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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Partnership receives 120 days to make a late section 754 election
A limited liability company taxed as a partnership intended to elect under section 754 to adjust the basis of partnership property. It inadvertently omitted a properly executed election from the…
Hotel owner receives relief for a late first-year REIT election
A limited liability company was formed to acquire and indirectly own hotel properties in several states and always intended to elect REIT status for its first tax year. Its governing agreement…
Fund-of-funds RICs receive 90 days to make late foreign-tax elections
Several regulated investment companies in a fund-of-funds structure failed to elect under section 853 to pass through foreign taxes paid by underlying funds to their sole shareholder, a life…
Estate receives extra time to opt out of automatic GST exemption allocations
A taxpayer created twelve grantor retained annuity trusts whose remaining assets passed to a family trust after the retained annuity terms ended. The taxpayer intended not to allocate…
Office-building company receives 90 days to make late REIT election
A limited liability company that owned an office building intended to elect real estate investment trust status for its initial short tax year. Its outside accounting firm could not electronically…
Partnership receives 120 days to make late section 754 election
A general partnership failed to make a section 754 election for the year in which one of its partners died. It represented that the omission was inadvertent, that it acted reasonably and in good…
Estate receives 120 days to make late portability election
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The decedent's gross estate was represented to be…
Estate gets 120-day extension for portability election
An estate did not timely file Form 706 to transfer the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion to the surviving spouse. The decedent's estate was represented to be below the basic exclusion amount,…
Late estate tax filing may elect portability within 120 days
An estate failed to file Form 706 by the deadline for electing portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the decedent's gross estate…
Estate receives late portability relief despite missed Form 706
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline needed to pass the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion to the surviving spouse. It represented that the gross estate, after accounting for lifetime…
Estate may file late return to preserve surviving spouse's exclusion
An estate missed the Form 706 deadline for electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. It represented that the decedent's gross estate, including taxable gifts, was below…
Estate gets extra time to transfer unused exclusion to spouse
An estate failed to file Form 706 on time to elect portability of the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion to the surviving spouse. The decedent's gross estate, including taxable gifts, was…
Estate receives reverse QTIP relief and approval for related trust divisions
A revocable trust directed a marital bequest to be split between a GST-exempt marital trust and a nonexempt marital trust based on the decedent's available GST exemption. The estate's attorney did…
Estate receives 120 days for missed portability filing
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the decedent's gross estate, after considering taxable gifts, was below the…
Foreign entity receives 120 days to file late corporate classification election
A foreign eligible entity intended to be classified as an association taxable as a corporation from a redacted effective date. It inadvertently failed to file Form 8832 on time. The entity…
Estate receives extension to elect portability for surviving spouse
An estate failed to timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion. The decedent's gross estate was represented to be below the basic exclusion amount, and…
Consolidated group receives 60 days to elect extended NOL carryback
A consolidated corporate group incurred a consolidated net operating loss that it wanted to carry back for the extended three-, four-, or five-year period formerly available under section…
Surviving spouse receives time to file estate's portability election
A surviving spouse acting for an estate discovered that Form 706 had not been filed by the deadline for electing portability. The estate represented that the decedent's gross estate was below the…
Estate may make late portability election within 120 days
An estate did not file the estate tax return required to elect portability for the surviving spouse by the original deadline. It represented that the decedent's gross estate, including taxable…
Missed portability election receives 120-day filing extension
An estate missed the Form 706 deadline for electing portability of the decedent's unused exclusion to the surviving spouse. It represented that the gross estate, including taxable gifts, was below…
Late portability filing approved for estate below filing threshold
An estate failed to file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability for the surviving spouse. It represented that the decedent's gross estate, including taxable gifts, remained below the basic…
Estate receives 120-day extension to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount to the surviving spouse. The spouse, acting as executrix, represented that the gross…
Estate receives 120 days to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that the gross estate, including…
Tax-professional error supports late portability relief
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that it was below the filing…
Reliance on tax professional supports portability extension
An estate failed to file Form 706 by the deadline needed to elect portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that it was below the…
Estate gets portability relief after professional oversight
An estate did not timely file Form 706 to elect portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. It represented that the estate was below the section 6018(a)…
Professional reliance permits late portability election
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. It represented that the estate was below the section…
Late success-based fee election statement allowed
A company acquired all the stock of a target and incurred success-based advisory fees. Its return reflected the Rev. Proc. 2011-29 safe harbor by capitalizing 30% of those fees and treating 70% as…
Estate receives 120-day portability extension
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused exclusion amount for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that it was below the section 6018(a)…
Pre-discovery request supports portability relief
An estate failed to file Form 706 by the deadline for electing portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. It represented that the estate was below the…
Late section 336(e) election receives conditional relief
A purchaser acquired all the stock of an S corporation target in a transaction represented to be a qualified stock disposition. The parties intended to make a section 336(e) election, but the…
Surviving spouse receives portability election relief
A surviving spouse serving as executor missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion. The executor represented that the gross estate was…
Acquisition fee safe-harbor election gets 60-day extension
A taxpayer incurred a contingent financial-adviser fee in acquiring an early-childhood education company. Internal information failures caused the tax department and outside accounting firm to treat…
Unusual circumstances allow late Form 3115
A construction contractor changed its accounting method for prepaid insurance expenses under the automatic-change procedures. Its timely S corporation return reflected the new method, referenced…
Professional error permits late portability filing
An estate failed to file Form 706 by the deadline for electing portability of the decedent's unused estate-tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The estate represented that it was below the…
Parent group gets 60 days for consolidated return election
A parent corporation acquired another affiliated group, whose members then joined the parent's group. The parent intended to elect consolidated-return treatment for the first applicable year but did…
Foreign entity gets late disregarded classification election
A foreign eligible entity's indirect owner intended the entity to be disregarded for federal tax purposes from its formation date. The entity failed to file Form 8832 on time. The IRS concluded that…
Foreign entity receives late disregarded status relief
A foreign eligible entity's owner intended the entity to be disregarded for federal tax purposes from its formation date. The entity failed to file Form 8832 on time. The IRS concluded that the…
Foreign entity gets late disregarded classification election
A foreign eligible entity's owner intended the entity to be disregarded for federal tax purposes from its formation date. The entity failed to file Form 8832 on time. The IRS concluded that the…
Mortgage servicer receives late safe-harbor election relief
A mortgage-banking group sold loans while retaining mortgage servicing rights and applied the Revenue Procedure 91-50 safe-harbor rates to determine reasonable servicing compensation. The group and…
Foreign entity receives late disregarded-status election relief
A foreign eligible entity failed to file Form 8832 on time to be treated as a disregarded entity from its formation date. It represented that it acted reasonably and in good faith and that relief…
Foreign entity receives late disregarded-status election relief
A foreign eligible entity failed to file Form 8832 on time to be treated as a disregarded entity from its formation date. It represented that it acted reasonably and in good faith and that relief…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate missed the deadline to file Form 706 and elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion. The estate represented that it was below the filing threshold and…
Corporation receives late IC-DISC election relief
A newly formed domestic corporation intended to elect interest charge DISC status for its first tax year. Its advisers prepared Form 4876-A, but the form was not signed or filed within 90 days after…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion. It represented that the estate, including lifetime taxable gifts,…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the first decedent's unused estate and gift tax exclusion for the surviving spouse. The executor represented that the estate,…
Estate receives more time to complete a portability election
An estate missed the Form 706 deadline for electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion, then filed the return late. The executor represented that the estate…
Consolidated group receives late basis-reduction election relief
Two foreign subsidiaries intended to make a joint IRC § 362(e)(2)(C) election for a transfer of loss property that was intended to qualify under IRC § 351. The election would reduce the transferor's…
Corporation receives late IC-DISC election relief
A domestic corporation was formed to operate as an interest charge DISC and hired an accounting firm to prepare Form 4876-A. The firm prepared the form, but the corporation failed to file it because…
Estate receives more time to complete a portability election
An estate missed the Form 706 deadline for electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion, then filed the return late. The surviving spouse, acting as executor,…
REIT and subsidiary receive late TRS election relief
A real estate investment trust and its wholly owned corporation intended to file Form 8875 to elect taxable REIT subsidiary status, but personnel turnover at their investment adviser caused the…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion. It represented that the estate, including lifetime taxable gifts,…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion. The executor represented that the estate, including lifetime…
Donor receives more time to opt out of automatic GST allocations
A donor made transfers to one trust with generation-skipping potential and two trusts for grandchildren. The accounting firm preparing Form 709 incorrectly reported the first transfer as a direct…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion. It represented that the estate, including lifetime taxable gifts,…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion. The personal representative represented that the estate was below…
Estate receives more time to elect portability
An estate did not file Form 706 by the deadline to elect portability of the deceased spouse's unused estate and gift tax exclusion. It represented that the estate, including lifetime taxable gifts,…
Late IC-DISC election receives 60-day extension
A domestic corporation intended to elect interest charge domestic international sales corporation status from its formation. Its accounting firm prepared Form 4876-A, but a misunderstanding resulted…
Estate receives extension for farmland special-use valuation election
An estate intended to elect special-use valuation for farmland under section 2032A. Acting on counsel's advice, the executor requested automatic relief with the estate tax return but failed to meet…
Estate receives extension to elect portability
An estate below the estate-tax filing threshold failed to file Form 706 by the deadline for electing portability of the deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount. The surviving spouse, acting as…
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.