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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Estate granted extra time to elect out of automatic GST-exemption allocation for 2010 gifts to grandchildren's trusts
When someone makes a "direct skip" gift (for example, to a grandchild or a trust for grandchildren), the tax law automatically uses up part of the giver's generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax…
Foreign entity granted extra time to make a late check-the-box election to be a disregarded entity
Under the "check-the-box" rules, a single-owner eligible entity can file Form 8832 to elect to be disregarded (treated as part of its owner) instead of being taxed as a corporation. Here a foreign…
Foreign entity granted extra time to make a late check-the-box election to be a disregarded entity
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 (treated as part of its owner) rather…
Late portability election granted so a surviving spouse can use the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion
Portability lets a surviving spouse add their late spouse's unused estate tax exclusion (the DSUE amount) to their own, but only if the deceased spouse's estate makes the election on a timely filed…
Buyer and seller of an S corporation get extra time to make a late Section 336(e) election treating the stock sale as an asset sale
A § 336(e) election lets the parties to certain stock sales treat the deal as if the company had sold its assets instead of its stock, which can give the buyer a stepped-up basis in the underlying…
Partnership granted extra time to make a late Section 754 basis-adjustment election after a partner's death
When a partner dies (or a partnership interest otherwise transfers), a partnership can make a § 754 election to adjust the basis of its assets so the new owner's inside basis matches what they…
Tax-free split-off of a family-owned S corporation's business into a new company distributed to one family branch
A closely held S corporation owned by two family branches wanted to separate its businesses so one branch could go its own way. It proposed a "split-off": the company would drop part of its assets…
S corporation's election treated as continuing after grantor trusts lost shareholder eligibility, because the termination was inadvertent
An S corporation can only have certain kinds of shareholders. A grantor trust qualifies while its deemed owner is alive, and it can stay an eligible shareholder for two years after that owner dies,…
Late portability election granted so a surviving spouse can use the decedent's unused estate tax exclusion
When someone dies, their estate can elect "portability," which lets the surviving spouse add the deceased spouse's unused estate tax exclusion (the DSUE amount) to their own. That election is made…
IRS grants advance approval of a foundation's scholarship program for parents and caregivers pursuing post-secondary education
A private foundation runs a scholarship program to help parents and caregivers in a particular area access post-secondary education (2- to 4-year colleges, trade, vocational, and certificate…
IRS grants advance approval of a foundation's first-year college scholarship program for local high school seniors
A private foundation runs a scholarship program helping graduating high school seniors from a specific area with their first-year college expenses. Grants to individuals can trigger an excise tax on…
IRS grants advance approval of a foundation's trade-school scholarship program for low-income high school seniors
A private foundation runs a scholarship program for graduating high school seniors from low-income households who want to train for a trade rather than attend a traditional college. Grants to…
IRS grants advance approval of a foundation's international scholarship program with a youth-mentoring requirement
A private foundation runs a scholarship program funding college, university, and vocational (TVET) study for qualifying students tied to a particular geographic region, with a distinctive "give…
Waiving the NOL carryback also waives the 10-year carryback for non-product specified liability losses
Under the version of IRC § 172 in effect before the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, certain "specified liability losses" (SLLs) could be carried back 10 years instead of the ordinary 2 years. SLLs came…
IRS grants extra time to file the duplicate copy of a Form 3115 accounting-method change
To change an accounting method under the IRS automatic-consent procedures, a taxpayer must file Form 3115 twice: the original with its tax return, and a duplicate copy with the IRS office in Ogden,…
IRS grants extra time for a corporate group to make a late election to file a consolidated return
An affiliated group of corporations can elect to file a single consolidated federal income tax return, but the election must be made by filing that consolidated return by the due date (including…
IRS grants extra time for a new consolidated group to elect to waive the loss-carryback period to its former parent's group
When companies leave one consolidated tax group and form or join another, their later net operating losses could normally be carried back to years when they belonged to the old group. A regulation…
IRS grants extra time to file the statement waiving family attribution so a stock redemption qualifies as a sale
When a corporation buys back (redeems) all of a shareholder's stock, the shareholder generally gets favorable sale-or-exchange treatment only if their interest is completely terminated. But tax…
IRS grants a partnership extra time to make a late Section 754 basis-adjustment election
A Section 754 election lets a partnership adjust the tax basis of its property when it distributes property or when a partnership interest is transferred, so a partner's inside basis better reflects…
IRS grants a late estate to make a portability election to preserve a deceased spouse's unused estate-tax exclusion
"Portability" lets a surviving spouse use the unused portion of a deceased spouse's estate-tax exclusion (the DSUE amount), but only if the deceased spouse's estate makes the election on a timely…
IRS again rules the electric-vehicle credit belongs to the party that buys and leases the cars, not the beneficial-interest holder
This is a companion ruling to PLR 202219006 and 202219007, with the same facts and the same result; here the corporation called Taxpayer submitted the request itself. The Section 30D credit for a…
IRS again rules the electric-vehicle credit belongs to the party that buys and leases the cars, not the beneficial-interest holder
This is a companion ruling to PLR 202219006, with the same facts and the same result, differing only in which trust submitted the request. The Section 30D credit for a new plug-in electric vehicle…
IRS rules the electric-vehicle credit belongs to the party that buys and leases the cars, not the beneficial-interest holder
The Section 30D credit for a new plug-in electric vehicle goes to the taxpayer who is the vehicle's original user and who acquires it for use or lease (not resale). Here, two statutory trusts bought…
IRS grants relief for an inadvertently invalid S corporation election and QSub election
An S corporation can have only one class of stock, meaning all shares must confer identical rights to distributions and liquidation proceeds. An LLC that had elected S corporation status adopted an…
IRS grants a lower-tier partnership extra time to make a late Section 754 basis-adjustment election
A Section 754 election lets a partnership adjust the tax basis of its property when a partner's interest transfers (including at a partner's death), so the new owner's inside basis matches what they…
IRS grants extra time for an LLC to file a late election to be taxed as a partnership instead of an S corporation
An LLC first elected to be taxed as an S corporation, effective its date of formation, then was advised to be a partnership instead. It tried to change its classification but, through inadvertence,…
IRS lets a consolidated group exclude two deferred intercompany gains from income after internal reorganizations
When members of a consolidated group sell or distribute property to each other, the resulting gain is generally deferred rather than taxed right away, and it comes back into income (a "deferred…
IRS grants a late-filing extension to let an LLC self-certify as a Qualified Opportunity Fund
To qualify as a Qualified Opportunity Fund (QOF), an entity must self-certify by filing Form 8996 with a timely filed tax return. An LLC taxed as a partnership, formed to invest in opportunity zone…
IRS grants advance approval of a foundation's grant procedures funding vocal study for program alumni
A private foundation makes grants to individual singers who are alumni of its program, funding summer study and young-artist programs (tuition, housing, travel, or private study with a voice teacher…
IRS grants advance approval of a foundation's scholarship and educational grant procedures
A private foundation runs two programs that pay money to individual students: a scholarship program for graduating high school students, and a broader educational grant program funding things like…
IRS grants advance approval of a foundation's procedures for scholarship grants supporting middle and high school students
A private foundation asked the IRS to approve, in advance, how it will award grants to individual students. The program supports middle and high school students by preparing them for post-secondary…
IRS grants advance approval of a private foundation's procedures for awarding medical research grants
A private foundation that wants to make grants to individuals for study or research normally risks an excise tax on those grants unless the IRS approves its grant-making procedures in advance. This…
IRS waives the 60-day deadline to roll over a 401(k) and IRA distribution after a serious illness
When you take money out of a 401(k) or an IRA, you normally have 60 days to put it into another retirement account, or the distribution becomes taxable income. A taxpayer here missed that 60-day…
Advance approval of a private foundation's grant procedures for an opera-singer training program
A private foundation runs a month-long training and coaching program for young opera singers, providing housing, meals, and coaching from opera-house professionals as they transition from…
501(c)(3) exemption denied to a legal-profession networking group operated for substantial non-exempt purposes
An organization for members of the legal profession (its members include judges, professors, prosecutors, and private and in-house attorneys) applied for tax-exempt charity status under § 501(c)(3)…
501(c)(3) exemption denied to an applicant that submitted implausible statements and apparently inauthentic documents
An organization that described itself as a trust engaged in religious and humanitarian activities applied for recognition as a tax-exempt charity under § 501(c)(3). The IRS denied the application.…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
An LLC gets 120 extra days to make a late "check-the-box" election to be disregarded
A single-member limited liability company had filed a valid "check-the-box" election (Form 8832) to be taxed as a corporation, effective on its formation date. Its sole owner later decided the…
A nuclear decommissioning fund transfers tax-free when a shut-down reactor is sold to a decommissioning specialist
An energy company owns a nuclear generating unit that has permanently shut down and is being decommissioned. It maintains a qualified nuclear decommissioning fund (a QDF) under § 468A, a tax-favored…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A lower-tier partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
This is a companion ruling to another § 754 relief request on the same facts. A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and the interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership…
A partnership gets 120 extra days to make a late § 754 basis-adjustment election
A partner in an upper-tier partnership died, and that partner's interest passed to his estate. A § 754 election lets a partnership adjust the inside basis of its assets when a partnership interest…
Investment advisory fees paid out of an annuity's cash value are not a taxable distribution to the owner
A life insurance company plans to offer non-qualified deferred annuity contracts designed to be managed with the help of an investment adviser. The owner authorizes the insurer to deduct the…
S corporation election restored after a trust failed to convert to a QSST and the company later merged away
This is a companion ruling on the same fact pattern as its two siblings. A small business corporation taxed as an S corporation had a shareholder die, and his stock passed to a testamentary trust.…
S corporation election restored after a botched QSST conversion, contingent on a late QSST election
A small business corporation taxed as an S corporation ran into the same trap addressed in its companion ruling. When a shareholder died, his stock passed to a testamentary trust, which may hold S…
An S corporation's election is restored after a trust failed to convert to a QSST
A small business corporation had elected to be taxed as an S corporation. When a shareholder died, his stock passed into a testamentary trust, which is only allowed to hold S corporation stock for…
A nuclear utility's spent-fuel storage costs count as "decommissioning costs" payable from its qualified fund
A public utility owns a majority interest in a nuclear plant with three reactors. For each reactor it maintains a qualified nuclear decommissioning reserve fund (a QNDRF) under § 468A, a fund whose…
Basis, retained-share, and debt-exchange rulings for a leveraged spin-off that splits one business from another
A corporate group wants to separate two lines of business (call them Business A and Business B) through a chain of steps: an internal split-off that moves a foreign subsidiary in exchange for…
A Blue Cross Blue Shield insurer's spin-off into a mutual holding company is tax-free and keeps its special § 833 status
A nonprofit, nonstock health insurance company (an existing Blue Cross Blue Shield organization) is the parent of a group of companies that files one consolidated federal tax return. It asked the…
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.