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 200542040: IRA rollover deadline waived after funds entered wrong account
A woman intending to move her IRA investments deposited the distribution check into a regular joint account instead of an IRA. The check did not identify the funds as an IRA distribution, and she…
PLR 200542039: IRA rollover deadline waived after mistaken withdrawal
A former employee moved a retirement plan benefit into an IRA so she could invest in an external hedge fund. She understood from the custodian that the IRA could hold that investment, but the form…
PLR 200542038: Broker's failure to transfer stock earns IRA rollover relief
An IRA owner withdrew money and bought stock, then instructed a broker to move the shares into a newly opened IRA. The stock certificate identified the owner with the letters “IRA,” but the broker…
PLR 200542037: Paying district judge for foundation board service is not self-dealing
A private foundation paid a district court judge who also served as one of its officers and directors. The foundation asked whether his public position made the payments self-dealing under the…
PLR 200542036: Foundation's historic site grant set aside counts as distribution
A private foundation planned to set aside a grant for a public charity restoring a historic site, including a museum and visitor center. The foundation expected the project to need community…
CCA 200542035: Forward contract disclosure does not prevent six year assessment period
A partnership received advance payments under stock forward contracts but reported no gross income for the year. Its return listed the contract proceeds as a liability and identified a “forward sale…
CCA 200542034: Return record penalty depends on who employed the preparer
An S corporation and its sole shareholder prepared tax returns but did not provide the IRS with the requested copies or client list for many returns. Chief Counsel advised that the section 6695(d)…
PLR 200542033: Business park rents are not passive investment income for S status
An S corporation operated a business park and rented its buildings mainly as office space. Through contractors, it provided extensive maintenance, security, tenant, and leasing services and incurred…
PLR 200542032: Auctioning transmission rights does not change public bond status
A public agency's bonds financed electric transmission facilities whose capacity was managed through an independent system operator. The operator planned to auction one year firm transmission rights…
PLR 200542031: S corporation status restored after trust kept shares too long
An S corporation's shares remained in a grantor trust more than two years after one of its owners died, beyond the period that trust could remain an eligible S corporation shareholder. The trust…
PLR 200542030: Late GST exemption allocations allowed for trust gifts
Two people made gifts to irrevocable trusts but their longtime attorney overlooked some gift tax returns and notices allocating generation skipping transfer tax exemption. One person's allocation to…
PLR 200542029: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542028: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542027: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542026: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542025: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542024: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542023: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542022: Late election to restore stock value gets 45 day extension
A parent corporation and its foreign subsidiary missed the deadline for an election to restore subsidiary stock value in computing a section 382 net operating loss limit. They said they relied on a…
PLR 200542021: Corporation gets more time to file its S election
A corporation intended to elect S corporation status when it was formed, but it missed the deadline to file Form 2553. The IRS found reasonable cause for the late filing under section 1362(b)(5). It…
PLR 200542020: LLC gets more time for corporate classification and S elections
A single member LLC intended to be taxed as an S corporation from its formation date but missed the deadlines for both Form 8832, which elects corporate classification, and Form 2553, which elects S…
PLR 200542019: Duty injury disability benefits excluded from income
A police officer received disability retirement benefits after an injury sustained in the line of duty. The benefits were payable under a city statute for service connected disability and were not…
PLR 200542018: Group gets 45 days to file dual consolidated loss paperwork
Two corporations in a consolidated group missed election agreements and annual certifications tied to losses of a foreign subsidiary treated as a disregarded entity for U.S. tax purposes. They…
PLR 200542017: Expatriate avoids tax motive presumption, purpose undecided
An individual born in a foreign country elected under a treaty to be treated as a resident there and asked the IRS to rule that avoiding U.S. taxes was not a principal purpose. His net worth…
PLR 200542016: Corporation may reelect S status before five year wait ends
A corporation revoked its S corporation election, then sold all its stock to new shareholders. It asked for permission to elect S status again before the five year waiting period under section…
PLR 200542015: Line of duty disability payments excluded from income
A police officer was permanently disabled by a line of duty injury and received disability retirement benefits under a borough ordinance. The ordinance limited these benefits to officers disabled in…
PLR 200542014: Late request to change tax year treated as timely
A taxpayer filed Form 1128 late to change its tax year end from March 31 to December 31. The late filing resulted from an error or misunderstanding, and the taxpayer sought relief within 90 days of…
PLR 200542013: S corporation restructuring qualifies as an F reorganization
The owners of an S corporation proposed moving its stock into a new company that would elect corporate classification and S status. The old corporation would become a qualified S subsidiary; the new…
PLR 200542012: Eleven mergers and reverse stock split qualify as reorganizations
Eleven closely held holding companies proposed merging simultaneously into another company, which would also carry out a reverse stock split. The IRS ruled that each merger would qualify as a type A…
PLR 200542011: Business split qualifies as a type D reorganization
An S corporation proposed transferring the assets of one location of its business to a subsidiary, then giving all the subsidiary's stock to one shareholder in exchange for her stock in the original…
PLR 200542010: Corporation gets more time to file its S election
A corporation intended to elect S corporation status when it was formed, but it missed the deadline to file Form 2553. The IRS found reasonable cause for the late filing under section 1362(b)(5). It…
PLR 200542009: Business spin off receives nonrecognition rulings
A publicly traded holding company proposed distributing all the stock of a subsidiary to its shareholders so the subsidiary's business could operate separately. The IRS ruled that the contribution…
PLR 200542008: Late S and subsidiary elections receive 60 day relief
A corporation intended to elect S status and to treat two subsidiaries as qualified subchapter S subsidiaries from the same effective date. The IRS had no record of a timely Form 2553, and valid…
PLR 200542007: IRA stockholding does not end S treatment after relief
An S corporation mistakenly issued stock to an IRA, which was an ineligible shareholder, instead of to an individual. It redeemed the IRA's stock after discovering the error and said its…
PLR 200542006: Investment fund merger qualifies as a type C reorganization
One regulated investment company transferred substantially all its assets and liabilities to another fund in exchange for shares, distributed those shares to its own shareholders, and liquidated.…
PLR 200542005: Investment fund merger qualifies as a type C reorganization
A regulated investment company transferred substantially all its assets and liabilities to a newly formed fund in exchange for shares, distributed those shares to its own shareholders, and…
PLR 200542004: Corporation gets more time to file its S election
A corporation intended to elect S corporation status when it was formed, but it missed the deadline to file Form 2553. The IRS found reasonable cause for the late filing under section 1362(b)(5). It…
PLR 200542003: Corporation gets more time to file its S election
A corporation intended to elect S corporation status but missed the deadline to file Form 2553. The IRS found reasonable cause for the late filing under section 1362(b)(5). It ruled that the…
PLR 200542002: Company may change its foreign currency rate convention
A domestic corporation wanted to change the exchange rate it used for ordinary business payables and receivables denominated in foreign currency. Its proposed monthly rate averaged a spot rate and a…
PLR 200542001: Developer's utility payments count as taxable construction aid
A developer paid an electric utility to bury lines around a building site and planned to pay for a connection to an existing underground line. The perimeter lines were not needed to serve the…
PLR 200541050: Home purchase IRA withdrawal denied rollover extension
A retiree withdrew money from an IRA to buy a new home before selling his old one. He said an investment adviser had given him incorrect information about borrowing from an IRA and the time allowed…
PLR 200541049: Undelivered plan check gets rollover deadline waiver
A former employee did not receive a retirement plan distribution check mailed to an outdated address. After the employer reissued the check, the employee sought to roll it into a current employer's…
PLR 200541048: Tribal police contributions preserve governmental plan status
A federally recognized tribe's police department asked whether its officers could join a state retirement plan without jeopardizing the plan's governmental status. State law authorized the…
PLR 200541047: Pension contribution reversion can preserve plan qualification
An employer sought approval to recover contributions made to a qualified defined benefit plan for a specified plan year. The IRS treated the contributions as disallowed to the extent they were not…
PLR 200541046: Pension contribution reversion can preserve plan qualification
An employer sought approval to recover contributions made to a qualified defined benefit plan for a specified plan year. The IRS treated the contributions as disallowed to the extent they were not…
PLR 200541045: Pension contribution reversion can preserve plan qualification
An employer sought approval to recover contributions made to a qualified defined benefit plan for a specified plan year. The IRS treated the contributions as disallowed to the extent they were not…
PLR 200541044: Prosecutor education nonprofits may merge without losing exemption
Three tax exempt organizations serving prosecutors planned to merge two organizations into a surviving membership organization, which would continue their training and research programs as operating…
PLR 200541043: Prosecutor education nonprofits may merge without losing exemption
Three tax exempt organizations serving prosecutors planned to merge two organizations into a surviving membership organization, which would continue their training and research programs as operating…
PLR 200541042: Prosecutor education nonprofits may merge without losing exemption
Three tax exempt organizations serving prosecutors planned to merge two organizations into a surviving membership organization, which would continue their training and research programs as operating…
PLR 200541041: Late duplicate accounting method form accepted
A partnership timely attached the original Form 3115 to its tax return to request an automatic depreciation accounting method change. Its accountant failed to send a signed duplicate to the IRS…
TAM 200541040: Stock linked debentures and shares form a tax straddle
A corporation held publicly traded stock and issued exchangeable senior debentures whose payments were linked to the value of some of those shares. The IRS technical advice concluded that the…
PLR 200541039: Late dual consolidated loss filings get 60 day extension
A corporation failed to file election agreements and annual certifications required by the dual consolidated loss rules for several tax years. Its former tax officers had not known of the filing…
PLR 200541038: Reformed spouse's trust allows estate tax deductions
After a surviving spouse elected against a will, state law created a trust paying the spouse income for life with the remainder going to charities. That trust did not qualify as a charitable…
PLR 200541037: Timberland swap qualifies despite planned tree cutting
An individual investor proposed exchanging old growth timberland with a related corporation for reproduction timberland of equal value. The corporation planned to cut timber on the land it received…
PLR 200541036: Utility relocation and connection payments are taxable construction aid
A developer paid an electric utility to move poles and lines needed for a highway expansion beside its development site and separately paid to connect to the relocated lines. The developer needed to…
PLR 200541035: Trust correction and late elections preserve intended S status
A corporation missed its S election and subsidiary elections, while a shareholder trust missed an electing small business trust election. The trust's appointment power also allowed beneficiaries…
PLR 200541034: Late S corporation election allowed for purchase date
A corporation was incorporated and then purchased, but its S corporation election was not filed on time for the purchase date. It asked the IRS for relief under section 1362(b)(5). The IRS found…
PLR 200541033: Equity fee qualifies as commission compensation
A publicly traded executive search company paid a covered employee part of a fee it received as stock warrants after placing an executive. The employee's share was set at the beginning of the…
PLR 200541032: Late S election allowed from incorporation
A corporation intended to elect S corporation status starting on its incorporation date but missed the filing deadline. It asked the IRS for relief under section 1362(b)(5). The IRS found reasonable…
PLR 200541031: Unused trust withdrawal right creates no current GST addition
A beneficiary of an irrevocable trust could withdraw specified portions of its principal at certain ages, and unused withdrawal rights continued. The trustee asked whether leaving the available…
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.