eliminate the need for a TEFRA audit
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses whether a TEFRA audit is needed for the 2008 partnership year. It says that if signed agreements are obtained from all partners, the Service does not…
CCA 201005031: An FPAA may be issued for a closed year when it affects assessments in later open years
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice considers whether an FPAA can be issued for a partnership year that is closed for assessment. It says that Kligfeld and G-5 Holdings support issuing an FPAA…
CCA 201005030: The IRS can settle a partnership's foreign withholding liability
This internal IRS Chief Counsel advice addresses how to resolve a partnership's liability for withholding under IRC § 1446. The IRS may enter into a settlement agreement with the partnership, signed…
CCA 201005029: Which tax debts remain after a Chapter 13 discharge
This Chief Counsel Advice explains which federal tax debts remain collectible after a taxpayer completes a Chapter 13 plan and receives a discharge in a case filed on or after October 17, 2005. It…
PLR 201005028: Merger and ESOP sale receive favorable tax treatment
The IRS ruled on a proposed merger of a foreign target into a newly formed merger subsidiary, followed by a sale of the acquiring corporation's stock to an employee stock ownership plan. The ruling…
PLR 201005027: Late S corporation election receives relief
The IRS granted a corporation relief for failing to file its S corporation election on time. The shareholder intended the corporation to be an S corporation from its incorporation date, but the…
PLR 201005026: Taxpayer receives more time to make a LIFO election
The IRS granted a partnership an extension of time to file Form 970 and elect the LIFO inventory method. The partnership had become a partnership after an ownership transfer, but its prior…
PLR 201005025: Rental income is not passive investment income under the stated facts
The IRS ruled that a corporation's rental income from its rental activities was not passive investment income under IRC § 1362(d)(3)(C)(i). The corporation's employees and management agent performed…
PLR 201005024: State insurance association qualifies for tax exclusion and charitable contributions
The IRS ruled that a state-created association providing residual-market property insurance serves an essential governmental function and that its income accrues to the state. The association was…
PLR 201005023: Controlled foreign corporation income qualifies for the RIC gross-income test
The IRS ruled that a regulated investment company may treat its share of Subpart F income from a wholly owned controlled foreign corporation as qualifying income under IRC § 851(b)(2). The fund…
PLR 201005022: Proxy arrangement does not prevent required stock ownership for tax tests
A parent corporation planned to distribute the stock of two subsidiaries to its shareholder in transactions intended to qualify under IRC § 355. One subsidiary's stock was subject to a proxy…
PLR 201005021: Late S corporation election may be treated as timely
The shareholders of a corporation intended for it to be an S corporation, but the corporation did not timely file Form 2553. The IRS concluded that the corporation had reasonable cause for the late…
PLR 201005020: Late S corporation election may be treated as timely
A corporation's shareholder intended to elect S corporation status, but Form 2553 was not timely filed. The IRS concluded that the corporation had reasonable cause for the late election and was…
PLR 201005019: Hold Constant Principle may be used to identify ownership changes
A consolidated group that had tax losses wanted to identify ownership shifts and change dates for purposes of IRC § 382. The group proposed a Hold Constant Principle that treats a five-percent…
PLR 201005018: Facility lease income qualifies under the publicly traded partnership exception
A publicly traded limited partnership planned to lease a permanently installed facility used to receive, store, and distribute a product. The IRS concluded that the facility was an inherently…
PLR 201005017: Domestic processing of imported biodiesel material qualifies for the mixture credit
A biodiesel producer planned to import fatty acid methyl ester material that did not meet the ASTM D6751 specification, process it domestically until it met that specification, and blend it with…
PLR 201005016: Interest on restricted construction funds is portfolio income
An S corporation’s subsidiaries borrowed funds to pay license fees and construct facilities, then held much of the borrowed money in interest-bearing accounts until needed. The IRS concluded that…
PLR 201005015: Cooperative cash advances qualify as per-unit retain allocations
A nonexempt farmers’ cooperative marketed products grown by its members and paid members cash advances under several delivery and pricing arrangements. The IRS ruled that the advances were per-unit…
PLR 201005014: Work clothing and accessories qualify as de minimis fringe benefits
A political subdivision provided work-related clothing and accessories to employees, including shirts, jackets, pants, safety items, and equipment bags. The IRS ruled that the items were excluded…
PLR 201005013: Proposed split-off reorganization receives multiple tax rulings
A closely held corporation planned to transfer assets to three newly formed controlled corporations and distribute each controlled corporation’s stock to different shareholder groups in exchange for…
PLR 201005012: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005011: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005010: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005009: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005008: Extension granted for partnership election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a partnership for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under the…
PLR 201005007: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005006: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005005: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005004: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005003: Extension granted for disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity intended to be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes but inadvertently failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the requirements for relief under…
PLR 201005002: Intertie transfer treated as a capital contribution
A power producer planned to transfer an intertie and possibly cash for related construction to a public utility. The utility asked whether the transfer would be a contribution in aid of construction…
Withholding credit verification when an ITIN and SSN mismatch
This Chief Counsel Advice addresses an undocumented worker who cannot obtain a Social Security number, uses an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number to file a return, and has wage withholding…
Section 6229(d) applies to an open period when an FPAA is issued
This Chief Counsel Advice states that § 6503 applies to statutory notices, not final partnership administrative adjustments (FPAAs). It states that § 6229(d) applies to a partner's § 6501 period…
Partnership-level and partner-level treatment of flow-through losses
This Chief Counsel Advice addresses how to challenge a flow-through loss from a tier-one partnership and a loss involving an affected item under IRC § 469. The advice states that the tier-one…
Assessment period must remain open for an affected partner year
This Chief Counsel Advice states that there is no statute of limitations for issuing an FPAA. It advises that the assessment limitations period must remain open for at least one partner tax year…
Jointly liable spouse may agree to close a deceased partner's case
This Chief Counsel Advice addresses closing a partnership case after a partner's death. It states that when the partner's husband filed a joint return and is jointly and severally liable, the IRS…
Technical termination and the partnership representative
This Chief Counsel Advice considers whether a partner in a new partnership could serve as the tax matters partner for the old partnership after a technical termination. It states that § 708 appears…
Federal law determines whether a person is a partner
This Chief Counsel Advice states that whether a person is a partner is an issue of federal law under § 761. It applies the Supreme Court standards from Culbertson and Tower. A person who contributes…
FPAA treatment of tier-partner gain and withholding issues
This Chief Counsel Advice addresses TEFRA treatment of a capital-gain reporting failure, related penalties, and withholding by a TEFRA LLC. It states that the gain and related penalties would be…
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.