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 treats an S corporation's election as continuing despite two missed trust elections
An S corporation accidentally lost its S status because two trusts that came to hold its stock never filed the elections needed to be eligible shareholders. After a shareholder died, his shares went i…
IRS approves a private foundation's grant procedures for teacher-retention educational grants
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, the way it plans to hand out educational grants to individuals. Private foundations normally owe an excise tax on grants to individuals for s…
IRS approves a poetry foundation's travel-expense grants for prize winners under § 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation, an independent literary organization devoted to poetry, asked the IRS to pre-approve the procedures for a grant program that pays the travel, meal, and lodging costs of people wh…
IRS approves a private foundation's scholarship and educational-grant procedures under § 4945(g)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve the procedures it will use to give money to individuals: scholarships for study at educational institutions, and grants for travel, study, or specific…
IRS revokes a 1023-EZ nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it stonewalled an audit
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit's section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. The organization had obtained exemption through the streamlined Form 1023-EZ, on which it simply attes…
IRS denies 501(c)(3) status to a general-public cemetery association
This is the IRS's final determination denying a cemetery organization's application to be recognized as a section 501(c)(3) charity. The organization applied using the streamlined Form 1023-EZ and des…
IRS revokes 501(c)(3) status for defective articles and a failed audit response
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit's section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, effective January 1, 2020. The revocation rests on two independent problems. First, the organizational…
IRS denies 501(c)(4) status to a members-only water-supply corporation
This is the IRS's final determination denying an organization's application to be recognized as a section 501(c)(4) social-welfare organization. The applicant is a nonprofit that owns and operates a w…
IRS revokes a "University" that never operated and whose funds a controller spent on himself
This is the IRS's determination revoking a section 501(c)(3) organization's exemption on two grounds: it never operated for an exempt purpose, and its money went to a person who controlled it. The org…
IRS disqualifies a self-declared 501(c)(4) "University" that never operated
This is the IRS's final determination that an organization does not qualify for tax exemption under section 501(c)(4) (the category for social-welfare organizations). Unlike most documents in this ser…
IRS revokes a cannabis "church" for illegal purpose and inurement to its two controllers
This is the IRS's final determination that an organization does not qualify as a section 501(c)(3) charity, with revocation effective back to a redacted date. The organization had claimed to be a chur…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it ignored an audit and ran a donation website
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). The organization's Certificate of Formation was properly drafted (it limited the cor…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after Washington dissolved it for fraud and it ignored an audit
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3), and it rests on an unusual ground. A Washington state court had involuntarily dissol…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it produced no records for an audit; its charter had lapsed and been reinstated
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). The organization was formed by three incorporators, and its articles were adequate (…
IRS revokes a one-director nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it produced no records for an audit
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). The organization was formed by a single incorporator who was also its only listed di…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it produced no records for an audit and was administratively dissolved
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). The organization's articles were adequate (a section stated it was organized exclusi…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it ignored an audit; its charter had lapsed and been reinstated
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). The organization's articles were adequate (an attachment limited its purposes to 501…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it acknowledged an audit but produced no records
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). The organization's articles of incorporation were adequate (they restricted its acti…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it refused to produce records for an audit
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). Unlike some revocations in this series, this organization's articles of organization…
IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status after it ignored an audit and never filed a required charter amendment
This is the IRS's final determination revoking a nonprofit corporation's tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3). The organization, whose name hinted at a link to a well-known charity network (it ha…
IRS grants a partnership 120 days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
When interests in a partnership change hands, a section 754 election lets the partnership adjust the tax basis of its assets to match what the new partner effectively paid, which can prevent that part…
IRS grants a foreign entity 120 days to make a late "check-the-box" election to be disregarded
Under the "check-the-box" rules, an eligible business entity can choose how it is taxed by filing Form 8832. A single-owner entity can elect to be "disregarded," meaning it is ignored for federal tax …
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit healthcare organization took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the emplo…
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit healthcare organization took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the emplo…
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit healthcare organization took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the emplo…
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit healthcare organization took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the emplo…
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit healthcare organization took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the emplo…
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit healthcare organization took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the emplo…
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit healthcare organization took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the emplo…
IRS grants 75 days to make a late § 336(e) election treating an S corporation stock sale as an asset sale
When a buyer purchases all the stock of a corporation, a section 336(e) election lets the parties treat the stock sale as if it were a sale of the company's underlying assets, which usually gives the …
IRS grants 75 days to make a late § 336(e) election treating an S corporation stock sale as an asset sale
When a buyer purchases all the stock of a corporation, a section 336(e) election lets the parties treat the stock sale as if it were a sale of the company's underlying assets, which usually gives the …
IRS grants 75 days to make a late § 336(e) election treating an S corporation stock sale as an asset sale
When a buyer purchases all the stock of a corporation, a section 336(e) election lets the parties treat the stock sale as if it were a sale of the company's underlying assets, which usually gives the …
IRS grants an estate 120 days to make a late § 2010(c)(5)(A) portability election
When someone dies, any unused portion of their federal estate-and-gift tax exemption can be passed to a surviving spouse, but only if the estate makes a "portability" election on a timely filed estate…
IRS lets a taxpayer reelect the § 911 foreign earned income exclusion early after a change of employers
A U.S. citizen living and working abroad had used the section 911 foreign earned income exclusion, which lets qualifying Americans overseas leave a chunk of their foreign wages off their U.S. tax retu…
IRS grants a late-filed REIT election under § 856(c) after the accounting firm missed the extension deadline
A limited liability company wanted to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (REIT), which requires making a formal election on a timely filed tax return. To elect as a REIT for its first year, th…
IRS denies 501(c)(3) status to a chamber of commerce because it operates for its members' common business interests
A small-town chamber of commerce applied to be recognized as a tax-exempt charity under section 501(c)(3). It had once held 501(c)(3) status through a streamlined Form 1023-EZ, but lost it automatical…
IRS pre-approves a foundation's college-mentoring scholarship and educational-grant procedures under § 4945(g)(1) and (g)(3)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve two kinds of individual grant programs: scholarships (under section 4945(g)(1)) and educational grants (under section 4945(g)(3)). When a private foun…
IRS pre-approves a foundation's scholarship and educational-grant procedures under § 4945(g)(1) and (g)(3)
A private foundation asked the IRS to pre-approve two kinds of individual grant programs: scholarships and fellowships (under section 4945(g)(1)) and broader educational grants (under section 4945(g)(…
IRS pre-approves a company foundation's employer-related scholarship program for employees' children under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation tied to a company asked the IRS to pre-approve its procedures for awarding scholarships to the children of the company's employees. This advance approval matters because a private…
IRS denies 501(c)(3) status to a technology-research consortium because it operates as a fee-for-service trade or business
An organization applied to be recognized as a tax-exempt charity under section 501(c)(3). It described itself as an "incubator" or consortium that links organizations needing research done with those …
The S portion of an ESBT may carry a net operating loss that passed through from its S corporation into another year
An electing small business trust (ESBT) is a special kind of trust allowed to own S corporation stock. For tax purposes it is split in two: the "S portion," which holds the S corporation stock and is …
A merged company gets 9100 relief and 60 days to make the late Rev. Proc. 2011-29 safe-harbor election for its investment banker's success fee
When a company is acquired, it often pays its investment banker a "success-based fee" that only comes due if the deal closes. Tax rules presume such fees are capitalized (not currently deductible) bec…
A fund whose advisor never filed Form 8996 gets 9100 relief and 60 days to self-certify as a Qualified Opportunity Fund
A limited liability company taxed as a partnership was formed to be a Qualified Opportunity Fund (QOF), the vehicle investors use to defer capital gains by investing in Opportunity Zones. Becoming a Q…
A second fund that missed the deadline to self-certify as a Qualified Opportunity Fund gets 9100 relief, so its late Form 8996 counts as timely
A limited liability company was set up to be a Qualified Opportunity Fund (QOF), the vehicle investors use to defer capital gains by investing them in Opportunity Zones. To become a QOF, an entity sel…
A fund that missed the deadline to self-certify as a Qualified Opportunity Fund gets 9100 relief, so its late Form 8996 counts as timely
A limited liability company was set up to be a Qualified Opportunity Fund (QOF), the vehicle investors use to defer capital gains by putting them into Opportunity Zones. To become a QOF, an entity sel…
A fourth employee who missed the split-dollar-loan written-representation deadline gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit hospital participated in a split-dollar life insurance plan the employer set up with an outside consulting firm. The employer made nonrecourse premium loans to th…
A third employee who missed the split-dollar-loan written-representation deadline gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit hospital took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up with an outside consulting firm. The employer made nonrecourse premium loans to the e…
A second employee who missed the split-dollar-loan written-representation deadline gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit hospital participated in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up with an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the employer made nonrecourse pre…
An employee who missed the deadline to sign the split-dollar-loan written representation gets 9100 relief, so his loan payments stay "noncontingent"
An employee of a tax-exempt nonprofit hospital took part in a split-dollar life insurance plan his employer set up on the advice of an outside consulting firm. Under the plan, the employer made premiu…
A publicly traded REIT's D&O insurance payouts are excluded from its income tests, so recovering litigation costs won't threaten REIT status
A publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) must keep its income mostly passive: at least 95% from listed sources like rents and interest, and at least 75% from real-estate sources. Income o…
A REIT's directors-and-officers insurance payouts are ignored for its income tests, so recovering litigation costs won't threaten REIT status
A real estate investment trust (REIT) has to keep most of its income "passive": at least 95% must come from listed sources like rents and interest, and at least 75% from real-estate sources. Income th…
A corporate group that missed the deadline to elect consolidated-return filing gets 75 extra days to make the election
A parent company heads an affiliated group of corporations that wanted to file a single consolidated federal income tax return, with the parent as common parent, for a given tax year. Making that choi…
Transferable development rights count as "like kind" to real estate, so they can be replacement property in a § 1031 exchange
A real estate partnership wanted to sell one property and, in a like-kind exchange under section 1031, use the proceeds to buy "transferable development rights" (TDRs). TDRs are zoning credits: they l…
After intangible-owning entities are brought back into the U.S. consolidated group, the § 367(d) "deemed royalty" payments are redetermined as excluded from income
A U.S. parent company heads a consolidated group. In earlier restructurings, the group had moved certain intangible property (patents, trademarks, know-how, and similar assets) offshore in tax-free co…
IRS pre-approves a foundation's grant program for high school teachers under § 4945(g)(3)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, procedures for a grant program (not tuition scholarships) that funds high school teachers' own projects. Under IRC § 4945(g)(3), a foundation…
IRS pre-approves a private foundation's need-based scholarship procedures under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, its scholarship award procedures. Private foundations owe an excise tax on grants to individuals for study unless the IRS approves the proced…
IRS pre-approves a private foundation's scholarship procedures for healthcare-field students under § 4945(g)(1)
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it awards scholarships. Private foundations owe an excise tax when they give money to individuals for study unless the IRS blesses the gr…
202334018: IRS revokes a nonprofit's 501(c)(3) status where its activities were fundraising and gaming, and it had gone inactive
A nonprofit corporation organized for charitable and scientific purposes (educating youth and the public, and raising money for related causes) had its § 501(c)(3) exempt status revoked. During the ye…
202334017: IRS revokes a group's 501(c)(3) status for paying "scholarships" only to members who worked its concession stands
An organization that had been recognized as a § 501(c)(3) public charity lost that status after an audit. Its main activity was supplying volunteers to work concession-stand-type events in exchange fo…
202334016: IRS revokes a youth-sports booster group's 501(c)(3) status for running individual fundraising accounts
A youth-sports booster organization had its § 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status revoked. Its main activity was fundraising, but it ran the money through individual accounts: after each fundraiser, the net p…
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.