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 200243042: Estates receive time to allocate GST exemptions to family trust
A settlor funded a trust for children and grandchildren, and the settlor and spouse intended to split the gift and allocate their generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemptions. Their attorney…
PLR 200243041: Foreign company receives 60 days for disregarded entity election
A foreign private limited company intended to elect treatment as a disregarded entity for U.S. tax purposes but inadvertently failed to file Form 8832 on time. The IRS found that the requirements…
PLR 200243040: State retiree medical trust is part of the state and need not file a return
A state created a trust to hold and invest funds for a retiree medical benefit plan. A state retirement agency administered the plan, state employees ran the trust, and the state contributed as an…
PLR 200243039: Late GST allocation makes residence trust fully exempt
A taxpayer transferred a residence and money to a trust, retained its income and the right to live in the residence, and later saw part of the trust pass to grandchildren. The attorneys had not…
PLR 200243038: Late GST allocations allowed for nine years of trust gifts
A taxpayer and spouse established an irrevocable trust with separate shares for their four children. The taxpayer allocated generation-skipping transfer (GST) exemption to gifts in the first three…
PLR 200243037: GST allocation extension granted for nine years of trust gifts
A taxpayer and spouse established an irrevocable trust with separate shares for their four children. The taxpayer allocated generation-skipping transfer (GST) exemption to gifts in the first three…
PLR 200243036: Delayed corporate distribution and continuing guarantee leave prior rulings intact
A corporate group had an earlier ruling on a planned distribution of subsidiary stock under sections 355 and 368(a)(1)(D). Regulatory delays pushed the distribution past the expected date, and one…
PLR 200243035: Refinancing does not remove limits on carried-forward interest
A U.S. subsidiary had carried forward interest deductions disallowed under section 163(j) while its foreign parent guaranteed its debt. It later refinanced with unrelated lenders and ended the…
PLR 200243034: Bankruptcy injury trust receives settlement fund and loss rulings
A manufacturer reorganized in bankruptcy to settle personal injury and environmental claims tied to its products and former operations. Its plan transferred stock, cash, and future tax benefits to…
PLR 200243033: Current income payouts leave trust's GST inclusion ratio unchanged
A trust for a grandchild accumulated income and let its trustee make discretionary payments for the beneficiary's support. The parties proposed changing the trust to distribute all current income,…
PLR 200243032: Business spin-off before acquisition qualifies as reorganization
A publicly traded company planned to move one business into a new subsidiary and distribute that subsidiary's stock to its shareholders. The separation was needed before the subsidiary could acquire…
PLR 200243031: Foreign grantor trust's depositary shares generally lack U.S. estate situs
A nonresident alien created a revocable trust and served as its trustee. The trust held American depositary receipts representing stock of foreign corporations. The IRS ruled that the trust was…
PLR 200243030: Unnecessary QTIP election for credit shelter trust disregarded
An estate funded a credit shelter trust for the surviving spouse and a separate marital trust. Its executors made QTIP elections for both trusts on the estate tax return. The credit shelter trust…
PLR 200243029: Irish reinsurer qualifies for insurance premium excise tax treaty relief
An Irish reinsurance company asked whether premiums on U.S. risks could be exempt from the federal excise tax on foreign insurance premiums under the U.S.-Ireland tax treaty. It represented that it…
PLR 200243028: Business separation qualifies as tax free divisive reorganization
A corporation planned to put one of its two active businesses into a new corporation and distribute the new corporation's stock to its shareholders in proportion to their existing holdings. It…
PLR 200243027: Public company spin-off qualifies for section 355 treatment
A public company moved one of its businesses into a controlled corporation, sold less than 20 percent of that corporation's stock in an offering, and planned to distribute its remaining shares to…
PLR 200243026: Trust appointment preserves old GST exemption but creates taxable gift portions
A spouse planned to exercise a limited power of appointment over a trust created before September 25, 1985, moving its assets into trusts for a child and grandchildren. The IRS ruled that the…
PLR 200243025: Couple receives extension for rental real estate grouping election
A married couple filed a joint return without the statement needed to elect to treat all their rental real estate interests as one activity. One spouse represented that he qualified as a real…
PLR 200243024: Nuclear plant sale preserves qualified decommissioning fund treatment
Two utilities jointly sought rulings on a sale of a nuclear power plant, its decommissioning funds, and related liabilities. The IRS allowed the seller's qualified decommissioning fund assets to…
PLR 200243023: State agency's investment LLC qualifies for section 115 exclusion after amendment
A state agency formed an LLC to hold and manage investments, including real estate. The IRS found that the LLC's income came from an essential governmental function. After the LLC amended its…
PLR 200243022: Nuclear plant sale preserves qualified decommissioning fund treatment
Two utilities jointly sought rulings on a sale of a nuclear power plant, its decommissioning funds, and related liabilities. The IRS allowed the seller's qualified decommissioning fund assets to…
TAM 200243021: Wrongful death exemplary damages remain taxable income
A worker's surviving spouse received a share of exemplary damages from a wrongful death settlement and sought a refund, arguing that section 104(c) excluded the damages from income. The IRS advised…
CCA 200243020: Research expense allocation includes dividends from royalty paying affiliates
A multinational company allocated research expenses between U.S. and foreign income when calculating its foreign tax credit limit. It excluded dividends from controlled foreign corporations that…
CCA 200243019: Restricted consent keeps carryback assessment periods open
A corporation received tentative refunds after carrying losses and credits to earlier years. It had signed restricted consents extending the assessment periods for the loss years, covering…
PLR 200243018: Current income distributions preserve old trusts' GST exemption
A trust established before September 25, 1985, held four separate shares for grandchildren. The trustee and beneficiaries proposed a court approved amendment requiring each trust to distribute all…
PLR 200243017: Trust income amendment leaves GST exemption and inclusion ratio intact
A trust for a descendant held property contributed both before and after September 25, 1985, so only part of it was grandfathered from generation skipping transfer tax. The parties proposed a court…
PLR 200243016: Current income distributions preserve trust's GST exemption
A trust created for a descendant before September 25, 1985, accumulated income and allowed discretionary distributions. Its trustees and beneficiaries proposed asking a court to require current…
PLR 200243015: Income distribution amendment leaves trust's GST inclusion ratio unchanged
A trust created after September 25, 1985, accumulated income for a descendant and had a generation skipping transfer tax inclusion ratio above zero. The parties proposed a court approved change…
PLR 200243014: Income distribution amendment leaves trust's GST inclusion ratio unchanged
A trust created after September 25, 1985, accumulated income for a descendant and had a generation skipping transfer tax inclusion ratio above zero. The parties proposed a court approved change…
PLR 200243013: Income distribution amendment leaves trust's GST inclusion ratio unchanged
A trust created after September 25, 1985, accumulated income for a descendant and had a generation skipping transfer tax inclusion ratio above zero. The parties proposed a court approved change…
PLR 200243012: Income distribution amendment leaves trust's GST inclusion ratio unchanged
A trust created after September 25, 1985, accumulated income for a descendant and had a generation skipping transfer tax inclusion ratio above zero. The parties proposed a court approved change…
PLR 200243011: Income distribution amendment leaves trust's GST inclusion ratio unchanged
A trust created after September 25, 1985, accumulated income for a descendant and had a generation skipping transfer tax inclusion ratio above zero. The parties proposed a court approved change…
PLR 200243010: Current income distributions preserve old trusts' GST exemption
A trust established before September 25, 1985, held four separate shares for grandchildren. The trustee and beneficiaries proposed a court approved amendment requiring each trust to distribute all…
PLR 200243009: Trust income amendment leaves GST exemption and inclusion ratio intact
A trust for a descendant held property contributed both before and after September 25, 1985, so only part of it was grandfathered from generation skipping transfer tax. The parties proposed a court…
PLR 200243008: Current income distributions preserve old trusts' GST exemption
A trust established before September 25, 1985, held four separate shares for grandchildren. The trustee and beneficiaries proposed a court approved amendment requiring each trust to distribute all…
PLR 200243007: Trust income amendment leaves GST exemption and inclusion ratio intact
A trust for a descendant held property contributed both before and after September 25, 1985, so only part of it was grandfathered from generation skipping transfer tax. The parties proposed a court…
PLR 200243006: Current income distributions preserve trust's GST exemption
A trust created for a descendant before September 25, 1985, accumulated income and allowed discretionary distributions. Its trustees and beneficiaries proposed asking a court to require current…
PLR 200243005: Trust income amendment leaves GST exemption and inclusion ratio intact
A trust for a descendant held property contributed both before and after September 25, 1985, so only part of it was grandfathered from generation skipping transfer tax. The parties proposed a court…
PLR 200243004: Current income distributions preserve old trusts' GST exemption
A trust established before September 25, 1985, held four separate shares for grandchildren. The trustee and beneficiaries proposed a court approved amendment requiring each trust to distribute all…
CCA 200243003: Dividend withholding challenge lacks controlled commercial entity proof
A domestic corporation paid dividends without withholding tax to an entity ultimately owned by a foreign government. Examiners argued that the dividend recipient or the payer was a controlled…
PLR 200243002: Nonamortizable goodwill sold with business divisions is a capital asset
A corporate group sold parts of two business divisions in transactions treated as asset sales, allocating part of the sale prices to goodwill and going concern value. It represented that this…
PLR 200243001: Partnership and successor LLC may elect ESOP stock sale gain deferral
Two spouses contributed company shares to a partnership, which sold some shares to the company's employee stock ownership plan and planned later sales after converting to an LLC. The IRS ruled that…
PLR 200242047: Pooling a 403(b) plan's assets with other plans does not end its status
A nonprofit educational employer wanted to invest the assets of its section 403(b) arrangement through a common trust that also held assets of qualified plans, government plans, and individual…
PLR 200242046: Private foundation merger carries tax attributes to survivor
Two private foundations under the same effective control planned to merge, with one transferring all its assets to the survivor without payment. The IRS ruled that the transfer fell under section…
PLR 200242045: Private foundation merger carries tax attributes to survivor
Two private foundations under the same effective control planned to merge, with one transferring all its assets to the survivor without payment. The IRS ruled that the transfer fell under section…
PLR 200242044: Surviving spouse may roll inherited IRA proceeds into her own IRA
A deceased IRA owner's surviving spouse could withdraw the IRA proceeds from the trust named as beneficiary. She planned to put the remaining proceeds into an IRA in her own name within 60 days. The…
PLR 200242043: Pension plan receives a conditional minimum funding waiver
The IRS granted a conditional waiver of the minimum funding standard for a company's defined benefit pension plan for the year ended December 31, 2001. The company had net losses tied to customer…
PLR 200242042: Pension plan may not report negative unfunded liability
Trustees of a multiemployer pension plan asked to report unfunded actuarial liability as a negative number in its funding standard account because the plan's assets exceeded its accrued liability.…
PLR 200242041: School's limited land sale escapes unrelated business tax
A tax exempt religious school planned to sell three residential lots from land it had received by bequest more than 15 years earlier. It had never subdivided or sold campus land before, planned no…
CCA 200242040: Late jeopardy levy falls outside section 7429 review
Chief Counsel advised that section 7429 review covers jeopardy levies made less than 30 days after the IRS gives the first assessment and demand notice or first intent to levy notice. The levy here…
CCA 200242039: Limits on sharing tax shelter registration information with employees
Chief Counsel addressed what IRS staff may tell employees of an organization that filed a tax shelter registration form. Staff may make a limited disclosure of filing information when asking an…
CCA 200242038: Merchant mariners' union hall travel and incidental expense claims
Chief Counsel advised how to review merchant mariners' refund claims for travel to union halls to seek work and for incidental expenses aboard ships. Trips to a union hall require a case by case…
CCA 200242037: Trust refund claims and unreported beneficiary distributions
Chief Counsel advised how to handle a trust's amended return claiming a larger distribution deduction when beneficiaries had not reported matching income. The IRS could not reject the trust's refund…
CCA 200242036: False trust returns claiming lifetime Social Security tax refunds
Chief Counsel addressed Forms 1041 filed by purported trusts seeking refunds of an individual's lifetime Social Security tax withholding. The advice said to treat the forms as valid returns for…
PLR 200242035: Bankruptcy claims trust qualifies as a settlement fund
A company in Chapter 11 planned a court supervised trust to resolve present and future personal injury claims involving a redacted product. The IRS ruled that the trust would qualify as a settlement…
PLR 200242034: Trust appointment preserves generation skipping tax exemption
A trust became irrevocable before the effective date of the generation skipping transfer tax. A beneficiary later exercised a testamentary power of appointment, directing trust property into family…
PLR 200242033: Trust appointment preserves generation skipping tax exemption
A trust became irrevocable before the effective date of the generation skipping transfer tax. A beneficiary later exercised a testamentary power of appointment, directing trust property into family…
PLR 200242032: Family trust retains generation skipping tax exemption
A trust established before 1985 became irrevocable when its creator released a revocation power. A beneficiary later exercised a testamentary appointment power to direct half its property to a…
PLR 200242031: Trust appointment preserves generation skipping tax exemption
A trust became irrevocable before the effective date of the generation skipping transfer tax. A beneficiary later exercised a testamentary power of appointment, directing trust property into family…
PLR 200242030: Late GST exemption allocations allowed for two family trusts
A taxpayer made gifts to two irrevocable trusts for her children and their descendants but did not file gift tax returns or allocate generation skipping transfer tax exemption. Her attorneys had…
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.