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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An S corporation target received more time for a section 336(e) election
An individual purchased all stock of a limited liability company that had elected S corporation status. The target, seller, and purchaser intended to elect under section 336(e) to treat the…
Foreign earned income elections do not block qualified Roth contributions
A qualified defined contribution plan covered U.S. citizens working abroad and allowed participants to designate elective deferrals as Roth contributions. The plan asked whether employees could make…
Six foreign entities received late disregarded-entity election relief
Six foreign eligible entities defaulted to association status when their classifications first became relevant for U.S. tax purposes. Each intended to be treated as a disregarded entity from a…
A foreign entity received a late partnership-classification election
A foreign eligible entity wanted partnership treatment from the date its classification first became relevant for U.S. tax purposes. It failed to timely file Form 8832 electing that classification.…
Partnership-style operating terms did not end intended S corporation treatment
A limited liability company elected S corporation status while its operating agreement still contained partnership-style allocation and distribution provisions. Those binding terms created more than…
A foreign company received a late partnership election with return-filing conditions
A foreign eligible entity intended to be classified as a partnership but failed to timely file Form 8832. The IRS concluded that the entity satisfied the standards for late regulatory-election…
A fund received 45 days to make a late QOF self-certification
A partnership was formed to invest in qualified opportunity zone property and hired an accounting firm to prepare its return and Form 8996. Because of the firm's miscommunication, the first-year…
A partnership received 45 days to cure a missed QOF certification
A partnership intended to operate as a qualified opportunity fund and hired one accounting firm for consulting and tax compliance. The firm's consulting team knew about the QOF plan, but a…
Third-party revenue changes did not disturb a conduit-income agreement
A brand-management subsidiary collected licensee payments for a pooled fund restricted to marketing and other activities benefiting the licensees. An earlier consent agreement allowed those licensee…
Corrected ruling preserved S status after a trust became ineligible
This letter modified and superseded PLR 202218004 to correct facts about a reorganization and the period covered by inadvertent-termination relief. After a shareholder died, S corporation stock…
A successor LLC received more time for a section 336(e) election
A partnership purchaser acquired all stock of an S corporation through disregarded entities, after which the target merged into a successor disregarded LLC. The parties intended to elect under…
A corporation received 60 days to file a success-fee safe-harbor election
A corporation acquired a business in a merger intended to qualify as a tax-free reorganization and paid contingent fees that became due only when the transaction closed. It timely filed its return…
An S corporation received 120 days to make a late QSub election
An S corporation owned all stock of a domestic subsidiary and intended to treat it as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary from a specified date. Through inadvertence, the parent failed to file Form…
An S corporation received late QSub election relief
An S corporation owned all outstanding stock of a domestic subsidiary and intended to treat it as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary from a specified date. The parent inadvertently failed to file…
A REIT and hotel subsidiary received 90 days for a late TRS election
A company intended to elect REIT status and formed a wholly owned corporate subsidiary to lease a hotel and hire an eligible independent contractor to operate it. The parent and subsidiary intended…
A partnership received 45 days to file its missed QOF election and return
Two members formed a limited liability company to operate as a qualified opportunity fund and invested gains that the company placed into an opportunity-zone real estate business. Their longtime…
Decanting a grandfathered trust preserved its GST exemption
A grantor created an irrevocable descendants' trust before September 25, 1985, and no later additions were made, so it was exempt from generation-skipping transfer tax. The trustee proposed moving…
Trust-held interest payments remain subject to reporting and backup withholding
A program paid taxable interest directly to beneficiaries from accounts held in a trust and filed Forms 1099-INT. Many recipients had missing or incorrect taxpayer identification numbers, but the…
A partnership received retroactive QEF elections for thirteen PFIC funds
A domestic partnership invested across thirteen sub-funds of a foreign umbrella investment company. Its experienced tax adviser had access to the funds' records but failed to identify the sub-funds…
A partnership received retroactive QEF elections for twenty-one PFIC funds
A domestic partnership invested in twenty-one sub-funds of a foreign umbrella investment company over two years. Its experienced tax adviser had access to the relevant records but failed to identify…
A partnership received 120 days to make a late section 754 election
After a member died, a partnership and its lower-tier partnerships intended to make section 754 elections so transferred interests would receive basis adjustments under section 743. The…
A parent partnership received late section 754 election relief
Following a member's death, a partnership and its lower-tier partnerships intended to make section 754 elections to obtain basis adjustments under section 743. The partnership's representative…
A partnership received late section 754 election relief
A partner died while owning an interest in a partnership, but the partnership did not file a section 754 election with its timely return because its tax adviser failed to explain the election and…
A partnership received more time to make a section 754 election
A partnership redeemed two partners during a taxable year but did not file a section 754 election because it mistakenly believed a valid election was already in effect. After discovering the error,…
An LLC received relief to become a disregarded entity
An LLC had elected S corporation status and was later treated as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary. Its corporate parent then transferred all of the LLC interests to an entity treated as a…
The IRS revoked a social welfare organization's exemption
The IRS revoked an organization's section 501(c)(4) tax exemption after it repeatedly failed to provide records needed for an examination. The organization also failed to file required annual and…
Foreign entity received 120 days to file a late disregarded-entity election
A foreign entity wanted to be treated as disregarded from its single owner for U.S. federal tax purposes beginning when its classification first became relevant, but it missed the deadline to file…
Housing partnership received extra time to defer its credit period
A partnership acquired and rehabilitated a building for low-income rental housing. It intended to begin the ten-year low-income housing credit period in the year after the building was placed in…
S corporation kept its status after fixing a second class of stock
An S corporation issued stock to a second shareholder, and the shareholders signed an agreement that allowed unequal rights to distributions and liquidation proceeds. That binding agreement created…
S corporation received relief after a trust missed its ESBT election
An S corporation's ownership interests were transferred to a trust whose trustees did not timely elect to treat it as an electing small business trust (ESBT). Because a trust must qualify as an…
Foundation received five more years to sell inherited business holdings
A private foundation inherited minority interests in a corporation and an LLC, creating excess business holdings under section 4943. Transfer restrictions, regulatory approval requirements,…
S corporation received 120 days to file a late QSub election
An S corporation acquired all the stock of a subsidiary and intended to treat it as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary (QSub) from the acquisition date. It did not timely file Form 8869 to make the…
S corporation received relief after two trusts used late ESBT dates
Shares of an S corporation were transferred to two trusts that were eligible to become electing small business trusts (ESBTs). Their trustees filed ESBT elections with an effective date later than…
Foundation's scholarship, prize, fellowship, and educational grants approved
A private foundation that promotes global citizenship asked to expand the ways it funds individuals. It proposed scholarships for students pursuing relevant studies, achievement awards for members…
Pension sponsor approved to use substitute mortality tables for three plans
A controlled group with six defined benefit pension plans asked to use substitute mortality tables for the combined male and female populations of three plans, including disabled participants. The…
Employer-related scholarships expanded to employees' children abroad
A private foundation had prior approval for an employer-related scholarship program and asked to expand it to dependent children of employees at affiliated companies outside the United States.…
Foundation received more time to build its scholarship headquarters
A private foundation previously received approval to set aside funds for an academy that would serve as headquarters and a workshop site for its scholarship program. The COVID-19 pandemic changed…
Pension sponsor approved to use substitute mortality tables for two plans
A controlled group asked to use substitute mortality tables for the combined male and female populations of two defined benefit plans, including disabled participants. The plans had transferred…
Contingent deferred annuity received favorable tax treatment
A taxpayer planned to buy a contingent deferred annuity linked to a separately owned taxable investment account. The taxpayer would retain ownership and control of the account, while the contract…
Insurer's contingent deferred annuity qualified under section 72
A life insurance company planned to issue a contingent deferred annuity linked to an individual's separately owned taxable investment account. The individual would retain control of the account,…
Insurer's contingent deferred annuity qualified under section 72
A life insurance company planned to issue a contingent deferred annuity linked to an individual's separately owned taxable investment account. The individual would retain control of the account,…
Insurer's contingent deferred annuity qualified under section 72
A life insurance company planned to issue a contingent deferred annuity linked to an individual's separately owned taxable investment account. The individual would retain control of the account,…
Estate received 120 days to make a late portability election
An estate was not otherwise required to file Form 706 because the decedent's gross estate and adjusted taxable gifts were below the filing threshold. The estate nevertheless needed a timely return…
Parties received extra time to complete a section 336(e) election
A purchaser acquired all the stock of an S corporation from its shareholder, and the parties intended to elect under section 336(e) to treat the qualified stock disposition as an asset disposition.…
S corporation received relief after four trusts missed ESBT elections
An S corporation shareholder transferred stock to a grantor trust. When the shareholder died, the trust remained an eligible S corporation shareholder for two years, but its trustee failed to make…
S corporation received 120 days to file a late QSub election
An S corporation intended to treat a wholly owned subsidiary as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary (QSub) but did not timely file Form 8869. It asked for an extension under Treasury Regulation §…
Foreign entity received 120 days to elect partnership status
A foreign eligible entity intended to be classified as a partnership for U.S. federal tax purposes but did not timely file Form 8832. It represented that it acted reasonably and in good faith and…
Real estate business received 60 days to make a late interest election
A real estate and investment advisory company intended to make the real property trade or business election that removes an electing business from the section 163(j) business-interest limitation.…
Partnership received 120 days to make a late section 754 election
A partnership timely filed its return for the year in which a partner died, but it inadvertently omitted a valid section 754 election to adjust the basis of partnership property. The IRS found that…
Partnership received 120 days to make a late section 754 election
A limited partnership missed a section 754 election for the year in which a partner died and the partner's interest was to pass to testamentary lifetime trusts. The partnership had relied on its…
LLC received 120 days to elect corporate tax status
A limited liability company reorganized in a second state and intended to be treated as an association taxable as a corporation from the reorganization date. It failed to file Form 8832 on time…
IRS approves a renewable college scholarship program
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve its procedures for renewable scholarships for high school seniors, graduates, and GED recipients entering undergraduate or vocational study. Applicants…
Pension plan receives ten-year substitute mortality table approval
A pension plan asked to use experience-based substitute mortality tables for male and female annuitants, including disabled participants, beginning November 1, 2022. The plan added 2019 experience…
IRS approves a litigation-related contingent set-aside
A private foundation was subject to a court order requiring a fiduciary to hold distributions otherwise payable to one beneficiary while litigation was pending. The funds had to remain invested with…
IRS approves a community scholarship program
A private foundation created a nonrenewable scholarship program honoring its founder and serving members of a large religious community, their children, and participants in the community's youth and…
IRS approves expanded international employee scholarships
A private foundation asked to expand an already approved employer-related scholarship program to children of employees of affiliated companies outside the United States. International awards would…
IRS revokes a treatment program's exemption for private benefit
The IRS revoked a treatment program's section 501(c)(3) status after concluding that it served private interests and allowed earnings to benefit insiders. The program charged for treatment but did…
Baseball umpire association denied 501(c)(3) reinstatement
A local baseball umpire association applied to reinstate its section 501(c)(3) exemption after an automatic revocation for missed annual filings. The IRS found that its articles did not limit its…
Social club loses exemption over public hall rentals
The IRS revoked a social club's section 501(c)(7) exemption after it regularly rented its facility to the general public. The club made the hall available on Saturdays, displayed signs advertising…
Charity loses exemption after failing to substantiate its overseas support activity
The IRS revoked a charity's section 501(c)(3) exemption after an examination produced too little information to establish how it operated. The organization said it supported an overseas educational…
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.