New Procedures for Exempt Organizations

The IRS has updated procedures regarding the request, issuance and appeal of determination letters and rulings on the exempt status of organizations under Code Secs. 501 and 521. These procedures apply to exempt organizations other than those relating to pension, profit-sharing, stock bonus, annuity and employee stock ownership plans. The updated procedures provide guidance on requesting determination letters, the steps taken in issuing determination letters, appealing determination letters, revoking determination letters and when an organization will have sufficiently exhausted administrative remedies allowing for a declaratory judgment proceeding under Code Sec. 7428. Included in the guidance is the new central address for the processing of exempt status applications, replacing the former system of district offices. However, some applications may be processed in other exempt organization (EO) offices or referred to EO Technical. Rev. Proc. 2007-52, I.R.B. 2007-30, 222, is superseded, and Rev. Proc. 76-34, 1976-2 CB 656, is supplemented.



Rev. Proc. 2008-9 , I.R.B. 2008-2, 258, January 14, 2008.[ Code Secs. 501, 507, 511, 521, 527, 4947, 7428 and Statement of Procedural Rules Sec. 601.201]


Exempt organizations: Exempt status: Application for exempt status: Procedures. --


TABLE OF CONTENTS


SECTION 1. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS REVENUE PROCEDURE?

.01 Description of terms used in this revenue procedure

.02 Updated annually

SECTION 2. NATURE OF CHANGES AND RELATED REVENUE PROCEDURES

.01 Rev. Proc. 2007-52 is superseded and the processing of applications is now centralized

.02 Related revenue procedures

SECTION 3. WHAT ARE THE PROCEDURES FOR REQUESTING RECOGNITION OF EXEMPT STATUS?

.01 In general

.02 User fee

.03 Form 1023 application

.04 Form 1024 application

.05 Letter application

.06 Form 1028 application

.07 Form 8871 notice for political organizations

.08 Requirements for a substantially completed application

.09 Terrorist organizations not eligible to apply for recognition of exemption

SECTION 4. WHAT ARE THE STANDARDS FOR ISSUING A DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING ON EXEMPT STATUS?

.01 Exempt status must be established in application and supporting documents

.02 Determination letter or ruling based solely on administrative record

.03 Exempt status may be recognized in advance of actual operations

.04 No letter if exempt status issue in litigation or under consideration within the Service

.05 Incomplete application

.06 Even if application is complete, additional information may be required

.07 Expedited handling

SECTION 5. WHAT OFFICES ISSUE AN EXEMPT STATUS DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING?

.01 EO Determinations issues a determination letter in most cases

.02 Certain applications referred to EO Technical

.03 Technical advice may be requested in certain cases

.04 Technical advice must be requested in certain cases

SECTION 6. WITHDRAWAL OF AN APPLICATION

.01 Application may be withdrawn prior to issuance of a determination letter or ruling

.02 § 7428 implications of withdrawal of application under § 501(c)(3)

SECTION 7. WHAT ARE THE PROCEDURES WHEN EXEMPT STATUS IS DENIED?

.01 Proposed adverse determination letter or ruling

.02 Appeal of a proposed adverse determination letter issued by EO Determinations

.03 Protest of a proposed adverse ruling issued by EO Technical

.04 Final adverse determination letter or ruling where no appeal or protest is submitted

.05 How EO Determinations handles an appeal of a proposed adverse determination letter

.06 Consideration by the Appeals Office

.07 If a protest of a proposed adverse ruling is submitted to EO Technical

.08 An appeal or protest may be withdrawn

.09 Appeal or protest and conference rights not applicable in certain situations

SECTION 8. DISCLOSURE OF APPLICATIONS AND DETERMINATION LETTERS AND RULINGS

.01 Disclosure of applications, supporting documents, and favorable determination letters or rulings

.02 Disclosure of adverse determination letters or rulings

.03 Disclosure to State officials when the Service refuses to recognize exemption under § 501(c)(3)

.04 Disclosure to State officials of information about § 501(c)(3) applicants

SECTION 9. REVIEW OF DETERMINATION LETTERS BY EO TECHNICAL

.01 Determination letters may be reviewed by EO Technical to assure uniformity

.02 Procedures for cases where EO Technical takes exception to a determination letter

SECTION 10. DECLARATORY JUDGMENT PROVISIONS OF § 7428

.01 Actual controversy involving certain issues

.02 Exhaustion of administrative remedies

.03 Not earlier than 270 days after seeking determination

.04 Service must have reasonable time to act on an appeal or protest

.05 Final determination to which § 7428 applies

SECTION 11. EFFECT OF DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING RECOGNIZING EXEMPTION

.01 Effective date of exemption

.02 Reliance on determination letter or ruling

SECTION 12. REVOCATION OR MODIFICATION OF DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING RECOGNIZING EXEMPTION

.01 Revocation or modification of a determination letter or ruling may be retroactive

.02 Appeal and conference procedures in the case of revocation or modification of exempt status letter

SECTION 13. EFFECT ON OTHER REVENUE PROCEDURES

SECTION 14. EFECTIVE DATE

SECTION 15. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT

DRAFTING INFORMATION



SECTION 1. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS REVENUE PROCEDURE?

This revenue procedure sets forth procedures for issuing determination letters and rulings on the exempt status of organizations under §§ 501 and 521 of the Internal Revenue Code other than those subject to Rev. Proc. 2008-6, 2008-1 I.R.B. 192 (relating to pension, profit-sharing, stock bonus, annuity, and employee stock ownership plans). Generally, the Service issues these determination letters and rulings in response to applications for recognition of exemption from Federal income tax. These procedures also apply to revocation or modification of determination letters or rulings. This revenue procedure also provides guidance on the exhaustion of administrative remedies for purposes of declaratory judgment under § 7428 of the Code.



Description of terms used in this revenue procedure

.01 For purposes of this revenue procedure -

(1) the term "Service" means the Internal Revenue Service.

(2) the term "application" means the appropriate form or letter that an organization must file or submit to the Service for recognition of exemption from Federal income tax under the applicable section of the Internal Revenue Code. See section 3 for information on specific forms.

(3) the term "EO Determinations" means the office of the Service that is primarily responsible for processing initial applications for tax-exempt status. It includes the main EO Determinations office located in Cincinnati, Ohio, and other field offices that are under the direction and control of the Manager, EO Determinations.

(4) the term "EO Technical" means the office of the Service that is primarily responsible for issuing letter rulings to taxpayers on exempt organization matters, and for providing technical advice or technical assistance to other offices of the Service on exempt organization matters. The EO Technical office is located in Washington, DC.

(5) the term "Appeals Office" means any office under the direction and control of the Chief, Appeals. The purpose of the Appeals Office is to resolve tax controversies, without litigation, on a fair and impartial basis. The Appeals Office is independent of EO Determinations and EO Technical.

(6) the term "determination letter" means a written statement issued by EO Determinations or an Appeals Office in response to an application for recognition of exemption from Federal income tax under §§ 501 and 521. This includes a written statement issued by EO Determinations or an Appeals Office on the basis of advice secured from EO Technical pursuant to the procedures prescribed herein and in Rev. Proc. 2008-5, 2008-1 I.R.B. 164.

(7) the term "ruling" means a written statement issued by EO Technical in response to an application for recognition of exemption from Federal income tax under §§ 501 and 521.



Updated annually

.02 This revenue procedure is updated annually, but may be modified or amplified during the year.



SECTION 2. NATURE OF CHANGES AND RELATED REVENUE PROCEDURES



Rev. Proc. 2007-52 is superseded and the processing of applications is now centralized

.01 This revenue procedure updates Rev. Proc. 2007-52, 2007-30 I.R.B. 222, which is hereby superseded.

(1) The responsibility for processing applications is now centralized in the EO Determinations office in Cincinnati, Ohio. Key district offices no longer exist.

(2) Although applications are generally processed in the Cincinnati office, some applications may be processed in other EO Determinations offices or referred to EO Technical.



Related revenue procedures

.02 This revenue procedure supplements Rev. Proc. 76-34, 1976-2 C.B. 656, with respect to the effects of § 7428 of the Code on the classification of organizations under §§ 509(a) and 4942(j)(3). Rev. Proc. 80-27, 1980-1 C.B. 677, sets forth procedures under which exemption may be recognized on a group basis for subordinate organizations affiliated with and under the general supervision and control of a central organization. Rev. Proc. 72-5, 1972-1 C.B. 709, provides information for religious and apostolic organizations seeking recognition of exemption under § 501(d). General procedures for requests for a determination letter or ruling are provided in Rev. Proc. 2008-4, 2008-1 I.R.B. 121. User fees for requests for a determination letter or ruling are set forth in Rev. Proc. 2008-8, 2008-1 I.R.B. 233.



SECTION 3. WHAT ARE THE PROCEDURES FOR REQUESTING RECOGNITION OF EXEMPT STATUS?



In general

.01 An organization seeking recognition of exempt status under § 501 or § 521 is required to submit the appropriate application. In the case of a numbered application form, the current version of the form must be submitted. A central organization that has previously received recognition of its own exemption can request a group exemption letter by submitting a letter application with Form 8718, User Fee for Exempt Organization Determination Letter Request. See Rev. Proc. 80-27.



User fee

.02 An application must be submitted with the correct user fee, as set forth in Rev. Proc. 2008-8.



Form 1023 application

.03 An organization seeking recognition of exemption under § 501(c)(3) and §§ 501(e), (f), (k), (n) or (q) must submit a completed Form 1023. In the case of an organization that provides credit counseling services, see § 501(q) of the Code.



Form 1024 application

.04 An organization seeking recognition of exemption under §§ 501(c)(2), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10), (12), (13), (15), (17), (19) or (25) must submit a completed Form 1024 with Form 8718. In the case of an organization that provides credit counseling services and seeks recognition of exemption under section 501(c)(4), see § 501(q) of the Code.



Letter application

.05 An organization seeking recognition of exemption under §§ 501(c)(l 1), (14), (16), (18), (21), (22), (23), (26), (27) or (28) or under § 501(d) must submit a letter application with Form 8718.



Form 1028 application

.06 An organization seeking recognition of exemption under § 521 must submit a completed Form 1028 with Form 8718.



Form 8871 notice for political organizations

.07 A political party, a campaign committee for a candidate for federal, state or local office, and a political action committee are all political organizations subject to tax under § 527. To be tax-exempt, a political organization may be required to notify the Service that it is to be treated as a § 527 organization by electronically filing Form 8871, Political Organization Notice of Section 527 Status. For details, go to the IRS website at www.irs.gov/polorgs.



Requirements for a substantially completed application

.08 A substantially completed application, including a letter application, is one that:

(1) is signed by an authorized individual.

(2) includes an Employer Identification Number (EIN).

(3) includes a statement of receipts and expenditures and a balance sheet for the current year and the three preceding years (or the years the organization was in existence, if less than four years). If the organization has not yet commenced operations, or has not completed one accounting period, a substantially completed application generally includes a proposed budget for two full accounting periods and a current statement of assets and liabilities.

(4) includes a detailed narrative statement of proposed activities, including each of the fundraising activities of a § 501(c)(3) organization, and a narrative description of anticipated receipts and contemplated expenditures.

(5) includes a copy of the organizing or enabling document that is signed by a principal officer or is accompanied by a written declaration signed by an authorized individual certifying that the document is a complete and accurate copy of the original or otherwise meets the requirements of a "conformed copy" as outlined in Rev. Proc. 68-14, 1968-1 C.B. 768.

(6) if the organizing or enabling document is in the form of articles of incorporation, includes evidence that it was filed with and approved by an appropriate state official ( e.g., stamped "Filed" and dated by the Secretary of State). Alternatively, a copy of the articles of incorporation may be submitted if accompanied by a written declaration signed by an authorized individual that the copy is a complete and accurate copy of the original copy that was filed with and approved by the state. If a copy is submitted, the written declaration must include the date the articles were filed with the state.

(7) if the organization has adopted by-laws, includes a current copy. The by-laws need not be signed if submitted as an attachment to the application for recognition of exemption. Otherwise, the by-laws must be verified as current by an authorized individual.

(8) is accompanied by the correct user fee and Form 8718, when applicable.



Terrorist organizations not eligible to apply for recognition of exemption

.09 An organization that is identified or designated as a terrorist organization within the meaning of § 501(p)(2) of the Code is not eligible to apply for recognition of exemption.



SECTION 4. WHAT ARE THE STANDARDS FOR ISSUING A DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING ON EXEMPT STATUS?



Exempt status must be established in application and supporting documents

.01 A favorable determination letter or ruling will be issued to an organization only if its application and supporting documents establish that it meets the particular requirements of the section under which exemption from Federal income tax is claimed.



Determination letter or ruling based solely on administrative record

.02 A determination letter or ruling on exempt status is issued based solely upon the facts and representations contained in the administrative record.

(1) The applicant is responsible for the accuracy of any factual representations contained in the application.

(2) Any oral representation of additional facts or modification of facts as represented or alleged in the application must be reduced to writing over the signature of an authorized individual.

(3) The failure to disclose a material fact or misrepresentation of a material fact on the application may adversely affect the reliance that would otherwise be obtained through issuance by the Service of a favorable determination letter or ruling.



Exempt status may be recognized in advance of actual operations

.03 Exempt status may be recognized in advance of the organization's operations if the pro-posed activities are described in sufficient detail to permit a conclusion that the organization will clearly meet the particular requirements for exemption pursuant to the section of the Internal Revenue Code under which exemption is claimed.

(1) A mere restatement of exempt purposes or a statement that proposed activities will be in furtherance of such purposes will not satisfy this requirement.

(2) The organization must fully describe all of the activities in which it expects to engage, including the standards, criteria, procedures or other means adopted or planned for carrying out the activities, the anticipated sources of receipts, and the nature of contemplated expenditures.

(3) Where the organization cannot demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Service that it qualifies for exemption pursuant to the section of the Internal Revenue Code under which exemption is claimed, the Service will generally issue a proposed adverse determination letter or ruling. See also section 7.



No letter if exempt status issue in litigation or under consideration within the Service

.04 A determination letter or ruling on exempt status will not ordinarily be issued if an issue involving the organization's exempt status under § 501 or § 521 is pending in litigation, is under consideration within the Service, or if issuance of a determination letter or ruling is not in the interest of sound tax administration. If the Service declines to issue a determination or ruling to an organization seeking exempt status under § 501(c)(3), the organization may be able to pursue a declaratory judgment under § 7428 provided that it has exhausted its administrative remedies.



Incomplete application

.05 If an application does not contain all of the items set out in section 3.08, the Service may return it to the applicant for completion.

(1) In lieu of returning an incomplete application, the Service may retain the application and request additional information needed for a substantially completed application.

(2) In the case of an application or a group exemption request under § 501(c)(3) that is returned incomplete, the 270-day period referred to in § 7428(b)(2) will not be considered as starting until the date a substantially completed Form 1023 or group exemption request is refiled with or remailed to the Service. If the application or group exemption request is mailed to the Service and a postmark is not evident, the 270-day period will start to run on the date the Service actually receives the substantially completed Form 1023 or group exemption request. The same rules apply for purposes of the notice requirement of § 508.

(3) Generally, the user fee will not be refunded if an incomplete application is filed. See Rev. Proc. 2008-8, section 10.



Even if application is complete, additional information may be required

.06 Even though an application is substantially complete, the Service may request additional information before issuing a determination letter or ruling.

(1) If the application involves an issue where contrary authorities exist, an applicant's failure to disclose and distinguish contrary authorities may result in requests for additional information, which could delay final action on the application.

(2) In the case of an application under § 501(c)(3), the period of time beginning on the date the Service requests additional information until the date the information is submitted to the Service will not be counted for purposes of the 270-day period referred to in § 7428(b)(2).



Expedited handling

.07 Applications are normally processed in the order of receipt by the Service. However, expedited handling of an application may be approved where a request is made in writing and contains a compelling reason for processing the application ahead of others. Upon approval of a request for expedited handling an application will be considered out of its normal order. This does not mean the application will be immediately approved or denied. Circumstances generally warranting expedited processing include:

(1) A grant to the applicant is pending and the failure to secure the grant may have an adverse impact on the organization's ability to continue to operate.

(2) The purpose of the newly created organization is to provide disaster relief to victims of emergencies such as flood and hurricane.

(3) There have been undue delays in issuing a determination letter or ruling caused by a Service error.



SECTION 5. WHAT OFFICES ISSUE AN EXEMPT STATUS DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING?



EO Determinations issues a determination letter in most cases

.01 Under the general procedures outlined in Rev. Proc. 2008 --4, EO Determinations is authorized to issue determination letters on applications for exempt status under §§ 501 and 521.



Certain applications referred to EO Technical

.02 EO Determinations will refer to EO Technical those applications that present issues which are not specifically covered by statute or regulations, or by a ruling, opinion, or court decision published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin. In addition, EO Determinations will refer those applications that have been specifically reserved by revenue procedure or by other official Service instructions for handling by EO Technical for purposes of establishing uniformity or centralized control of designated categories of cases. EO Technical will notify the applicant organization upon receipt of a referred application, and will consider each such application and issue a ruling directly to the organization.



Technical advice may be requested in certain cases

.03 If at any time during the course of consideration of an exemption application by EO Determinations the organization believes that its case involves an issue on which there is no published precedent, or there has been non-uniformity in the Service's handling of similar cases, the organization may request that EO Determinations either refer the application to EO Technical or seek technical advice from EO Technical. See Rev. Proc. 2008-5, section 4.04.



Technical advice must be requested in certain cases

.04 If EO Determinations proposes to recognize the exemption of an organization to which EO Technical had issued a previous contrary ruling or technical advice, EO Determinations must seek technical advice from EO Technical before issuing a determination letter. This does not apply where EO Technical issued an adverse ruling and the organization subsequently made changes to its purposes, activities, or operations to remove the basis for which exempt status was denied.



SECTION 6. WITHDRAWAL OF AN APPLICATION



Application may be withdrawn prior to issuance of a determination letter or ruling

.01 An application may be withdrawn upon the written request of an authorized individual at any time prior to the issuance of a determination letter or ruling. Therefore, an application may not be withdrawn after the issuance of a proposed adverse determination letter or ruling.

(1) When an application is withdrawn, the Service will retain the application and all supporting documents. The Service may consider the information submitted in connection with the withdrawn request in a subsequent examination of the organization.

(2) Generally, the user fee will not be refunded if an application is withdrawn. See Rev. Proc. 2008-8, section 10.



§ 7428 implications of withdrawal of application under § 501(c)(3)

.02 The Service will not consider the withdrawal of an application under § 501(c)(3) as either a failure to make a determination within the meaning of § 7428(a)(2) or as an exhaustion of administrative remedies within the meaning of § 7428(b)(2).



SECTION 7. WHAT ARE THE PROCEDURES WHEN EXEMPT STATUS IS DENIED?



Proposed adverse determination letter or ruling

.01 If EO Determinations or EO Technical reaches the conclusion that the organization does not satisfy the requirements for exempt status pursuant to the section of the Internal Revenue Code under which exemption is claimed, the Service will generally issue a proposed adverse determination letter or ruling, which will:

(1) Include a detailed discussion of the Service's rationale for the denial of tax-exempt status.

(2) Advise the organization of its opportunity to appeal or protest the decision and request a conference.



Appeal of a proposed adverse determination letter issued by EO Determinations

.02 A proposed adverse determination letter issued by EO Determinations will advise the organization of its opportunity to appeal the determination by requesting Appeals Office consideration. To do this, the organization must submit a statement of the facts, law and arguments in support of its position within 30 days from the date of the adverse determination letter. The organization must also state whether it wishes an Appeals Office conference. Any determination letter issued on the basis of technical advice from EO Technical may not be appealed to the Appeals Office on issues that were the subject of the technical advice.



Protest of a proposed adverse ruling issued by EO Technical

.03 A proposed adverse ruling issued by EO Technical will advise the organization of its opportunity to file a protest statement within 30 days and to request a conference. If a conference is requested, the conference procedures outlined in Rev. Proc. 2008-4, section 12, are applicable.



Final adverse determination letter or ruling where no appeal or protest is submitted

.04 If an organization does not submit a timely appeal of a proposed adverse determination letter issued by EO Determinations, or a timely protest of a proposed adverse ruling issued by EO Technical, a final adverse determination letter or ruling will be issued to the organization. The final adverse letter or ruling will provide information about the filing of tax returns and the disclosure of the proposed and final adverse letters or rulings.



How EO Determinations handles an appeal of a proposed adverse determination letter

.05 If an organization submits an appeal of the proposed adverse determination letter, EO Determinations will first review the appeal, and if it determines that the organization qualifies for tax-exempt status issue a favorable exempt status determination letter. If EO Determinations maintains its adverse position after reviewing the appeal, it will forward the appeal and the exemption application case file to the Appeals Office.



Consideration by the Appeals Office

.06 The Appeals Office will consider the organization's appeal. If the Appeals Office agrees with the proposed adverse determination, it will either issue a final adverse determination or, if a conference was requested, contact the organization to schedule a conference. At the end of the conference process, which may involve the submission of additional information, the Appeals Office will either issue a final adverse determination letter or a favorable determination letter. If the Appeals Office believes that an exemption or private foundation status issue is not covered by published precedent or that there is non-uniformity, the Appeals Office must request technical advice from EO Technical in accordance with Rev. Proc. 2008-5, section 4.04.



If a protest of a proposed adverse ruling is submitted to EO Technical

.07 If an organization submits a protest of a proposed adverse exempt status ruling, EO Technical will review the protest statement. If the protest convinces EO Technical that the organization qualifies for tax-exempt status, a favorable ruling will be issued. If EO Technical maintains its adverse position after reviewing the protest, it will either issue a final adverse ruling or, if a conference was requested, contact the organization to schedule a conference. At the end of the conference process, which may involve the submission of additional information, EO Technical will either issue a final adverse ruling or a favorable exempt status ruling.



An appeal or protest may be withdrawn

.08 An organization may withdraw its appeal or protest before the Service issues a final adverse determination letter or ruling. Upon receipt of the withdrawal request, the Service will complete the processing of the case in the same manner as if no appeal or protest was received.



Appeal or protest and conference rights not applicable in certain situations

.09 The opportunity to appeal or protest a proposed adverse determination letter or ruling and the conference rights described above are not applicable to matters where delay would be prejudicial to the interests of the Service (such as in cases involving fraud, jeopardy, the imminence of the expiration of the statute of limitations, or where immediate action is necessary to protect the interests of the Government).



SECTION 8. DISCLOSURE OF APPLICATIONS AND DETERMINATION LETTERS AND RULINGS

Sections 6104 and 6110 of the Code provide rules for the disclosure of applications, including supporting documents, and determination letters and rulings.



Disclosure of applications, supporting documents, and favorable determination letters or rulings

.01 The applications, any supporting documents, and the favorable determination letter or ruling issued are available for public inspection under § 6104(a)(1) of the Code. However, there are certain limited disclosure exceptions for a trade secret, patent, process, style of work, or apparatus if the Service determines that the disclosure of the information would adversely affect the organization.

(1) The Service is required to make the applications, supporting documents, and favorable determination letters or rulings available upon request. The public can request this information by submitting Form 4506-A, Request for Public Inspection or Copy of Exempt or Political Organization IRS Form.

(2) The exempt organization is required to make its exemption application, supporting documents, and determination letter or ruling available for public inspection without charge. For more information about the exempt organization's disclosure obligations, see Publication 557, Tax-Exempt Status for Your Organization.



Disclosure of adverse determination letters or rulings

.02 The Service is required to make adverse determination letters and rulings available for public inspection under § 6110 of the Code. Upon issuance of the final adverse determination letter or ruling to an organization, both the proposed adverse determination letter or ruling and the final adverse determination letter or ruling will be released under § 6110.

(1) These documents are made available to the public after the deletion of names, addresses, and any other information that might identify the taxpayer. See § 6110(c) for other specific disclosure exemptions.

(2) The final adverse determination letter or ruling will enclose Notice 437, Notice of Intention to Disclose, and redacted copies of the final and proposed adverse determination letters or rulings. Notice 437 provides instructions if the organization disagrees with the deletions proposed by the Service.



Disclosure to State officials when the Service refuses to recognize exemption under § 501(c)(3)

.03 The Service may notify the appropriate State officials of a refusal to recognize an organization as tax-exempt under § 501(c)(3). See § 6104(c) of the Code. The notice to the State officials may include a copy of a proposed or final adverse determination letter or ruling the Service issued to the organization. In addition, upon request by the appropriate State official, the Service may make available for inspection and copying the exemption application and other information relating to the Service's determination on exempt status.



Disclosure to State officials of information about § 501(c)(3) applicants

.04 The Service may disclose to State officials the name, address, and identification number of any organization that has applied for recognition of exemption under § 501(c)(3).



SECTION 9. REVIEW OF DETERMINATION LETTERS BY EO TECHNICAL



Determination letters may be reviewed by EO Technical to assure uniformity

.01 Determination letters issued by EO Determinations may be reviewed by EO Technical, or the Office of the Associate Chief Counsel (Passthroughs and Special Industries) (for cases under § 521), to assure uniform application of the statutes or regulations, or rulings, court opinions, or decisions published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.



Procedures for cases where EO Technical takes exception to a determination letter

.02 If EO Technical takes exception to a determination letter issued by EO Determinations, the manager of EO Determinations will be advised. If EO Determinations notifies the organization of the exception taken, and the organization disagrees with the exception, the file will be returned to EO Technical. The referral to EO Technical will be treated as a request for technical advice and the procedures in Rev. Proc. 2008-5 will be followed.



SECTION 10. DECLARATORY JUDGMENT PROVISIONS OF § 7428



Actual controversy involving certain issues

.01 Generally, a declaratory judgment proceeding under § 7428 of the Code can be filed in the United States Tax Court, the United States Court of Federal Claims, or the district court of the United States for the District of Columbia with respect to an actual controversy involving a determination by the Service or a failure of the Service to make a determination with respect to the initial or continuing qualification or classification of an organization under § 501(c)(3) (charitable, educational, etc.); § 170(c)(2) (deductibility of contributions); § 509(a) (private foundation status); or § 4942(j)(3) (operating foundation status).



Exhaustion of administrative remedies

.02 Before filing a declaratory judgment action, an organization must exhaust its administrative remedies by taking, in a timely manner, all reasonable steps to secure a determination from the Service. These include:

(1) the filing of a substantially completed application Form 1023 or group exemption request under § 501(c)(3) pursuant to section 3.08 of this Revenue Procedure or the request for a determination of foundation status pursuant to Rev. Proc. 76-34;

(2) in appropriate cases, requesting relief pursuant to § 301.9100-1 of the Procedure and Administration Regulations regarding the extension of time for making an election or application for relief from tax ( see Rev. Proc. 92-85, 1992-2 C.B. 490);

(3) the timely submission of all additional information requested by the Service to perfect an exemption application or request for determination of private foundation status; and

(4) exhaustion of all administrative appeals available within the Service pursuant to section 7.



Not earlier than 270 days after seeking determination

.03 An organization will in no event be deemed to have exhausted its administrative remedies prior to the earlier of:

(1) the completion of the steps in section 10.02, and the sending by the Service by certified or registered mail of a final determination letter or ruling; or

(2) the expiration of the 270-day period described in § 7428(b)(2) in a case where the Service has not issued a final determination letter or ruling and the organization has taken, in a timely manner, all reasonable steps to secure a determination letter or ruling.



Service must have reasonable time to act on an appeal or protest

.04 The steps described in section 10.02 will not be considered completed until the Service has had a reasonable time to act upon an appeal or protest as the case may be.



Final determination to which § 7428 applies

.05 A final determination to which § 7428 of the Code applies is a determination letter or ruling, sent by certified or registered mail, which holds that the organization is not described in § 501(c)(3) or § 170(c)(2), is a public charity described in a part of § 509 or § 170(b)(1)(A) other than the part under which the organization requested classification, is not a private foundation as defined in § 4942(j)(3), or is a private foundation and not a public charity described in a part of § 509 or § 170(b)(1)(A).



SECTION 11. EFFECT OF DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING RECOGNIZING EXEMPTION



Effective date of exemption

.01 A determination letter or ruling recognizing exemption is usually effective as of the date of formation of an organization if its purposes and activities prior to the date of the determination letter or ruling were consistent with the requirements for exemption. However, special rules under § 508(a) of the Code may apply to an organization applying for exemption under § 501(c)(3), and special rules under § 505(c) may apply to an organization applying for exemption under §§ 501(c)(9), (17), or (20).

(1) If the Service requires the organization to alter its activities or make substantive amendments to its enabling instrument, the exemption will be effective as of the date specified in a determination letter or ruling.

(2) If the Service requires the organization to make a nonsubstantive amendment, exemption will ordinarily be recognized as of the date of formation. Examples of nonsubstantive amendments include correction of a clerical error in the enabling instrument or the addition of a dissolution clause where the activities of the organization prior to the determination letter or ruling are consistent with the requirements for exemption.



Reliance on determination letter or ruling

.02 A determination letter or ruling recognizing exemption may not be relied upon if there is a material change, inconsistent with exemption, in the character, the purpose, or the method of operation of the organization. Also, a determination letter or ruling may not be relied upon if it was based on any inaccurate material factual representations. See section 12.01.



SECTION 12. REVOCATION OR MODIFICATION OF DETERMINATION LETTER OR RULING RECOGNIZING EXEMPTION

A determination letter or ruling recognizing exemption may be revoked or modified by (1) a notice to the taxpayer to whom the determination letter or ruling was issued, (2) enactment of legislation or ratification of a tax treaty, (3) a decision of the United States Supreme Court, (4) the issuance of temporary or final regulations, or (5) the issuance of a revenue ruling, revenue procedure, or other statement published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.



Revocation or modification of a determination letter or ruling may be retroactive

.01 The revocation or modification of a determination letter or ruling recognizing exemption may be retroactive if the organization omitted or misstated a material fact, operated in a manner materially different from that originally represented, or, in the case of organizations to which § 503 of the Code applies, engaged in a prohibited transaction with the purpose of diverting corpus or income of the organization from its exempt purpose and such transaction involved a substantial part of the corpus or income of such organization. In certain cases an organization may seek relief from retroactive revocation or modification of a determination letter or ruling under § 7805(b). Requests for § 7805(b) relief are subject to the procedures set forth in Rev. Proc. 2008-5.

(1) Where there is a material change, inconsistent with exemption, in the character, the purpose, or the method of operation of an organization, revocation or modification will ordinarily take effect as of the date of such material change.

(2) In the case where a determination letter or ruling is issued in error or is no longer in accord with the Service's position and § 7805(b) relief is granted ( see sections 13 and 14 of Rev. Proc. 2008-4), ordinarily, the revocation or modification will be effective not earlier than the date when the Service modifies or revokes the original determination letter or ruling.



Appeal and conference procedures in the case of revocation or modification of exempt status letter

.02 In the case of a revocation or modification of a determination letter or ruling, the appeal and conference procedures are generally the same as set out in section 7 of these procedures, including the right of the organization to request that EO Determinations or the Appeals Office seek technical advice from EO Technical. However, appeal and conference rights are not applicable to matters where delay would be prejudicial to the interests of the Service (such as in cases involving fraud, jeopardy, the imminence of the expiration of the statute of limitations, or where immediate action is necessary to protect the interests of the Government).

(1) If the case involves an exempt status issue on which EO Technical had issued a previous contrary ruling or technical advice, EO Determinations generally must seek technical advice from EO Technical.

(2) EO Determinations does not have to seek technical advice if the prior ruling or technical advice has been revoked by subsequent contrary published precedent or if the proposed revocation involves a subordinate unit of an organization that holds a group exemption letter issued by EO Technical, the EO Technical ruling or technical advice was issued under the Internal Revenue Code of 1939 or prior revenue acts, or if the ruling was issued in response to Form 4653, Notification Concerning Foundation Status.



SECTION 13. EFFECT ON OTHER REVENUE PROCEDURES

Rev. Proc. 2007-52 is superseded.



SECTION 14. EFECTIVE DATE

This revenue procedure is effective January 7, 2008.



SECTION 15. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT

The collection of information for a letter application under section 3.05 of this revenue procedure has been reviewed and approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. § 3507) under control number 1545-2080. All other collections of information under this revenue procedure have been approved under separate OMB control numbers.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of information displays a valid OMB control number.

The collection of this information is required if an organization wants to be recognized as tax-exempt by the Service. We need the information to determine whether the organization meets the legal requirements for tax-exempt status. In addition, this information will be used to help the Service delete certain information from the text of an adverse determination letter or ruling before it is made available for public inspection, as required by § 6110.

The time needed to complete and file a letter application will vary depending on individual circumstances. The estimated average time is 10 hours.

Books and records relating to the collection of information must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any internal revenue law. The rules governing the confidentiality of letter applications are covered in § 6104.



DRAFTING INFORMATION

The principal author of this revenue procedure is Ted Lieber of the Exempt Organizations, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division.

Rev. Proc. 2008-8 , I.R.B. 2008-1, 233, January 7, 2008.
[ Code Secs. 401, 403, 408, 408A, 412, 501, 503, 507, 509, 511, 521, 4945, 4971 and Statement of Procedural Rules Sec. 601.201]


Internal Revenue Service: User fees: Employee plans: Exempt organizations. --
Rev. Proc. 2008-8 provides guidance for complying with the IRS's user fee program as it pertains to requests for letter rulings, determination letters and similar requests regarding matters under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division. Further, the procedure addresses the method by which the administrative scrutiny determination user fees described in Rev. Proc. 93-41, 1993-2 CB 536, are collected. The procedure reflects Section 8244 of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007 ( P.L. 110-28), which makes user fees permanent. Also, two new user fees have been added to section 6.01 as a result of on-going practice and the Pension Protection Act of 2006 ( P.L. 109-280), and the user fee for Form 6406, Short Form Application for Determination for Minor Amendment of Employee Benefit Plan, has been removed due to the elimination of that form. Rev. Proc. 2008-8 is effective for requests postmarked, or if not mailed, received on or after January 7, 2008. Rev. Proc. 2007-8, I.R.B. 2007-1, 230, is superseded.



TABLE OF CONTENTS




SECTION 1. PURPOSE



SECTION 2. CHANGES
.01 In general

.02 Changes to fee schedules



SECTION 3. BACKGROUND
.01 Legislation authorizing user fees

.02 Related revenue procedures



SECTION 4. SCOPE
.01 Requests to which user fees apply

.02 Requests and other actions that do not require the payment of a user fee

.03 Exemptions from the user fee requirements



SECTION 5. DEFINITIONS



SECTION 6. FEE SCHEDULE
EMPLOYEE PLANS USER FEES

.01 Letter ruling requests

.02 Opinion letters on prototype individual retirement accounts and/or annuities, SEPs, SIMPLE IRAs, SIMPLE IRA Plans, and Roth IRAs.

Note: If a mass submitter submits, in any 12-month period ending January 31, more than 300 applications on behalf of word-for-word adopters of prototype IRAs or prototype dual purpose IRAs with respect to a particular plan document, only the first 300 such applications will be subject to the fee; no fee will apply to those in excess of the first 300 such applications submitted within the 12-month period

.03 Opinion letters on master and prototype plans

.04 Advisory letters on volume submitter plans

.05 Determination letters

EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS USER FEES

.06 Letter rulings

.07 Determination letters and requests for group exemption letters

.08 Summary of exempt organization fees



SECTION 7. MAILING ADDRESS FOR REQUESTING LETTER RULINGS, DETERMINATION LETTERS, ETC
.01 Matters handled by EP or EO Technical

.02 Matters handled by EP or EO Determinations



SECTION 8. REQUESTS INVOLVING MULTIPLE OFFICES, FEE CATEGORIES, ISSUES, TRANSACTIONS, OR ENTITIES
.01 Requests involving several offices

.02 Requests involving several fee categories

.03 Requests involving several issues

.04 Requests involving several unrelated transactions

.05 Requests for separate letter rulings for several entities



SECTION 9. PAYMENT OF FEE
.01 Method of payment

.02 Transmittal forms

.03 Effect of nonpayment or payment of incorrect amount



SECTION 10. REFUNDS
.01 General rule

.02 Examples



SECTION 11. REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION OF USER FEE



SECTION 12. EFFECT ON OTHER DOCUMENTS



SECTION 13. EFFECTIVE DATE



SECTION 14. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT



APPENDIX



SECTION 1. PURPOSE

This revenue procedure provides guidance for complying with the user fee program of the Internal Revenue Service as it pertains to requests for letter rulings, determination letters, etc., on matters under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division; and requests for administrative scrutiny determinations under Rev. Proc. 93-41, 1993-2 C.B. 536.



SECTION 2. CHANGES

.01 In general. This revenue procedure is a general update of Rev. Proc. 2007-8, 2007-1 I.R.B. 230.

.02 Section 3.01 is revised to reflect the legislation that makes Service user fees permanent.

.03 Two new employee plans user fees are added to section 6.01 as a result of ongoing practice and the Pension Protection Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 109-280.

.04 As a result of the elimination of Form 6406, the user fee for that form is eliminated and the appropriate paragraphs renumbered.



SECTION 3. BACKGROUND

.01 Legislation authorizing user fees. Section 7528 was added to the Code by section 202 of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Block Grant Program, Pub. L. No. 108-89, and was made permanent by section 8244 of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007, Pub. L. No. 110-28. Section 7528 of the Code directs the Secretary of the Treasury or delegate (the "Secretary") to establish a program requiring the payment of user fees for requests to the Service for letter rulings, opinion letters, determination letters, and similar requests. The fees charged under the program (1) are to vary according to categories or subcategories established by the Secretary; (2) are to be determined after taking into account the average time for, and difficulty of, complying with requests in each category and subcategory; and (3) are payable in advance. Section 7528(b)(3) directs the Secretary to provide for exemptions and reduced fees under the program as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, but the average fee applicable to each category may not be less than the amount specified in § 7528.

.02 Related revenue procedures. The various revenue procedures that require payment of a user fee, or an administrative scrutiny determination user fee are described in the appendix to this revenue procedure.



SECTION 4. SCOPE

.01 Requests to which user fees apply. In general, user fees apply to all requests for letter rulings, opinion letters, determination letters, and advisory letters submitted by or on behalf of taxpayers, sponsoring organizations or other entities as described in this revenue procedure. Further, administrative scrutiny determination user fees, described in Rev. Proc. 93-41, are collected through the user fee program described in this revenue procedure. Requests to which a user fee or an administrative scrutiny determination user fee is applicable must be accompanied by the appropriate fee as determined from the fee schedule set forth in section 6 of this revenue procedure. The fee may be refunded in limited circumstances as set forth in section 10.

.02 Requests and other actions that do not require the payment of a user fee. Actions which do not require the payment of a user fee include the following:

(1) Requests for information letters as defined in Rev. Proc. 2008-4, page 121, this Bulletin.

(2) Elections pertaining to automatic extensions of time under § 301.9100-1 of the Procedure and Administration regulations.

(3) Use of forms which are not to be filed with the Service. For example, no user fee is required in connection with the use of Form 5305, Traditional Individual Retirement Trust Account, or Form 5305-A, Traditional Individual Retirement Custodial Account, in order to adopt an individual retirement account under § 408(a).

(4) In general, plan amendments whereby sponsors amend their plans by adopting, word-for-word, the model language contained in a revenue procedure which states that the amendment should not be submitted to the Service and that the Service will not issue new opinion, advisory, ruling or determination letters for plans that are amended solely to add the model language.

(5) Change in accounting period or accounting method permitted by a published revenue procedure that permits an automatic change without prior approval of the Commissioner.

(6) Compliance and Correction Fees. Compliance fees and compliance correction fees under the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System are not described in this procedure because they are compliance fees or compliance correction fees and not user fees. For further guidance, please see Rev. Proc. 2006-27, 2006-1 C.B. 945, as modified by Rev. Proc. 2007-49, 2007-30 I.R.B. 141.

.03 Exemptions from the user fee requirements. The following exemptions apply to the user fee requirements. These are the only exemptions that apply:

(1) Departments, agencies, or instrumentalities of the United States that certify that they are seeking a letter ruling, determination letter, opinion letter or similar letter on behalf of a program or activity funded by federal appropriations. The fact that a user fee is not charged has no bearing on whether an applicant is treated as an agency or instrumentality of the United States for purposes of any provision of the Code except for § 7528.

(2) Requests as to whether a worker is an employee for federal employment taxes and federal income tax withholding purposes (chapters 21, 22, 23, 23A, and 24 of subtitle C of the Code) submitted on Form SS-8, Determination of Worker Status for Purposes of Federal Employment Taxes and Income Tax Withholding, or its equivalent. Such a request may be submitted in connection with an application for a determination on the qualification of a plan when it is necessary to determine whether an employer-employee relationship exists. See section 6.13 of Rev. Proc. 2008-6, page 192, this Bulletin. In that case, although no user fee applies to the request submitted on Form SS-8, the applicable user fee must be paid in connection with the application for determination on the plan's qualification.



SECTION 5. DEFINITIONS

The following terms used in this revenue procedure are defined in the pertinent revenue procedures referred to below, which are described in the appendix:





Administrative scrutiny determination Rev. Proc. 93-41

Adoption agreement Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Advisory letter Rev. Procs. 2005-16, 2008-6

Basic plan document Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Determination letter Rev. Procs. 2007-52, 2008-4

Dual-purpose IRA Rev. Proc. 98-59

Group exemption letter Rev. Proc. 80-27

Information letter Rev. Proc. 2008-4

Letter ruling Rev. Proc. 2008-4

Mass submitter Rev. Procs. 87-50, 2005-16

Mass submitter plan Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Master plan Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Minor modification Rev. Procs. 87-50, 2005-16

Opinion letter Rev. Procs. 2005-16, 2008-4

Prototype plan Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Roth IRA Rev. Proc. 98-59

SIMPLE IRA Rev. Proc. 97-29

SIMPLE IRA Plan Rev. Proc. 97-29

Plan Sponsor Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Sponsoring organization Rev. Procs. 87-50, 2005-16

Staggered Remedial Amendment Period Rev. Proc. 2007-44

Substitute mortality table Rev. Proc. 2007-37

Volume submitter lead specimen plan Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Volume submitter plan Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Volume submitter specimen plan Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Word-for-word identical adoption Rev. Procs. 87-50, 2005-16





SECTION 6. FEE SCHEDULE

The amount of the user fee payable with respect to each category or subcategory of submission is as set forth in the following schedule.
CATEGORY



EMPLOYEE PLANS USER FEES

.01 Letter ruling requests.

(1) Computation of exclusion for annuitant under § 72 $500

(2) Change in plan year (Form 5308) $500

Note: No user fee is required if the requested change is permitted
to be made pursuant to the procedure for automatic approval set forth
in Rev. Proc. 87-27, 1987-1 C.B. 769. In such a case, Form 5308
should not be submitted to the Service.

(3) Certain waivers of 60-day rollover period

(a) Rollover less than $50,000 $500

(b) Rollover equal to or greater than $50,000 and $1,500
less than $100,000

(c) Rollover equal to or greater than $100,000 $3,000

(4) Change in funding method $2,800

(5) Letter ruling under Rev. Proc. 90-49, 1990-2 C.B. 620 $2,800

(6) Change in accounting method $2,800

(7) Request for administrative exemptions for $2,800
participant-directed transactions that are in compliance with
the regulations under § 404(c) of ERISA

(8) Approval to become a nonbank trustee (see § 1.408-2(e) of $14,500
the Income Tax Regulations)

(9) Any letter ruling under § 419 or § 419A $14,500

(10) Substitute mortality table under Rev. Proc. 2007-37 $14,500

(11) Waiver of minimum funding standard or excise tax of $14,500
$1,000,000 or more ( § 412(d), 4971(b) or 4971(f))

(12) All other letter rulings, etc., including: $9,000

(a) Administrative scrutiny determinations with
respect to separate lines of business (for each
separate line or lines of 5 or less)

(b) Individually designed simplified employee pension
(SEP)

(c) Waiver of minimum funding standard or excise tax
of less than $1,000,000 ( § 412(d), 4971(b) or
4971(f))

.02 Opinion letters on prototype individual retirement accounts
and/or annuities, SEPs, SIMPLE IRAs, SIMPLE IRA Plans, and Roth IRAs.


(1) Prototype IRA, SEP, SIMPLE IRA, SIMPLE IRA Plan, or Roth $3,000
IRA, per plan document, new or amended

(2) Sponsoring organization's word-for-word identical $200
adoption of mass submitter's prototype IRA, SEP, SIMPLE IRA,
SIMPLE IRA Plan, or Roth IRA, per plan document or an
amendment thereof

(3) Sponsoring organization's minor modification of a mass $750
submitter's prototype IRA, SEP, SIMPLE IRA, dual purpose IRA,
SIMPLE IRA Plan, or Roth IRA, per plan document

(4) Opinion letters on dual-purpose, per plan document new or $4,500
amended

(5) Assumption of sponsorship of an approved prototype IRA or $200
SEP, without any amendment to the plan document by a new
entity as evidenced by a change of an employer identification
number

Note: If a mass submitter submits, in any 12-month period ending
January 31, more than 300 applications on behalf of word-for-word
adopters of prototype IRAs or prototype dual purpose IRAs with
respect to a particular plan document, only the first 300 such
applications will be subject to the fee; no fee will apply to those
in excess of the first 300 such applications submitted within the
12-month period.

.03 Opinion letters on master and prototype plans.

(1) Mass submitter M & P plan, per basic plan document, new $9,000
or amended, with one adoption agreement

(2) Nonmass submission (new or amended) by M & P sponsor, per $9,000
adoption agreement

(3) Mass submitter M & P plan, per each additional adoption $650
agreement

(4) Sponsor's minor modification of M & P mass submitter's $650
plan document, per adoption agreement

(5) M & P mass submitter's request for an advisory letter $650
with respect to the addition of optional provisions following
issuance of a favorable opinion letter (see section 12.031(c)
of Rev. Proc. 2005-16), per basic plan document (regardless
of the number of adoption agreements)

(6) M & P mass submitter's addition of new adoption $650
agreements after the basic plan document and associated
adoption agreements have been approved, per adoption
agreement

Note 1: Mass submitters that are sponsors in their own right are
liable for this fee.

Note 2: If a mass submitter submits, in any 12-month period ending
January 31, more than 300 applications on behalf of word-for-word
adopters with respect to a particular adoption agreement, only the
first 300 such applications will be subject to the fee; no fee will
apply to those in excess of the first 300 such applications submitted
within the 12-month period.

(7) Sponsor's word-for-word identical adoption of M & P mass $200
submitter's basic plan document (or an amendment thereof),
per adoption agreement

(8) Assumption of sponsorship of an approved M & P plan, $200
without any amendment to the plan document, by a new entity,
as evidenced by a change of employer identification number

(9) Mass submitter or sponsor per trust document in excess of $650
10

.04 Advisory letters on volume submitter plans.

(1) Volume submitter specimen plans $9,000

(2) Volume submitter lead specimen plan $9,000

(3) Volume submitter specimen plan that is word-for-word $200
identical to a lead specimen plan

.05 Determination letters

(1) If the plan is intended to satisfy a design-based or
nondesign-based safe harbor, or if the applicant is not
electing to receive a determination with respect to any of
the general tests, and the applicant is not electing to
receive a determination with respect to the average benefit
test:

(a) Form 5300 ( Application for Determination for $1,000
Employee Benefit Plan)

(b) Form 5310 ( Application for Determination for $1,000
Terminating Plan)

(c) Form 5307 ( Application for Determination for $300
Adopters of Master or Prototype or Volume Submitter
Plans)

(d) Multiple employer plans (Form 5300):

(i) 2 to 10 Forms 5300 $1,500

(ii) 11 to 99 Forms 5300 $1,500

(iii) 100 to 499 Forms 5300 $10,000

(iv) Over 499 Forms 5300 $10,000

Note: In the case of a multiple employer
plan that is adopted by other employers after
the initial submission, the fee would be the
same as in paragraph (1) above.

(e) Multiple employer plans (Form 5310):

(i) 2 to 10 employers $1,500

(ii) 11 to 99 employers $1,500

(iii) 100 to 499 employers $10,000

(iv) Over 499 employers $10,000

(2) If the applicant is electing to receive a determination
with respect to the average benefit test and/or any of the
general tests:

(a) Form 5300 ( Application for Determination for $1,800
Employee Benefit Plan)

(b) Form 5310 ( Application for Determination for $1,800
Terminating Plan)

(c) Form 5307 ( Application for Determination for $1,000
Adopters of Master or Prototype or Volume Submitter
Plans)

(d) Multiple employer plans (Form 5300):

(i) 2 to 10 Forms 5300 $2,300

(ii) 11 to 99 Forms 5300 $2,300

(iii) 100 to 499 Forms 5300 $15,000

(iv) Over 499 Forms 5300 $15,000

Note: In the case of a multiple employer
plan that is adopted by other employers after
the initial submission, the fee would be the
same as in paragraph (2) above.

(e) Multiple employer plans (Form 5310):

(i) 2 to 10 employers $2,300

(ii) 11 to 99 employers $2,300

(iii) 100 to 499 employers $15,000

(iv) Over 499 employers $15,000

(3) Group trusts contemplated by Rev. Rul. 81-100, 1981-1 $750
C.B. 326, and Rev. Rul. 2004-67, 2004-2 C.B. 28.




EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS USER FEES

.06 Letter rulings.

(1) Applications with respect to change in accounting period (Form $350
1128)

Note: No user fee is charged if the procedure described in
Rev. Proc. 85-58, 1985-2 C.B. 740, is used by timely filing the
appropriate information return, or if the procedure described in
Rev. Proc. 76-10, 1976-1 C.B. 548, for organizations with group
exemptions is followed.

(2) Applications with respect to change in accounting method (Form $275
3115)

Note: No user fee is charged if the method described in
Rev. Proc. 2002-9, 2002-1 C.B. 327, is used. Taxpayers complying
timely with Rev. Proc. 2002-9 will be deemed to have obtained the
consent of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue to change their
method of accounting.

(3) Request for approval of a qualified subsidiary related to a $900
§ 501(c)(25) organization.

(4) All other letter rulings $8,700

.07 Determination letters and requests for group exemption letters

(1) Initial application for exemption under § 501 or § 521 from $300
organizations (other than pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus
plans described in § 401) that have had annual gross receipts
averaging not more than $10,000 during the preceding four years, or
new organizations that anticipate gross receipts averaging not more
than $10,000 during their first four years

Note: Organizations seeking this reduced fee must sign a
certification with their application that the receipts are or will
be not more than the indicated amounts.

(2) Initial application for exempt status from organizations $750
otherwise described in paragraph (1) of this section 6.07 whose
actual or anticipated gross receipts exceed the $10,000 average
annually

Note: If an organization that is already recognized as exempt
under § 501(c) seeks reclassification under another subparagraph of
§ 501(c), a new user fee will be charged whether or not a new
application is required. An additional fee applies to organizations
that seek recognition of exemption under § 501(c)(4) (unless
requested at the time of the § 501(c)(3) application) for a period
for which they do not qualify for exemption under § 501(c)(3)
because their application was filed late and they do not qualify
for relief under § 301.9100-1.

(3) Group exemption letters $900

Note: An additional fee under (1) or (2) above is required when a
central organization submits an initial application for exemption
with its request for a group exemption letter.

(4) Canadian registered charities none

In accordance with the income tax treaty between the United States
and Canada, Canadian registered charities are automatically
recognized as exempt under § 501(c)(3) without filing an
application for exemption. For details, see Notice 99-47, 1999-2
C.B. 391. Therefore, no user fee is required when a Canadian
registered charity submits all or part of a Form 1023 or other
written request to be listed in Publication 78, or for a
determination on its private foundation status.

.08 Summary of exempt organization fees



This table summarizes the various types of exempt organization issues, indicates the office of jurisdiction for each type, and lists the applicable user fee. Reduced fees may be applicable in certain instances.


ISSUE TECHNICAL OFFICE USER FEE

Accounting method changes $275

Accounting period changes $350

Qualified subsidiaries of § 501(c)(25) $900
organizations

Section 514(b)(3) Neighborhood Land Use None
Rule

Section 4943(c)(7) extensions of $8,700
disposal period




ISSUE DETERMINATIONS OFFICE USER FEE

Application for recognition of exemption $750

Reduced fee described in section 6.07(1) $300

Advance ruling period inquiries None

Confirmation of exemption (to replace None
lost exempt status letter, and to reflect
name and address changes)

Reclassification of private foundation None
status

Regulations § 301.9100 relief in None
connection with applications for
recognition of exemption

Section 507 terminations - advance None
ruling under § 507(b)(1)(B) and notice
under § 507(a)(1) or 507(b)(1)(B)

Section 4940(d) exempt operating None
foundation status

Section 4942(g)(2) set asides - advance None
approval

Section 4945 advance approval of None
organization's grant making procedures

Section 4945(f) advance approval of None
voter registration activities

Section 6033 annual information return None
filing requirements

Unusual grants to certain organizations None
under §§ 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) and 509(a)(2)





SECTION 7. MAILING ADDRESS FOR REQUESTING LETTER RULINGS, DETERMINATION LETTERS, ETC.

.01 Matters handled by EP or EO Technical. Requests should be mailed to the appropriate address set forth in this section 7.01.

(1) Employee plans letter rulings under Rev. Procs. 79-62, 87-50, 90-49, 94-42, 2000-41, 2004-15, 2004-44, 2007-37, or 2008-4:

Internal Revenue Service
Attention: EP Letter Rulings
P.O. Box 27063
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
(2) Employee plans opinion letters under Rev. Procs. 87-50, 97-29, and 98-59:

Internal Revenue Service
Attention: EP Opinion Letters
P.O. Box 27063
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
(3) Employee plans administrative scrutiny determinations under Rev. Proc. 93-41 :

Internal Revenue Service
Attention: Administrative Scrutiny
P.O. Box 27063
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
(4) Exempt organizations letter rulings:

Internal Revenue Service
Attention: EO Letter Rulings
P.O. Box 27720
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
Note: Hand delivered requests must be marked RULING REQUEST SUBMISSION. The delivery should be made to the following address between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. where a receipt will be given:

Courier's Desk
Internal Revenue Service
Attention: SE:T:EP [or SE:T:EO]
1111 Constitution Avenue, NW --PE
Washington, DC 20224
.02 Matters handled by EP or EO Determinations Office. The following types of requests and applications are handled by the EP or EO Determinations Office and should be sent to the Internal Revenue Service Center in Covington, Kentucky, at the address shown below: requests for determination letters on the qualified status of employee plans under §§ 401, 403(a), or 409, and the exempt status of any related trust under § 501; applications for recognition of tax exemption on Form 1023, Form 1024 and Form 1028; and other applications for recognition of qualification or exemption. The address is:

Internal Revenue Service
P.O. Box 192
Covington, KY 41012-0192
The following types of requests and applications are handled by the EP Determinations Office and should be sent to the Internal Revenue Service at the address shown below: requests for opinion letters and for volume submitter advisory letters on the form of employee plans under § 401 or 403(a) and the exempt status of any related trust under § 501. The address is:

Internal Revenue Service
P.O. Box 2508
Rm. 5106
Cincinnati, OH 45201
Applications shipped by Express Mail or a delivery service should be sent to:

Internal Revenue Service
201 West Rivercenter Blvd.
Attn: Extracting Stop 312
Covington, KY 41011


SECTION 8. REQUESTS INVOLVING MULTIPLE OFFICES, FEE CATEGORIES, ISSUES, TRANSACTIONS, OR ENTITIES

.01 Requests involving several offices. If a request dealing with only one transaction involves more than one of the offices within Headquarters (for example, one issue is under the jurisdiction of the Associate Chief Counsel (Income Tax & Accounting) and another issue is under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division), only one fee applies, namely the highest fee that otherwise would apply to each of the offices involved. See Rev. Proc. 2008-1, this Bulletin, for the user fees applicable to issues under the jurisdiction of the Associate Chief Counsel (Corporate), the Associate Chief Counsel (Financial Institutions & Products), the Associate Chief Counsel (Income Tax & Accounting), the Associate Chief Counsel (Passthroughs & Special Industries), the Associate Chief Counsel (Procedure and Administration), the Associate Chief Counsel (International) or the Division Counsel/Associate Chief Counsel (Tax Exempt and Government Entities).

.02 Requests involving several fee categories. If a request dealing with only one transaction involves more than one fee category, only one fee applies, namely the highest fee that otherwise would apply to each of the categories involved.

.03 Requests involving several issues. If a request dealing with only one transaction involves several issues, or a request for a change in accounting method dealing with only one item or sub-method of accounting involves several issues, or a request for a change in accounting period dealing with only one item involves several issues, the request is treated as one request. There-fore, only one fee applies, namely the fee that applies to the particular category or subcategory involved. The addition of a new issue relating to the same transaction will not result in an additional fee, unless the issue places the transaction in a higher fee category.

.04 Requests involving several unrelated transactions. If a request involves several unrelated transactions, or a request for a change in accounting method involves several unrelated items or sub-methods of accounting, or a request for a change in accounting period involves several unrelated items, each transaction or item is treated as a separate request. As a result, a separate fee will apply for each unrelated transaction or item. An additional fee will apply if the request is changed by the addition of an unrelated transaction or item not contained in the initial submission.

.05 Requests for separate letter rulings for several entities. Each entity involved in a transaction (for example, an exempt hospital reorganization) that desires a separate letter ruling in its own name must pay a separate fee regardless of whether the transaction or transactions may be viewed as related.



SECTION 9. PAYMENT OF FEE

.01 Method of payment. Each request to the Service for a letter ruling, determination letter, opinion letter, etc., must be accompanied by a check or money order, payable to the United States Treasury, in the appropriate amount. Taxpayers should not send cash.

.02 Transmittal forms. Form 8717, User Fee for Employee Plan Determination, Opinion, and Advisory Letter Request, and Form 8718, User Fee for Exempt Organization Determination Letter Request, are intended to be used as attachments to certain determination letter, opinion letter and advisory letter applications. Space is reserved for the attachment of the applicable user fee check or money order. No similar form has been designed to be used in connection with requests for letter rulings or administrative scrutiny determinations.

.03 Effect of nonpayment or payment of incorrect amount.

It will be the general practice of the Service that:

(1) The respective offices within the Service that are responsible for issuing letter rulings, determination letters, etc., will exercise discretion in deciding whether to immediately return submissions that are not accompanied by a properly completed check or money order or that are accompanied by a check or money order for less than the correct amount. In those instances where the submission is not immediately returned, the requester will be contacted and given a reasonable amount of time to submit the proper fee. If the proper fee is not received within a reasonable amount of time, the entire submission will then be returned. However, the respective offices of the Service, in their discretion, may defer substantive consideration of a submission until proper payment has been received.

(2) An application for a determination letter will not be returned merely because Form 8717 or Form 8718 was not attached.

(3) The return of a submission to the requester may adversely affect substantive rights if the submission is not perfected and resubmitted to the Service within 30 days of the date of the cover letter returning the submission. Examples of this are: (a) where an application for a determination letter is submitted prior to the expiration of the remedial amendment period under § 401(b) and is returned because no user fee was attached, the submission will be timely if it is resubmitted by the expiration of the remedial amendment period or, if later, within 30 days after the application was returned; and (b) where an application for exemption under § 501(c)(3) is submitted before expiration of the period provided by § 1.508-1(a)(2) and is returned because no user fee was attached, the submission will be timely if it is resubmitted before expiration of the period provided by §1.508-1(a)(2) or within 30 days, whichever is later.

(4) If a check or money order is for more than the correct amount, the submission will be accepted and the amount of the excess payment will be returned to the requester.



SECTION 10. REFUNDS

.01 General rule. In general, the fee will not be refunded unless the Service declines to rule or make a determination on all issues for which a ruling or determination letter is requested.

.02 Examples.

(1) The following situations are examples in which the fee will not be refunded:

(a) The request for a letter ruling, determination letter, etc., is withdrawn at any time subsequent to its receipt by the Service, unless the only reason for withdrawal is that the Service has advised the requester that a higher user fee than was sent with the request is applicable and the requester is unwilling to pay the higher fee. For example, no fee will be refunded where the taxpayer has been advised that a proposed adverse ruling is contemplated and subsequently withdraws its submission.

(b) The request is procedurally deficient, although accompanied by the proper fee or an overpayment, and it is not timely perfected. When there is a failure to timely perfect the request, the case will be considered closed and the failure to perfect will be treated as a withdrawal for purposes of this revenue procedure. An exemption application that is not substantially complete is considered a procedurally deficient request for a letter ruling or a determination letter on exempt status.

(c) In the case of a request for a letter ruling, if the case has been closed by the Service because essential information has not been submitted timely, the request may be reopened and treated as a new request, but the requester must pay another user fee before the case can be reopened. See, section 11.04(5) of Rev. Proc. 2008-4, page 121, this Bulletin.

(d) A letter ruling, determination letter, etc., is revoked in whole or in part at the initiative of the Service. The fee paid at the time the original letter ruling, determination letter, etc., was requested will not be refunded.

(e) The request contains several issues and the Service rules on some, but not all, of the issues. The highest fee applicable to the issues on which the Service rules will not be refunded.

(f) The requester asserts that a letter ruling the requester received covering a single issue is erroneous or not responsive (other than an issue on which the Service has declined to rule) and requests reconsideration. The Service, upon reconsideration, does not agree that the letter ruling is erroneous or is not responsive. The fee accompanying the request for reconsideration will not be refunded.

(g) The situation is the same as described in subparagraph (f) of this section 10.02(1) except that the letter ruling covered several unrelated transactions. The Service, upon reconsideration, does not agree with the requester that the letter ruling is erroneous or is not responsive for all of the transactions, but does agree that it is erroneous as to one transaction. The fee accompanying the request for reconsideration will not be refunded except to the extent applicable to the transaction for which the Service agrees the letter ruling was in error.

(h) The request is for a supplemental letter ruling, determination letter, etc., concerning a change in facts (whether significant or not) relating to the transaction on which the Service ruled.

(i) The request is for reconsideration of an adverse or partially adverse letter ruling or a final adverse determination letter, and the taxpayer submits arguments and authorities not submitted before the original letter ruling or determination letter was issued.

(2) The following situations are examples in which the user fee will be refunded:

(a) In a situation to which section 10.02(l)(i) of this revenue procedure does not apply, the taxpayer asserts that a letter ruling the taxpayer received covering a single issue is erroneous or is not responsive (other than an issue on which the Service declined to rule) and requests reconsideration. Upon reconsideration, the Service agrees that the letter ruling is erroneous or is not responsive. The fee accompanying the taxpayer's request for reconsideration will be refunded.

(b) In a situation to which section 10.02(1)(i) of this revenue procedure does not apply, the requester requests a supplemental letter ruling, determination letter, etc., to correct a mistake that the Service agrees it made in the original letter ruling, determination letter, etc., such as a mistake in the statement of facts or in the citation of a Code section. Once the Service agrees that it made a mistake, the fee accompanying the request for the supplemental letter ruling, determination letter, etc., will be refunded.

(c) The taxpayer requests and is granted relief under § 7805(b) in connection with the revocation in whole or in part, of a previously issued letter ruling, determination letter, etc. The fee accompanying the request for relief will be refunded.

(d) In a situation to which section 10.02(1)(e) of this revenue procedure applies, the requester requests reconsideration of the Service's decision not to rule on an issue. Once the Service agrees to rule on the issue, the fee accompanying the request for reconsideration will be refunded.



SECTION 11. REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION OF USER FEE

A taxpayer that believes the user fee charged by the Service for its request for a letter ruling, determination letter, etc., is either not applicable or incorrect and wishes to receive a refund of all or part of the amount paid (see section 10 of this revenue procedure) may request reconsideration and, if desired, the opportunity for an oral discussion by sending a letter to the Internal Revenue Service at the applicable Post Office Box or other address given in section 7. Both the incoming envelope and the letter requesting such reconsideration should be prominently marked "USER FEE RECONSIDERATION REQUEST." No user fee is required for these requests.
If the matter involves primarily: Mark for the attention of:

Employee plans letter ruling requests and Employee Plans Technical
all other employee plans matters handled
by EP Technical

Exempt organizations letter ruling Exempt Organizations Technical
requests

Employee plans determination letter Manager, EP Determinations Quality
requests and opinion letter and advisory Assurance
letter requests pursuant to
Rev. Proc. 2005-16

Exempt organizations determination letter Manager, EO Determinations Quality
requests Assurance





SECTION 12. EFFECT ON OTHER DOCUMENTS

Rev. Proc. 2007-8 is superseded.



SECTION 13. EFFECTIVE DATE

This revenue procedure is effective January 7, 2008.



SECTION 14. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT

The collections of information contained in this revenue procedure have been reviewed and approved by the Office of Management and Budget in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3507) under control number 1545-1520.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of information displays a valid OMB control number.

The collections of information in this revenue procedure are in section 6.07 and section 11. This information is required to substantiate that a taxpayer or an exempt organization seeking to pay a reduced user fee with respect to a request for a determination letter is entitled to pay the reduced fee; to identify the user fee category and corresponding fee required to be paid with respect to determination letter requests; to request reconsideration of the user fee charged by the Service and, in connection with such a request, to indicate whether an oral discussion is desired. This information will be used to enable the Service to determine whether the taxpayer or exempt organization is entitled to pay a reduced user fee, to ascertain whether reconsideration of the user fee is being requested and, if it is being requested, whether an oral discussion is requested. The collections of information are voluntary, to obtain a benefit. The likely respondents are individuals, businesses or other for-profit institutions, nonprofit institutions, and small businesses or organizations.

The estimated total annual reporting and/or recordkeeping burden is 300 hours.

The estimated annual burden per respondent/recordkeeper varies from one hour to ten hours, depending on individual circumstances, with an estimated average of three hours. The estimated number of respondents and/or recordkeepers is 90 (requests for reduced fees) and 10 (requests for reconsideration of fee).

The estimated annual frequency of responses is on occasion.

Books or records relating to a collection of information must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any internal revenue law. Generally tax returns and tax return information are confidential, as required by 26 U.S.C. 6103.



DRAFTING INFORMATION

The principal author of this revenue procedure is Michael Rubin of the Employee Plans, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division. For further information regarding employee plans matters in this revenue procedure, please contact the Employee Plans' taxpayer assistance telephone service 877-829-5500 (a toll-free number) between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday. For employee plans matters, please e-mail Mr. Rubin at RetirementPlanQuestions@irs.gov. For exempt organization matters, please contact Mr. Ted Lieber at 202-283-8999 (not a toll-free number).



APPENDIX

Following is a list of revenue procedures requiring payment of a user fee or an administrative scrutiny determination user fee.



A. Procedures applicable to both Employee Plans and Exempt Organizations

Rev. Proc. 2008-4, this Bulletin, provides procedures for issuing letter rulings, information letters, etc., on matters relating to matters under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division.



B. Procedures applicable to Employee Plans matters other than actuarial matters

Rev. Proc. 75-26, 1975-1 C.B. 722, sets forth the general procedures of the Internal Revenue Service for the processing of applications for exemption under § 4975(c)(2).

Rev. Proc. 87-50, 1987-2 C.B. 647, as modified by Rev. Proc. 91-44, Rev. Proc. 92-38, and Rev. Proc. 2002-10, 2002-1 C.B. 401, sets forth the procedures of the Service relating to the issuance of rulings and opinion letters with respect to the establishment of individual retirement accounts and annuities (IRAs) under § 408, the entitlement to exemption of related trusts or custodial accounts under § 408(e), and the acceptability of the form of prototype simplified employee pension (SEP) agreements under §§ 408(k) and 415.

Rev. Proc. 92-24, 1992-1 C.B. 739, provides procedures for requesting determination letters on the effect on a plan's qualified status under § 401(a) of the Code of plan language that permits, pursuant to § 420, the transfer of assets in a defined benefit plan to a health benefits account described in § 401(h).

Rev. Proc. 92-38, 1992-1 C.B. 859, provides notice that individual retirement arrangement trusts, custodial account agreements, and annuity contracts must be amended to provide for the required distribution rules in § 408(a)(6) or (b)(3) of the Code. In addition, Rev. Proc. 92-38 modifies the guidance in Rev. Proc. 87-50 with regard to opinion letters issued to sponsoring organizations, including mass submitters and sponsors of prototype IRAs.

Rev. Proc. 93-41, 1993-2 C.B. 536, sets forth the procedures of the Service relating to the issuance of an administrative scrutiny determination as to whether a separate line of business satisfies the requirement of administrative scrutiny within the meaning of § 1.414(r)-6.

Rev. Proc. 97-29, 1997-1 C.B. 698, describes model amendments for SIMPLE IRAs; guidance to drafters of prototype SIMPLE IRAs on obtaining opinion letters; permissive amendments to sponsors of nonSIMPLE IRAs; the opening of a prototype program for SIMPLE IRA Plans; and transitional relief for users of SIMPLE IRAs and SIMPLEIRA Plans that have not been approved by the Service.

Rev. Proc. 98-59, 1998-2 C.B. 727, provides guidance on obtaining opinion letters to drafters of prototype Roth IRAs, and provides transitional relief for users of Roth IRAs that have not been approved by the Internal Revenue Service.

Rev. Proc. 2003-16, 2003-1 C.B. 359, sets forth guidelines for the implementation of the provision for a waiver of the 60-day rollover period described in section 644 of EGTRRA.

Rev. Proc. 2005-16, 2005-1 C.B. 674, revises and combines the Service's master and prototype (M&P) and volume submitter program into a unified program for the pre-approval of pension, profit-sharing and annuity plans.

Rev. Proc. 2008-6, this Bulletin, provides procedures for issuing determination letters on the qualified status of employee plans under §§ 401(a), 403(a), 409, and 4975(e)(7).



C. Procedures applicable to Employee Plans actuarial matters

Rev. Proc. 79-62, 1979-2 C.B. 576, outlines the procedure by which a plan sponsor or administrator may request a determination that a plan amendment is reasonable and provides for only de minimis increases in plan liabilities in accordance with § 412(f)(2)(A) of the Code and § 304(b)(2)(A) of ERISA.

Rev. Proc. 90-49, 1990-2 C.B. 620, modifies and replaces Rev. Proc. 89-35, 1989-1 C.B. 917, in order to extend the effective date to contributions made for plan years beginning after December 31, 1989, to change the deadline for requesting rulings under the revenue procedure, to revise the information requirements for a ruling request made under the revenue procedure, to furnish a worksheet for actuarial computations, and to provide a special rule under which certain de minimis non-deductible employer contributions to a qualified defined benefit plan may be returned to the taxpayer without a formal ruling or disallowance from the Service.

Rev. Proc. 94-42, 1994-1 C.B. 717, sets forth a procedure for obtaining approval of an amendment to a qualified plan that, under § 412(c)(8), reduces the accrued benefits of plan participants.

Rev. Proc. 2000-41, 2000-2 C.B. 371, sets forth the procedure by which a plan administrator or plan sponsor may obtain approval of the Secretary of the Treasury for a change in funding method as provided by § 412(c)(5) of the Code and section 302(c)(5) of ERISA.

Rev. Proc. 2004-15, 2004-1 C.B. 490, sets forth procedures for requesting waivers of the minimum funding standard described in § 412(d) and the issuance of such waivers by the office of the Director, Employee Flans, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division.

Rev. Proc. 2004-44, 2004-2 C.B. 134, outlines the procedure by which a plan administrator or plan sponsor may request and obtain approval for an extension of an amortization period in accordance with § 412(e) of the Code and section 304(a) of ERISA.

Rev. Proc. 2007-37, 2007-25 I.R.B. 1433, provides guidelines for requesting letter rulings for substitute mortality tables for certain defined benefit plans as a result of section 102 and 112 of the Pension Protection Act of 2006.



D. Procedures applicable to Exempt Organizations matters only

Rev. Proc. 80-27, 1980-1 C.B. 677, as modified by Rev. Proc. 96-40, 1996-2 C.B. 301, provides procedures under which recognition of exemption from federal income tax under § 501(c) may be obtained on a group basis for subordinate organizations affiliated with and under the general supervision or control of a central organization. This procedure relieves each of the subordinates covered by a group exemption letter from filing its own application for recognition of exemption.

Rev. Proc. 2007-52, 2007-30 I.R.B. 222, sets forth revised procedures with regard to applications for recognition of exemption from federal income tax under §§ 501 and 521.
ase contact the TE/GE Customer Service office at (877) 829-5500 (a toll-free call).



Rev. Proc. 2008-4 , I.R.B. 2008-1, 121, January 7, 2008.[ Code Secs. 381, 401, 412, 414, 501, 507, 509, 529, 4942, 4966, 4967, 6033 and Statement of Procedural Rules Sec. 601.201]


Employee plans: Exempt organizations: Rulings and determinations: Information letters. --
The IRS has updated its procedures for issuing letter rulings and revenue rulings, as well as determination, opinion, notification and information letters, on matters relating to Internal Revenue Code provisions under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division (TE/GE). Most of the changes involve minor revisions, such as updating citations to other revenue procedures; however, a few larger changes have also been made. The ruling also clarifies that a letter ruling will not be issued with respect to an issue that is clearly and adequately addressed by statute, regulations, court decisions or IRS rulings that are published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin, although the IRS may issue an information letter calling attention to well-established principles of tax law. Rev. Proc. 2008-4 is effective January 7, 2008. Rev. Proc. 2007-4, I.R.B. 2007-1, 118, is superseded.




TABLE OF CONTENTS




SECTION 1. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS REVENUE PROCEDURE?



SECTION 2. WHAT CHANGES HAVE BEEN MADE TO REV. PROC. 2007-4?



SECTION 3. IN WHAT FORM IS GUIDANCE PROVIDED BY THE COMMISSIONER, TAX EXEMPT AND GOVERNMENT ENTITIES DIVISION?
.01 In general

.02 Letter ruling

.03 Closing agreement

.04 Determination letter

.05 Opinion letter

.06 Information letter

.07 Revenue ruling

.08 Oral guidance

(1) No oral rulings, and no written rulings in response to oral requests

(2) Discussion possible on substantive issues

.09 Nonbank trustee requests

.10 Compliance Statement



SECTION 4. ON WHAT ISSUES MAY TAXPAYERS REQUEST WRITTEN GUIDANCE UNDER THIS PROCEDURE?



SECTION 5. ON WHAT ISSUES MUST WRITTEN GUIDANCE BE REQUESTED UNDER DIFFERENT PROCEDURES?
.01 Determination letters

.02 Master and prototype plans and volume submitter plans

.03 Closing agreement program for defined contribution plans that purchased GICs or GACs

.04 Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System

.05 Chief Counsel

.06 Alcohol, tobacco, and firearms taxes



SECTION 6. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES DOES TE/GE ISSUE LETTER RULINGS?
.01 In exempt organizations matters

.02 In employee plans matters

.03 In qualifications matters

.04 Request for extension of time for making an election or for other relief under §301.9100-1 of the Procedure and Administration Regulations

.05 Issuance of a letter ruling before the issuance of a regulation or other published guidance

.06 Issues in prior return

.07 Generally not to business associations or groups

.08 Generally not to foreign governments

.09 Generally not on federal tax consequences of proposed legislation

.10 Not on certain matters under § 53.4958-6 of the Foundation and Similar Excise Taxes Regulations

.11 Not on stock options

.12 Generally not on EO joint venture with a for-profit organization

.13 Not on qualification of state run programs under § 529

.14 Not on UBIT issues involving certain investments of a charitable lead trust

.15 Not on issues under § 4965

.16 Not on issues under § 4966 or § 4967

.17 Not on issues under § 507, §4941 or §4945



SECTION 7. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES DOES EP OR EO DETERMINATIONS ISSUE DETERMINATION LETTERS?
.01 Circumstances under which determination letters are issued

.02 In general

.03 In employee plans matters

.04 In exempt organizations matters

.05 Circumstances under which determination letters are not issued

.06 Requests involving returns already filed

.07 Attach a copy of determination letter to taxpayer's return

.08 Review of determination letters



SECTION 8. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES DOES THE SERVICE HAVE DISCRETION TO ISSUE LETTER RULINGS AND DETERMINATION LETTERS?
.01 Ordinarily not in certain areas because of factual nature of the problem

.02 No "comfort" letter rulings

.03 Not on alternative plans or hypothetical situations

.04 Ordinarily not on part of an integrated transaction

.05 Not on partial terminations of employee plans

.06 Law requires letter ruling

.07 Issues under consideration by PBGC or DOL

.08 Cafeteria plans

.09 Determination letters

.10 Domicile in a foreign jurisdiction

.11 Employee Stock Ownership Plans

.12 Governmental Plans



SECTION 9. WHAT ARE THE GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR REQUESTING LETTER RULINGS AND DETERMINATION LETTERS?
.01 In general

.02 Certain information required in all requests

(1) Complete statement of facts and other information

(2) Copies of all contracts, wills, deeds, agreements, instruments, plan documents, and other documents

(3) Analysis of material facts

(4) Statement regarding whether same issue is in an earlier return

(5) Statement regarding whether same or similar issue was previously ruled on or requested, or is currently pending

(6) Statement of supporting authorities.

(7) Statement of contrary authorities.

(8) Statement identifying pending legislation

(9) Statement identifying information to be deleted from copy of letter ruling or determination letter for public inspection.

(10) Signature by taxpayer or authorized representative

(11) Authorized representatives

(12) Power of attorney and declaration of representative

(13) Penalties of perjury statement

(14) Applicable user fee

(15) Number of copies of request to be submitted

(16) Sample form at for a letter ruling request

(17) Checklist for letter ruling requests

.03 Additional information required in certain circumstances

(1) To request separate letter rulings for multiple issues in a single situation

(2) Recipient of original of letter ruling or determination letter

(3) To request expedited handling

(4) To receive a letter ruling or submit a request for a letter ruling by facsimile transmission (fax).

(5) To request a conference

.04 Address to send the request

(1) Requests for letter rulings

(2) Requests for information letters

(3) Requests for determination letters

.05 Pending letter ruling requests

.06 When to attach letter ruling to return

.07 How to check on status of request

.08 Request may be withdrawn or EP or EO Technical may decline to issue letter ruling

.09 Compliance with Treasury Department Circular No. 230



SECTION 10. WHAT SPECIFIC, ADDITIONAL PROCEDURES APPLY TO CERTAIN REQUESTS?
.01 In general

.02 Exempt Organizations

.03 Employee Plans



SECTION 11. HOW DOES EP OR EO TECHNICAL HANDLE LETTER RULING REQUESTS?
.01 In general

.02 Is not bound by informal opinion expressed

.03 Tells taxpayer if request lacks essential information during initial contact

.04 Requires prompt submission of additional information requested after initial contact

.05 Near the completion of the ruling process, advises taxpayer of conclusions and, if the Service will rule adversely, offers the taxpayer the opportunity to withdraw the letter ruling request

.06 May request draft of proposed letter ruling near the completion of the ruling process



SECTION 12. HOW ARE CONFERENCES SCHEDULED?
.01 Schedules a conference if requested by taxpayer

.02 Permits taxpayer one conference of right

.03 Disallows verbatim recording of conferences

.04 Makes tentative recommendations on substantive issues

.05 May offer additional conferences

.06 Requires written confirmation of information presented at conference

.07 May schedule a pre-submission conference

.08 Under limited circumstances, may schedule a conference to be held by telephone

.09 Conference rules for EO determination letters not subject to §7428 or § 501 or § 521



SECTION 13. WHAT EFFECT WILL A LETTER RULING HAVE?
.01 May be relied on subject to limitations

.02 Will not apply to another taxpayer

.03 Will be used by TE/GE in examining the taxpayer's return

.04 May be revoked or modified if found to be in error

.05 Not generally revoked or modified retroactively

.06 Retroactive effect of revocation or modification applied only to a particular transaction

.07 Retroactive effect of revocation or modification applied to a continuing action or series of actions

.08 May be retroactively revoked or modified when transaction is completed without reliance on the letter ruling

.09 Taxpayer may request that retroactivity be limited

(1) Request for relief under § 7805(b) must be made in required format

(2) Taxpayer may request a conference on application of §7805(b)



SECTION 14. WHAT EFFECT WILL A DETERMINATION LETTER HAVE?
.01 Has same effect as a letter ruling

.02 Taxpayer may request that retroactive effect of revocation or modification be limited

(1) Request for relief under § 7805(b) must be made in required format

(2) Taxpayer may request a conference on application of § 7805(b)

(3) Taxpayer steps in exhausting administrative remedies.



SECTION 15. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES ARE MATTERS REFERRED BETWEEN DETERMINATIONS AND TECHNICAL?
.01 Requests for determination letters

.02 No-rule areas

.03 Requests for letter rulings



SECTION 16. WHAT ARE THE GENERAL PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO INFORMATION LETTERS ISSUED BY THE HEADQUARTERS OFFICE?
.01 Will be made available to the public

.02 Deletions made under the Freedom of Information Act

.03 Effect of information letters



SECTION 17. WHAT IS THE EFFECT OF THIS REVENUE PROCEDURE ON OTHER DOCUMENTS?



SECTION 18. EFFECTIVE DATE



SECTION 19. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT



DRAFTING INFORMATION



INDEX



APPENDIX A --SAMPLE FORMAT FOR A LETTER RULING REQUEST



APPENDIX B --CHECKLIST FOR A LETTER RULING REQUEST



APPENDIX C --ADDITIONAL CHECKLIST FOR ROTH IRA RECHARACTERIZATIONS



APPENDIX D --ADDITIONAL CHECKLIST FOR GOVERNMENT PICK-UP PLANS



APPENDIX E --ADDITIONAL CHECKLIST FOR CHURCH PLANS



SECTION 1. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS REVENUE PROCEDURE?

This revenue procedure explains how the Internal Revenue Service gives guidance to taxpayers on issues under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division. It explains the kinds of guidance and the manner in which guidance is requested by taxpayers and provided by the Service. A sample format of a request for a letter ruling is provided in Appendix A.



SECTION 2. WHAT CHANGES HAVE BEEN MADE TO REV. PROC. 2007-4?

.01 This revenue procedure is a general update of Rev. Proc. 2007-4, 2007-1 I.R.B. 118 which contains the Service's general procedures for employee plans and exempt organizations letter ruling requests. Most of the changes to Rev. Proc. 2007-4 involve minor revisions, such as updating citations to other revenue procedures.

.02 Additional no rule areas for EO Technical are added as section 6.17

.03 Section 9.03(4)(a) is revised by deleting the requirement that a waiver of disclosure violations resulting from a fax transmission must accompany a taxpayer's request to receive a copy of a private letter ruling by fax. Conforming changes are made throughout this revenue procedure.

.04 Section 12.09 is added allowing a taxpayer to request a conference regarding a determination letter that is not subject to §7428 or § 501 or § 521.



SECTION 3. IN WHAT FORM IS GUIDANCE PROVIDED BY THE COMMISSIONER, TAX EXEMPT AND GOVERNMENT ENTITIES DIVISION?



In general

.01 The Service provides guidance in the form of letter rulings, closing agreements, compliance statements, determination letters, opinion letters, advisory letters, information letters, revenue rulings, and oral advice.



Letter ruling

.02 A "letter ruling" is a written statement issued to a taxpayer by the Service's Employee Plans Technical office or Exempt Organizations Technical office that interprets and applies the tax laws or any nontax laws applicable to employee benefit plans and exempt organizations to the taxpayer's specific set of facts. Once issued, a letter ruling may be revoked or modified for any number of reasons, as explained in section 13 of this revenue procedure, unless it is accompanied by a "closing agreement."



Closing agreement

.03 A closing agreement is a final agreement between the Service and a taxpayer on a specific issue or liability. It is entered into under the authority in §7121 and is final unless fraud, malfeasance, or misrepresentation of a material fact can be shown.

A closing agreement prepared in an office under the responsibility of the Commissioner, TE/GE, may be based on a ruling that has been signed by the Commissioner, TE/GE, or the Commissioner, TE/GE's, delegate that says that a closing agreement will be entered into on the basis of the ruling letter.

A closing agreement may be entered into when it is advantageous to have the matter permanently and conclusively closed, or when a taxpayer can show that there are good reasons for an agreement and that making the agreement will not prejudice the interests of the Government. In appropriate cases, taxpayers may be asked to enter into a closing agreement as a condition to the issuance of a letter ruling.

If, in a single case, a closing agreement is requested for each person in a class of taxpayers, separate agreements are entered into only if the class consists of 25 or fewer taxpayers. However, if the issue and holding are identical for the class and there are more than 25 taxpayers in the class, a "mass closing agreement" will be entered into with the taxpayer who is authorized by the others to represent the class.

In appropriate cases, a closing agreement may be made with sponsors of master and prototype plans.

A closing agreement may also be entered into with respect to retirement plan failures corrected under the Audit Closing Agreement Program of the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS), as set forth in Rev. Proc. 2006-27, 2006-1 C.B. 945, as modified by Rev. Proc. 2007-49, 2007-30 I.R.B. 141.



Determination letter

.04 A "determination letter" is a written statement issued to a taxpayer by the Service's EO Determinations or EP Determinations office that applies the principles and precedents previously announced to a specific set of facts. It is issued only when a determination can be made based on clearly established rules in the statute, a tax treaty, or the regulations, or based on a conclusion in a revenue ruling, opinion, or court decision published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin that specifically answers the questions presented.

The Manager, EP Determinations, issues determination letters involving §§401, 403(a), 409, and 4975(e)(7) as provided in Rev. Proc. 2008-6, page 192, this Bulletin.



Opinion letter

.05 An "opinion letter" is a written statement issued by Employee Plans Rulings and Agreements to a sponsor as to the acceptability (for purposes of §§401 and 501(a)) of the form of a master or prototype plan and any related trust or custodial account under §§401, 403(a), and 501(a), or as to the conformance of a prototype trust, custodial account, or individual annuity with the requirements of §408(a), (b), or (k), as applicable. See. Rev. Proc. 2005-16, 2005-1 C.B. 674. See also Rev. Proc. 91-44, 1991-2 C.B. 733, and Rev. Proc. 92-38, 1992-1 C.B. 859.



Information letter

.06 An "information letter" is a statement issued either by the Director, Employee Plans Rulings and Agreements or the Director, Exempt Organizations Rulings and Agreements. It calls attention to a well-established interpretation or principle of tax law (including a tax treaty) without applying it to a specific set of facts. To the extent resources permit, an information letter may be issued if the taxpayer's inquiry indicates a need for general information or if the taxpayer's request does not meet the requirements of this revenue procedure and the Service thinks general information will help the taxpayer. The taxpayer should provide a daytime telephone number with the taxpayer's request for an information letter. Requests for information letters should be sent to the address stated in section 9.04(2) of this revenue procedure. The requirements of section 9.02 of this revenue procedure are not applicable to information letters. An information letter is advisory only and has no binding effect on the Service.



Revenue ruling

.07 A "revenue ruling" is an interpretation by the Service that has been published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin. It is the conclusion of the Service on how the law is applied to a specific set of facts. Revenue rulings are published for the information and guidance of taxpayers, Service personnel, and other interested parties.

Because each revenue ruling represents the conclusion of the Service regarding the application of law to the entire statement of facts involved, taxpayers, Service personnel, and other concerned parties are cautioned against reaching the same conclusion in other cases unless the facts and circumstances are substantially the same. They should consider the effect of subsequent legislation, regulations, court decisions, revenue rulings, notices, and announcements. See Rev. Proc. 89-14, 1989-1 C.B. 814, which states the objectives of and standards for the publication of revenue rulings and revenue procedures in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.



Oral guidance

.08

(1) No oral rulings and no written rulings in response to oral requests.

The Service does not orally issue letter rulings or determination letters, nor does it issue letter rulings or determination letters in response to oral requests from taxpayers. However, Service employees ordinarily will discuss with taxpayers or their representatives inquiries regarding whether the Service will rule on particular issues and questions relating to procedural matters about submitting requests for letter rulings, determination letters, and requests for recognition of exempt status for a particular organization.

(2) Discussion possible on substantive issues.

At the discretion of the Service, and as time permits, substantive issues may also be discussed. However, such a discussion will not be binding on the Service, and cannot be relied on as a basis for obtaining retroactive relief under the provisions of §7805(b).

Substantive tax issues involving the taxpayer that are under examination, in appeals, or in litigation will not be discussed by Service employees not directly involved in the examination, appeal, or litigation of the issues unless the discussion is coordinated with those Service employees who are directly involved in the examination, appeal, or litigation of the issues. The taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative ordinarily will be asked whether the oral request for guidance or information relates to a matter pending before another office of the Service.

If a tax issue is not under examination, in appeals, or in litigation, the tax issue may be discussed even though the issue is affected by a nontax issue pending in litigation.

A taxpayer may seek oral technical guidance from a taxpayer service representative in TE/GE Customer Account Services when preparing a return or report. Oral guidance is advisory only, and the Service is not bound to recognize it, for example, in the examination of the taxpayer's return.

The Service does not respond to letters seeking to confirm the substance of oral discussions, and the absence of a response to such a letter is not confirmation of the substance of the letter.



Nonbank trustee requests

.09 In order to receive approval to act as a nonbank custodian of plans qualified under §401(a) or accounts described in §403(b)(7), and as a nonbank trustee or nonbank custodian for individual retirement arrangements (IRAs) established under §408(a), (b), or (h), or for a Coverdell educational savings account established under §530 or an Archer medical savings account established under §220, or a Health Savings Account under §223, a written application must be filed that demonstrates how the applicant complies with the requirements of §1.408-2(e)(2) through (5) of the Income Tax Regulations.

The Service must have clear and convincing proof in its files that the requirements of the regulations are met. If there is a requirement that the applicant feels is not applicable, the application must provide clear and convincing proof that such requirement is not germane to the manner in which the applicant will administer any trust or custodial account. See, §1.408-2(e)(6).

The completed application should be sent to:

Internal Revenue Service
Commissioner, TE/GE
Attention: SE:T:EP:RA
P.O. Box 27063
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
Section 6.01(8) of Rev. Proc. 2008-8, page 233, this Bulletin, imposes a user's fee for anyone applying for approval to become a nonbank trustee or custodian.



Compliance Statement

.10 A compliance statement is a binding written agreement between the Service and a taxpayer with respect to certain retirement plan failures identified by a taxpayer in a voluntary submission under the Voluntary Correction Program of the EPCRS (see Rev. Proc. 2006-27). The compliance statement addresses the failures identified in the VCP submission, the terms of correction, including any revision of administrative procedures, and the time period within which proposed corrections must be implemented. A compliance statement is conditioned on (i) there being no misstatement or omission of material facts in connection with the submission, and (ii) the implementation of the specific corrections and satisfaction of any other conditions in the compliance statement.



SECTION 4. ON WHAT ISSUES MAY TAXPAYERS REQUEST WRITTEN GUIDANCE UNDER THIS PROCEDURE?

Taxpayers may request letter rulings, information letters and closing agreements on issues within the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division under this revenue procedure. The Service issues letter rulings to answer written inquiries of individuals and organizations about their status for tax purposes and the tax effects of their acts or transactions when appropriate in the interest of sound tax administration.

Taxpayers also may request determination letters that relate to Code sections under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division. See Rev. Proc. 2008-6, this Bulletin.



SECTION 5. ON WHAT ISSUES MUST WRITTEN GUIDANCE BE REQUESTED UNDER DIFFERENT PROCEDURES?



Determination letters

.01 The procedures for obtaining determination letters involving §§401, 403(a), 409, and 4975(e)(7), and the status for exemption of any related trusts or custodial accounts under §501(a) are contained in Rev. Proc. 2008-6, this Bulletin.



Master and prototype plans and volume submitter plans

.02 The procedures for obtaining opinion letters for master and prototype plans and any related trusts or custodial accounts under §§401(a), 403(a) and 501(a) and advisory letters for volume submitter plans are contained in Rev. Proc. 2005-16. The procedures for obtaining opinion letters for prototype trusts, custodial accounts or annuities under §408(a) or (b) are contained in Rev. Proc. 87-50, as modified by Rev. Proc. 92-38 and Rev. Proc. 2002-10, 2002-1 C.B. 401. The procedures for obtaining opinion letters for prototype trusts under §408(k) are contained in Rev. Proc. 87-50, as modified by Rev. Proc. 91-44 (as modified by Rev. Proc. 2008-8) and Rev. Proc. 2002-10. The procedures for obtaining opinion letters for SIMPLE IRAs under §408(p) are contained in Rev. Proc. 97-29, 1997-1 C.B. 698. The procedures for obtaining opinion letters for Roth IRAs under §408A are contained in Rev. Proc. 98-59, 1998-2 C.B. 727.



Closing agreement program for defined contribution plans that purchased GICs or GACs

.03 Rev. Proc. 95-52, 1995-1 C.B. 439, restates and extends for an indefinite period the closing agreement program for defined contribution plans that purchased guaranteed investment contracts (GICs) or group annuity contracts (GACs) from troubled life insurance companies.



Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System

.04 The procedures for obtaining compliance statements, etc., for certain failures of plans qualified under § 401(a), § 403(b) plans, SEPs and § 457 plans under the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) are contained in Rev. Proc. 2006-27.



Chief Counsel

.05 The procedures for obtaining rulings, closing agreements, and information letters on issues within the jurisdiction of the Chief Counsel are contained in Rev. Proc. 2008-1, page 1, this Bulletin, including tax issues involving interpreting or applying the federal tax laws and income tax treaties relating to international transactions.



Alcohol, tobacco, and firearms taxes

.06 The procedures for obtaining letter rulings, etc., that apply to federal alcohol, tobacco, and firearms taxes under subtitle E of the Internal Revenue Code are under the jurisdiction of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau within the Treasury Department.



SECTION 6. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES DOES TE/GE ISSUE LETTER RULINGS?



In exempt organizations matters

.01 In exempt organizations matters, the Exempt Organizations Technical Office issues letter rulings on proposed transactions and on completed transactions if the request is submitted before the return is filed for the year in which the transaction that is the subject of the request was completed. Exempt Organizations Technical issues letter rulings involving:

(1) Organizations exempt from tax under § 501, including private foundations;

(2) Organizations described in § 170(b)(1)(A) (except clause (v));

(3) Political organizations described in § 527;

(4) Qualified tuition programs described in § 529 other than state run programs;

(5) Trusts described in § 4947(a);

(6) Other matters including issues under §§ 501 through 514, 4911, 4912, 4940 through 4948, 4955, 4958, 4976, 6033, 6104, 6113, and 6115.



In employee plans matters

.02 In employee plans matters, the Employee Plans Technical Office issues letter rulings on proposed transactions and on completed transactions either before or after the return is filed. Employee Plans Technical issues letter rulings involving:

(1) §§ 72, 101(d), 219, 381(c)(11), 402, 403(b), 404, 408, 408A, 412, 414(e), 419, 419A, 511 through 514, 4971, 4972, 4973, 4974, 4978, 4979, and 4980;

(2) Waiver of the minimum funding standard ( See Rev. Proc. 2004-15, 2004-1 C.B. 490), and changes in funding methods and actuarial assumptions under § 412(c)(5);

(3) Waiver of the liquidity shortfall (as that term is defined in § 412(m)(5)) excise tax under § 4971(f)(4);

(4) Waiver under § 4980F(c)(4) of all or part of the excise tax imposed for failure to satisfy the notice requirements described in § 4980F(e);

(5) Whether a plan amendment is reasonable and provides for only de minimis increases in plan liabilities in accordance with §§ 401(a)(33) and 412(f)(2)(A) of the Code ( See Rev. Proc. 79-62, 1979-2 C.B. 576);

(6) A change in the plan year of an employee retirement plan and the trust year of a tax-exempt employees' trust ( See Rev. Proc. 87-27, 1987-1 C.B. 769);

(7) The tax consequences of prohibited transactions under §§ 503 and 4975;

(8) Whether individual retirement accounts established by employers or associations of employees meet the requirements of § 408(c). ( See Rev. Proc. 87-50, as modified by Rev. Proc. 91-44 (as modified by Rev. Proc. 2008-8) and Rev. Proc. 92-38);

(9) With respect to employee stock ownership plans and tax credit employee stock ownership plans, §§ 409(l), 409(m), and 4975(d)(3). Other subsections of §§ 409 and 4975(e)(7) involve qualification issues within the jurisdiction of EP Determinations.

(10) Where the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division has authority to grant extensions of certain periods of time within which the taxpayer must perform certain transactions (for example, the 90-day period for reinvesting in employer securities under § 1.46-8(e)(10) of the regulations), the taxpayer's request for an extension of such time period must be postmarked (or received, if hand delivered to the headquarters office) no later than the expiration of the original time period. Thus, for example, a request for an extension of the 90-day period under § 1.46-8(e)(10) must be made before the expiration of this period. However, see section 6.04 below with respect to elections under § 301.9100-1 of the Procedure and Administration Regulations.



In qualifications matters

.03 The Employee Plans Technical office ordinarily will not issue letter rulings on matters involving a plan's qualified status under §§ 401 through 420 and § 4975(e)(7). These matters are generally handled by the Employee Plans Determinations program as provided in Rev. Proc. 2008-6, this Bulletin, Rev. Proc. 93-10 and Rev. Proc. 93-12. Although the Employee Plans Technical office will not ordinarily issue rulings on matters involving plan qualification, a ruling may be issued where, (1) the taxpayer has demonstrated to the Service's satisfaction that the qualification issue involved is unique and requires immediate guidance, (2) as a practical matter, it is not likely that such issue will be addressed through the determination letter process, and (3) the Service determines that it is in the interest of good tax administration to provide guidance to the taxpayer with respect to such qualification issue.



Request for extension of time for making an election or for other relief under § 301.9100-1 of the Procedure and Administration Regulations

.04 Employee Plans Technical or Exempt Organizations Technical will consider a request for an extension of time for making an election or other application for relief under § 301.9100-1 of the Procedure and Administration Regulations even if submitted after the return covering the issue presented in the § 301.9100-1 request has been filed and even if submitted after an examination of the return has begun or after the issues in the return are being considered by an appeals office or a federal court. In such a case, EP or EO Technical will notify the Director, EP or EO Examinations.

Except for those requests pertaining to applications for recognition of exemption, § 301.9100-1 requests, even those submitted after the examination of the taxpayer's return has begun, are letter ruling requests and therefore should be submitted pursuant to this revenue procedure, and require payment of the applicable user fee, referenced in section 9.02(14) of this revenue procedure. In addition, the taxpayer must include the information required by § 301.9100-3(e).

However, an election made pursuant to § 301.9100-2 is not a letter ruling and does not require payment of any user fee. See § 301.9100-2(d). Such an election pertains to an automatic extension of time under § 301.9100-1.



Issuance of a letter ruling before the issuance of a regulation or other published guidance

.05 Unless the issue is covered by section 8 of this procedure, a letter ruling may be issued before the issuance of a temporary or final regulation or other published guidance that interprets the provisions of any act under the following conditions:

(1) Answer is clear or is reasonably certain. If the letter ruling request presents an issue for which the answer seems clear by applying the statute to the facts or for which the answer seems reasonably certain but not entirely free from doubt, a letter ruling will be issued.

(2) Answer is not reasonably certain. The Service will consider all letter ruling requests and use its best efforts to issue a letter ruling even if the answer does not seem reasonably certain where the issuance of a letter ruling is in the best interest of tax administration.

(3) Issue cannot be readily resolved before a regulation or any other published guidance is issued. A letter ruling will not be issued if the letter ruling request presents an issue that cannot be readily resolved before a regulation or any other published guidance is issued.



Issues in prior return

.06 The Service ordinarily does not issue rulings if, at the time the ruling is requested, the identical issue is involved in the taxpayer's return for an earlier period, and that issue --

(1) is being examined by the Director, EP or EO Examinations,

(2) is being considered by an appeals office,

(3) is pending in litigation in a case involving the taxpayer or related taxpayer, or

(4) has been examined by the Director, EP or EO Examinations or considered by an appeals office, and the statutory period of limitation has not expired for either assessment or filing a claim for a refund or a closing agreement covering the issue of liability has not been entered into by the Director, EP or EO Rulings and Agreements or by an appeals office.

If a return dealing with an issue for a particular year is filed while a request for a ruling on that issue is pending, EP or EO Technical will issue the ruling unless it is notified by the taxpayer that an examination of that issue or the identical issue on an earlier year's return has been started by the Director, EP or EO Examinations. See section 9.05. However, even if an examination has begun, EP or EO Technical ordinarily will issue the letter ruling if the Director, EP or EO Examinations agrees, by memorandum, to permit the ruling to be issued.



Generally not to business associations or groups

.07 EP or EO Technical does not issue letter rulings to business, trade, or industrial associations or to similar groups concerning the application of the tax laws to members of the group. But groups and associations may submit suggestions of generic issues that would be appropriately addressed in revenue rulings. See Rev. Proc. 89-14, which states objectives of, and standards for, the publication of revenue rulings and revenue procedures in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.

EP or EO Technical, however, may issue letter rulings to groups or associations on their own tax status or liability if the request meets the requirements of this revenue procedure.



Generally not to foreign governments

.08 EP or EO Technical does not issue letter rulings to foreign governments or their political subdivisions about the U.S. tax effects of their laws. However, EP or EO Technical may issue letter rulings to foreign governments or their political subdivisions on their own tax status or liability under U.S. law if the request meets the requirements of this revenue procedure.



Generally not on federal tax consequences of proposed legislation

.09 EP or EO Technical does not issue letter rulings on a matter involving the federal tax consequences of any proposed federal, state, local, municipal, or foreign legislation. EP or EO Technical, however, may provide general information in response to an inquiry.



Not on certain matters under § 53.4958-6 of the Foundation and Similar Excise Taxes Regulations

.10 EO Technical does not issue letter rulings as to whether a compensation or property transaction satisfies the rebuttable presumption that the transaction is not an excess benefit transaction as described in § 53.4958-6 of the Foundation and Similar Excise Taxes Regulations.



Not on stock options

.11 EP Technical does not issue letter rulings on the income tax (including unrelated business income tax) or excise tax consequences of the contribution of stock options to, or their subsequent exercise from, plans described in Part I of Subchapter D of Subtitle A of the Code.



Generally not on EO joint venture with a for-profit organization

.12 With the exception of when the issue is present in an initial application for recognition of exemption, EO Technical does not issue letter rulings as to whether a joint venture with a for-profit organization affects an organization's exempt status or results in unrelated business income.



Not on qualification of state run programs under § 529

.13 EO Technical will not issue letter rulings as to whether a state run tuition program qualifies under § 529.



Not on UBIT issues involving certain investments of a charitable lead trust

.14 EO Technical will not issue letter rulings pertaining to unrelated business income tax issues arising when charitable lead trust assets are invested with charitable organizations.



Not on issues under § 4965

.15 The Service will not issue letter rulings under § 4965, as added by section 516 of the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005, before the issuance of temporary or final regulations or other published guidance that interprets the provision.



Not on issues under § 4966 or § 4967

.16 EO Technical will not issue letter rulings under § 4966 or § 4967, as added by section 1231 of the Pension Protection Act of 2006, before the issuance of temporary or final regulations or other published guidance that interprets these provisions.



Not on issues under § 507, § 4941 or § 4945

.17 EO Technical will not issue letter rulings under § 507, § 4941 or § 4945 pertaining to the tax consequences of the termination of a charitable remainder trust (as defined in § 664) before the end of the trust term as defined in the trust's governing instrument in a transaction in which the trust beneficiaries receive their actuarial shares of the value of the trust assets.



SECTION 7. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES DOES EP OR EO DETERMINATIONS ISSUE DETERMINATION LETTERS?



Circumstances under which determination letters are issued

.01 Employee Plans or Exempt Organizations Determinations issues determination letters only if the question presented is specifically answered by a statute, tax treaty, or regulation, or by a conclusion stated in a revenue ruling, opinion, or court decision published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.



In general

.02 In employee plans and exempt organizations matters, the EP or EO Determinations office issues determination letters in response to taxpayers' written requests on completed transactions. However, see section 13.08 of this revenue procedure. A determination letter usually is not issued for a question concerning a return to be filed by the taxpayer if the same question is involved in a return under examination.

In situations involving continuing transactions, such as whether an ongoing activity is an unrelated trade or business, EP or EO Technical would issue a ruling covering future tax periods and periods for which a return had not yet been filed.

EP or EO Determinations does not issue determination letters on the tax consequences of proposed transactions, except as provided in sections 7.03 and 7.04 below.

Under no circumstances will EP or EO Determinations issue a determination letter unless it is clearly shown that the request concerns a return that has been filed or is required to be filed.



In employee plans matters

.03 In employee plans matters, the Employee Plans Determinations office issues determination letters on the qualified status of employee plans under §§ 401, 403(a), 409 and 4975(e)(7), and the exempt status of any related trust under § 501. See Rev. Proc. 2008-6, this Bulletin, Rev. Proc. 93-10 and Rev. Proc. 93-12.



In exempt organizations matters

.04 In exempt organizations matters, the Exempt Organizations Determinations office issues determination letters involving:

(1) Initial qualification for exempt status of organizations described in §§ 501 and 521 to the extent provided in Rev. Proc. 2007-52, 2007-30 I.R.B. 222.

(2) Updated exempt status letter to reflect changes to an organization's name or address, or to replace a lost exempt status letter, but not to approve or disapprove any completed transaction or the effect of changes in activities on exempt status, except in the situations specifically listed in paragraphs (3) through (12) below;

(3) Classification of private foundation status as provided in Rev. Proc. 76-34, 1976-2 C.B. 656;

(4) Reclassification of private foundation status, including update of private foundation status at the end of an organization's advance ruling period and private operating foundation status;

(5) Recognition of unusual grants to certain organizations under §§ 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) and 509(a)(2);

(6) Requests for relief under § 301.9100-1 of the Procedure and Administration Regulations in connection with applications for recognition of exemption;

(7) Advance approval of terminations under § 507(b)(1)(B);

(8) Whether certain organizations qualify as exempt operating foundations described in § 4940(d);

(9) Advance approval of certain set-asides described in § 4942(g)(2);

(10) Advance approval under § 4945 of organizations' grant making procedures;

(11) Advance approval of voter registration activities described in § 4945(f); and

(12) Whether an organization is exempt from filing annual information returns under § 6033 as provided in Rev. Procs. 83-23, 1983-1 C.B. 687, 95-48, 1995-2 C.B. 418, and 96-10, 1996-1 C.B. 577;



Circumstances under which determination letters are not issued

.05 EP or EO Determinations will not issue a determination letter in response to any request if --

(1) it appears that the taxpayer has directed a similar inquiry to EP or EO Technical;

(2) the same issue involving the same taxpayer or a related taxpayer is pending in a case in litigation or before an appeals office;

(3) the determination letter is requested by an industry, trade association, or similar group on behalf of individual taxpayers within the group (other than subordinate organizations covered by a group exemption letter); or

(4) the request involves an industry-wide problem.



Requests involving returns already filed

.06 A request received by the Service on a question concerning a return that is under examination, will be, in general, considered in connection with the examination of the return. If a response is made to the request before the return is examined, it will be considered a tentative finding in any later examination of that return.



Attach a copy of determination letter to taxpayer's return

.07 A taxpayer who, before filing a return, receives a determination letter about any transaction that has been consummated and that is relevant to the return being filed should attach a copy of the determination letter to the return when it is filed.



Review of determination letters

.08 Determination letters issued under sections 7.02 through 7.04 of this revenue procedure are not reviewed by EP or EO Technical before they are issued. If a taxpayer believes that a determination letter of this type is in error, the taxpayer may ask EP or EO Determinations to reconsider the matter or to request technical advice from EP or EO Technical as explained in Rev. Proc. 2008-5, page 164, this Bulletin.

(1) In employee plans matters, the procedures for review of determination letters relating to the qualification of employee plans involving §§ 401 and 403(a) are provided in Rev. Proc. 2008-6, Rev. Proc. 93-10 and Rev. Proc. 93-12.

(2) In exempt organizations matters, the procedures for the review of determination letters relating to the exemption from federal income tax of certain organizations under §§ 501 and 521 are provided in Rev. Proc. 2007-52.



SECTION 8. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES DOES THE SERVICE HAVE DISCRETION TO ISSUE LETTER RULINGS AND DETERMINATION LETTERS?



Ordinarily not in certain areas because of factual nature of the problem

.01 The Service ordinarily will not issue a letter ruling or determination letter in certain areas because of the factual nature of the problem involved or because of other reasons. The Service may decline to issue a letter ruling or a determination letter when appropriate in the interest of sound tax administration or on other grounds whenever warranted by the facts or circumstances of a particular case.



No "comfort" letter rulings

.02 No letter ruling will be issued with respect to an issue that is clearly and adequately addressed by statute, regulations, decision of a court of appropriate jurisdiction, revenue ruling, revenue procedure, notice or other authority published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin. Instead of issuing a letter ruling, the Service may, when it is considered appropriate and in the best interests of the Service, issue an information letter calling attention to well-established principles of tax law.



Not on alternative plans or hypothetical situations

.03 A letter ruling or a determination letter will not be issued on alternative plans of proposed transactions or on hypothetical situations.



Ordinarily not on part of an integrated transaction

.04 The Service ordinarily will not issue a letter ruling on only part of an integrated transaction. If, however, a part of a transaction falls under a no-rule area, a letter ruling on other parts of the transaction may be issued. Before preparing the letter ruling request, a taxpayer should call the office having jurisdiction for the matters on which the taxpayer is seeking a letter ruling to discuss whether the Service will issue a letter ruling on part of the transaction.



Not on partial terminations of employee plans

.05 The Service will not issue a letter ruling on the partial termination of an employee plan. Determination letters involving the partial termination of an employee plan may be issued.



Law requires ruling letter

.06 The Service will issue rulings on prospective or future transactions if the law or regulations require a determination of the effect of a proposed transaction for tax purposes.



Issues under consideration by PBGC or DOL

.07 A letter ruling or determination letter relating to an issue that is being considered by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) or the Department of Labor (DOL), and involves the same taxpayer, shall be issued at the discretion of the Service.



Cafeteria plans

.08 The Service does not issue letter rulings or determination letters on whether a cafeteria plan satisfies the requirements of § 125. See also Rev. Proc. 2008-3, also in this Bulletin, for areas under the jurisdiction of the Division Counsel/ Associate Chief Counsel (Tax Exempt and Government Entities) involving cafeteria plans in which advance rulings or determination letters will not be issued.



Determination letters

.09 See section 3.02 of Rev. Proc. 2008-6 for employee plans matters on which determination letters will not be issued.



Domicile in a foreign jurisdiction

.10

(1) The Service is ordinarily unwilling to rule in situations where a taxpayer or a related party is domiciled or organized in a foreign jurisdiction with which the United States does not have an effective mechanism for obtaining tax information with respect to civil tax examinations and criminal investigations, which would preclude the Service from obtaining information located in such jurisdiction that is relevant to the analysis or examination of the tax issues involved in the ruling request.

(2) The provisions of sub section 8.10(1) above shall not apply if the taxpayer or affected related party (a) consents to the disclosure of all relevant information requested by the Service in processing the ruling request or in the course of an examination to verify the accuracy of the representations made and to otherwise analyze or examine the tax issues involved in the ruling request, and (b) waives all claims to protection of bank and commercial secrecy laws in the foreign jurisdiction with respect to the information requested by the Service. In the event the taxpayer's or related party's consent to disclose relevant information or to waive protection of bank or commercial secrecy is determined by the Service to be ineffective or of no force and effect, then the Service may retroactively rescind any ruling rendered in reliance on such consent.



Employee Stock Ownership Plans

.11

(1) The Service does not issue a letter ruling on whether or not the renewal, extension or refinancing of an exempt loan satisfies the requirements of § 4975(d)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(2) The Service does not issue a letter ruling on whether the pre-payment of ESOP loans satisfies the requirements of § 4975(d)(3) other than with respect to plan termination.



Governmental Plans

.12 The Service does not issue a letter ruling on whether or not a plan is a governmental plan under § 414(d).



SECTION 9. WHAT ARE THE GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR REQUESTING LETTER RULINGS AND DETERMINATION LETTERS?



In general

.01 This section explains the general instructions for requesting letter rulings and determination letters on all matters. Requests for letter rulings and determination letters require the payment of the applicable user fee discussed in section 9.02(14) of this revenue procedure.

Specific and additional instructions also apply to requests for letter rulings and determination letters on certain matters. Those matters are listed in section 10 of this revenue procedure followed by a reference (usually to another revenue procedure) where more information can be obtained.



Certain information required in all requests

.02



Facts

(1) Complete statement of facts and other information. Each request for a letter ruling or a determination letter must contain a complete statement of all facts relating to the transaction. These facts include --

(a) names, addresses, telephone numbers, and taxpayer identification numbers of all interested parties. (The term "all interested parties" does not mean all shareholders of a widely held corporation requesting a letter ruling relating to a reorganization, or all employees where a large number may be involved.);

(b) a complete statement of the business reasons for the transaction; and

(c) a detailed description of the transaction.

The Service will usually not rule on only one step of a larger integrated transaction. See section 8.04 of this revenue procedure. However, if such a letter ruling is requested, the facts, circumstances, true copies of relevant documents, etc., relating to the entire transaction must be submitted.



Documents

(2) Copies of all contracts, wills, deeds, agreements, instruments, plan documents, and other documents. True copies of all contracts, wills, deeds, agreements, instruments, plan documents, trust documents, proposed disclaimers, and other documents pertinent to the transaction must be submitted with the request.

Each document, other than the request, should be labelled alphabetically and attached to the request in alphabetical order. Original documents, such as contracts, wills, etc., should not be submitted because they become part of the Service's file and will not be returned.



Analysis of material facts

(3) Analysis of material facts. All material facts in documents must be included rather than merely incorporated by reference, in the taxpayer's initial request or in supplemental letters. These facts must be accompanied by an analysis of their bearing on the issue or issues, specifying the provisions that apply.



Same issue in an earlier return

(4) Statement regarding whether same issue is in an earlier return. The request must state whether, to the best of the knowledge of both the taxpayer and the taxpayer's representatives, the same issue is in an earlier return of the taxpayer (or in a return for any year of a related taxpayer within the meaning of § 267, or of a member of an affiliated group of which the taxpayer is also a member within the meaning of § 1504).

If the statement is affirmative, it must specify whether the issue --

(a) is being examined by the Service;

(b) has been examined and if so, whether or not the statutory period of limitations has expired for either assessing tax or filing a claim for refund or credit of tax;

(c) has been examined and if so, whether or not a closing agreement covering the issue or liability has been entered into by the Service;

(d) is being considered by an appeals office in connection with a return from an earlier period;

(e) has been considered by an appeals office in connection with a return from an earlier period and if so, whether or not the statutory period of limitations has expired for either assessing tax or filing a claim for refund or credit of tax;

(f) has been considered by an appeals office in connection with a return from an earlier period and whether or not a closing agreement covering the issue or liability has been entered into by an appeals office;

(g) is pending in litigation in a case involving the taxpayer or a related taxpayer; or

(h) in employee plans matters, is being considered by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation or the Department of Labor.



Same or similar issue previously submitted or currently pending

(5) Statement regarding whether same or similar issue was previously ruled on or requested, or is currently pending. The request must also state whether, to the best of the knowledge of both the taxpayer and the taxpayer's representatives --

(a) the Service previously ruled on the same or similar issue for the taxpayer (or a related taxpayer within the meaning of § 267, or a member of an affiliated group of which the taxpayer is also a member within the meaning of § 1504) or a predecessor;

(b) the taxpayer, a related taxpayer, a predecessor, or any representatives previously submitted the same or similar issue to the Service but withdrew the request before a letter ruling or determination letter was issued;

(c) the taxpayer, a related taxpayer, or a predecessor previously submitted a request involving the same or a similar issue that is currently pending with the Service; or

(d) at the same time as this request, the taxpayer or a related taxpayer is presently submitting another request involving the same or a similar issue to the Service.

If the statement is affirmative for (a), (b), (c), or (d) of this section 9.02(5), the statement must give the date the request was submitted, the date the request was withdrawn or ruled on, if applicable, and other details of the Service's consideration of the issue.



Statement of authorities supporting taxpayer's views

(6) Statement of supporting authorities. If the taxpayer advocates a particular conclusion, an explanation of the grounds for that conclusion and the relevant authorities to support it must also be included. Even if not advocating a particular tax treatment of a proposed transaction, the taxpayer must still furnish views on the tax results of the proposed transaction and a statement of relevant authorities to support those views.

In all events, the request must include a statement of whether the law in connection with the request is uncertain and whether the issue is adequately addressed by relevant authorities.



Statement of authorities contrary to taxpayer's views

(7) Statement of contrary authorities. The taxpayer is also encouraged to inform the Service about, and discuss the implications of, any authority believed to be contrary to the position advanced, such as legislation (or pending legislation), tax treaties, court decisions, regulations, revenue rulings, revenue procedures, notices or announcements. If the taxpayer determines that there are no contrary authorities, a statement in the request to this effect would be helpful. If the taxpayer does not furnish either contrary authorities or a statement that none exists, the Service in complex cases or those presenting difficult or novel issues may request submission of contrary authorities or a statement that none exists. Failure to comply with this request may result in the Service's refusal to issue a letter ruling or determination letter.

Identifying and discussing contrary authorities will generally enable Service personnel to understand the issue and relevant authorities more quickly. When Service personnel receive the request, they will have before them the taxpayer's thinking on the effect and applicability of contrary authorities. This information should make research easier and lead to earlier action by the Service. If the taxpayer does not disclose and distinguish significant contrary authorities, the Service may need to request additional information, which will delay action on the request.



Statement identifying pending legislation

(8) Statement identifying pending legislation. At the time of filing the request, the taxpayer must identify any pending legislation that may affect the proposed transaction. In addition, if applicable legislation is introduced after the request is filed but before a letter ruling or determination letter is issued, the taxpayer must notify the Service.



Deletions statement required by § 6110

(9) Statement identifying information to be deleted from copy of letter ruling or determination letter for public inspection. The text of certain letter rulings and determination letters is open to public inspection under § 6110. The Service makes deletions from the text before it is made available for inspection. To help the Service make the deletions required by § 6110(c), a request for a letter ruling or determination letter must be accompanied by a statement indicating the deletions desired ("deletions statement"). If the deletions statement is not submitted with the request, a Service representative will tell the taxpayer that the request will be closed if the Service does not receive the deletions statement within 30 calendar days. See section 11.03 of this revenue procedure.

(a) Format of deletions statement. A taxpayer who wants only names, addresses, and identifying numbers to be deleted should state this in the deletions statement. If the taxpayer wants more information deleted, the deletions statement must be accompanied by a copy of the request and supporting documents on which the taxpayer should bracket the material to be deleted. The deletions statement must indicate the statutory basis under § 6110(c) for each proposed deletion.

If the taxpayer decides to ask for additional deletions before the letter ruling or determination letter is issued, additional deletions statements may be submitted.

(b) Location of deletions statement. The deletions statement must not appear in the request, but instead must be made in a separate document and placed on top of the request for a letter ruling or determination letter.

(c) Signature. The deletions statement must be signed and dated by the taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative. A stamped or faxed signature is not permitted.

(d) Additional information. The taxpayer should follow the same procedures above to propose deletions from any additional information submitted after the initial request. An additional deletions statement, however, is not required with each submission of additional information if the taxpayer's initial deletions statement requests that only names, addresses, and identifying numbers are to be deleted and the taxpayer wants only the same information deleted from the additional information.

(e) Taxpayer may protest deletions not made. After receiving from the Service the notice under § 6110(f)(1) of intention to disclose the letter ruling or determination letter (including a copy of the version proposed to be open to public inspection and notation of third-party communications under § 6110(d)), the taxpayer may protest the disclosure of certain information in the letter ruling or determination letter. The taxpayer must send a written statement within 20 calendar days to the Service office indicated on the notice of intention to disclose. The statement must identify those deletions that the Service has not made and that the taxpayer believes should have been made. The taxpayer must also submit a copy of the version of the letter ruling or determination letter and bracket the deletions proposed that have not been made by the Service. Generally, the Service will not consider deleting any material that the taxpayer did not propose to be deleted before the letter ruling or determination letter was issued.

Within 20 calendar days after the Service receives the response to the notice under § 6110(f)(1), the Service will mail to the taxpayer its final administrative conclusion regarding the deletions to be made. The taxpayer does not have the right to a conference to resolve any disagreements concerning material to be deleted from the text of the letter ruling or determination letter. However, these matters may be taken up at any conference that is otherwise scheduled regarding the request.

(f) Taxpayer may request delay of public inspection. After receiving the notice under § 6110(f)(1) of intention to disclose, but within 60 calendar days after the date of notice, the taxpayer may send a request for delay of public inspection under either § 6110(g)(3) or (4). The request for delay must be sent to the Service office indicated on the notice of intention to disclose. A request for delay under § 6110(g)(3) must contain the date on which it is expected that the underlying transaction will be completed. The request for delay under § 6110(g)(4) must contain a statement from which the Commissioner of Internal Revenue may determine that there are good reasons for the delay.

Section 6110(1)(1) states that § 6110 disclosure provisions do not apply to any matter to which § 6104 applies. Therefore, letter rulings, determination letters, technical advice memoranda, and related background file documents dealing with the following matters (covered by § 6104) are not subject to § 6110 disclosure provisions --

(i) An approved application for exemption under § 501(a) as an organization described in § 501(c) or (d), or notice of status as a political organization under § 527, together with any papers submitted in support of such application or notice;

(ii) An application for exemption under § 501(a) with respect to the qualification of a pension, profit-sharing or stock bonus plan, or an individual retirement account described in § 408 or § 408A, whether the plan or account has more than 25 or less than 26 participants, or any application for exemption under § 501(a) by an organization forming part of such a plan or an account;

(iii) Any document issued by the Internal Revenue Service in which the qualification or exempt status of a plan or account is granted, denied, or revoked or the portion of any document in which technical advice with respect thereto is given;

(iv) Any application filed and any document issued by the Internal Revenue Service with respect to the qualification or status of EP master and prototype plans; and

(v) The portion of any document issued by the Internal Revenue Service with respect to the qualification or exempt status of a plan or account of a proposed transaction by such plan, or account.



Signature on request

(10) Signature by taxpayer or authorized representative. The request for a letter ruling or determination letter must be signed and dated by the taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative. Neither a stamped signature nor a faxed signature is permitted.



Authorized representatives

(11) Authorized representatives. To sign the request or to appear before the Service in connection with the request, the representative must be:



Attorney

(a) An attorney who is a member in good standing of the bar of the highest court of any state, possession, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia and who is not currently under suspension or disbarment from practice before the Service. He or she must file a written declaration with the Service showing current qualification as an attorney and current authorization to represent the taxpayer;



Certified public accountant

(b) A certified public accountant who is qualified to practice in any state, possession, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia and who is not currently under suspension or disbarment from practice before the Service. He or she must file a written declaration with the Service showing current qualification as a certified public accountant and current authorization to represent the taxpayer;



Enrolled agent

(c) An enrolled agent who is a person, other than an attorney or certified public accountant, that is currently enrolled to practice before the Service and is not currently under suspension or disbarment from practice before the Service, including a person enrolled to practice only for employee plans matters. He or she must file a written declaration with the Service showing current enrollment and authorization to represent the taxpayer. Either the enrollment number or the expiration date of the enrollment card must be included in the declaration. For the rules on who may practice before the Service, see Treasury Department Circular No. 230;



Enrolled actuary

(d) An enrolled actuary who is a person enrolled as an actuary by the Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries pursuant to 29 U.S.C. 1242 and qualified to practice in any state, possession, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia and who is not currently under suspension or disbarment from practice before the Service. He or she must file a written declaration with the Service showing current qualification as an enrolled actuary and current authorization to represent the taxpayer. Practice as an enrolled actuary is limited to representation with respect to issues involving the following statutory provisions: §§ 401, 403(a), 404, 412, 413, 414, 4971, 6057, 6058, 6059, 6652(d), 6652(e), 6692, 7805(b), and 29 U.S.C. 1083;



A person with a "Letter of Authorization"

(e) Any other person, including a foreign representative who has received a "Letter of Authorization" from the Director, Office of Professional Responsibility under section 10.7(d) of Treasury Department Circular No. 230. A person may make a written request for a "Letter of Authorization" to: Office of Director, Office of Professional Responsibility, Internal Revenue Service, 1111 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20224. Section 10.7(d) of Circular No. 230 authorizes the Commissioner to allow an individual who is not otherwise eligible to practice before the Service to represent another person in a particular matter. For additional information, see section 9.02(12) below.



Employee, general partner, bona fide officer, administrator, trustee, etc.

(f) The above requirements do not apply to a regular full-time employee representing his or her employer, to a general partner representing his or her partnership, to a bona fide officer representing his or her corporation, association, or organized group, to a trustee, receiver, guardian, personal representative, administrator, or executor representing a trust, receivership, guardianship, or estate, or to an individual representing his or her immediate family. A preparer of a return (other than a person referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (c), (d) or (e) of this section 9.02(11)) who is not a full-time employee, general partner, a bona fide officer, an administrator, trustee, etc., or an individual representing his or her immediate family may not represent a taxpayer in connection with a letter ruling, determination letter or a technical advice request. See section 10.7(c) of Treasury Department Circular No. 230.



Foreign representative

(g) A foreign representative (other than a person referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (c), (d) or (e) of this section 9.02(11)) is not authorized to practice before the Service and, therefore, must withdraw from representing a taxpayer in a request for a letter ruling or a determination letter. In this situation, the nonresident alien or foreign entity must submit the request for a letter ruling or a determination letter on the individual's or entity's own behalf or through a person referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (c), (d) or (e) of this section 9.02(11).



Power of attorney and declaration of representative

(12) Power of attorney and declaration of representative. Any authorized representative, whether or not enrolled to practice, must also comply with the conference and practice requirements of the Statement of Procedural Rules (26 C.F.R. § 601.501-601.509 (2005)), which provide the rules for representing a taxpayer before the Service. In addition, an unenrolled preparer must file a Form 8821 (Rev. April 2004), Tax Information Authorization, for certain limited employee plans matters.

Form 2848 (Rev. March 2004), Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, must be used to provide the representative's authorization (Part I of Form 2848, Power of Attorney) and the representative's qualification (Part II of Form 2848, Declaration of Representative). The name of the person signing Part I of Form 2848 should also be typed or printed on this form. A stamped signature is not permitted. An original, a copy, or a facsimile transmission (fax) of the power of attorney is acceptable so long as its authenticity is not reasonably disputed. For additional information regarding the power of attorney form, see section 9.03(2) of this revenue procedure.

For the requirement regarding compliance with Treasury Department Circular No. 230, see section 9.09 of this revenue procedure.



Penalties of perjury statement

(13) Penalties of perjury statement.

(a) Format of penalties of perjury statement. A request for a letter ruling or determination letter and any change in the request submitted at a later time must be accompanied by the following declaration: "Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this request, or this modification to the request, including accompanying documents, and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, the request or the modification contains all the relevant facts relating to the request, and such facts are true, correct, and complete." See section 11.04 of this revenue procedure for the penalties of perjury statement applicable for submissions of additional information.

(b) Signature by taxpayer. The declaration must be signed and dated by the taxpayer, not the taxpayer's representative. Neither a stamped signature nor a faxed signature is permitted.

The person who signs for a corporate taxpayer must be an officer of the corporate taxpayer who has personal knowledge of the facts, and whose duties are not limited to obtaining a letter ruling or determination letter from the Service. If the corporate taxpayer is a member of an affiliated group filing consolidated returns, a penalties of perjury statement must also be signed and submitted by an officer of the common parent of the group.

The person signing for a trust, a state law partnership, or a limited liability company must be, respectively, a trustee, general partner, or member-manager who has personal knowledge of the facts.



Applicable user fee

(14) Applicable user fee. Section 7528 of the Code, as added by section 202 of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Block Grant Program and made permanent by section 8244 of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007, requires taxpayers to pay user fees for requests for rulings, opinion letters, determination letters, and similar requests. Rev. Proc. 2008-8 contains the schedule of fees for each type of request under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division and provides guidance for administering the user fee requirements. If two or more taxpayers are parties to a transaction and each requests a letter ruling, each taxpayer must satisfy the rules herein and additional user fees may apply.



Number of copies of request to be submitted

(15) Number of copies of request to be submitted. Generally a taxpayer needs only to submit one copy of the request for a letter ruling or determination letter. If, however, more than one issue is presented in the letter ruling request, the taxpayer is encouraged to submit additional copies of the request.

Further, two copies of the request for a letter ruling or determination letter are required if --

(a) the taxpayer is requesting separate letter rulings or determination letters on different issues as explained later under section 9.03(1) of this revenue procedure;

(b) the taxpayer is requesting deletions other than names, addresses, and identifying numbers, as explained in section 9.02(9) of this revenue procedure. (One copy is the request for the letter ruling or determination letter and the second copy is the deleted version of such request.); or

(c) a closing agreement (as defined in section 3.03 of this revenue procedure) is being requested on the issue presented.



Sample of a letter ruling request

(16) Sample format for a letter ruling request. To assist a taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative in preparing a letter ruling request, a sample format for a letter ruling request is provided in Appendix A. This format is not required to be used by the taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative. If the letter ruling request is not identical or similar to the format in Appendix A, the different format will neither defer consideration of the letter ruling request nor be cause for returning the request to the taxpayer or taxpayer's representative.



Checklist

(17) Checklist for letter ruling requests. The Service will be able to respond more quickly to a taxpayer's letter ruling request if it is carefully prepared and complete. The checklist in Appendix B of this revenue procedure is designed to assist taxpayers in preparing a request by reminding them of the essential information and documents to be furnished with the request. The checklist in Appendix B must be completed to the extent required by the instructions in the checklist, signed and dated by the taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative, and placed on top of the letter ruling request. If the checklist in Appendix B is not received, a group representative will ask the taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative to submit the checklist, which may delay action on the letter ruling request. A photocopy of this checklist may be used.



Additional information required in certain circumstances

.03



Multiple issues

(1) To request separate letter rulings for multiple issues in a single situation. If more than one issue is presented in a request for a letter ruling, the Service generally will issue a single ruling letter covering all the issues. However, if the taxpayer requests separate letter rulings on any of the issues (because, for example, one letter ruling is needed sooner than another), the Service will usually comply with the request unless it is not feasible or not in the best interests of the Service to do so. A taxpayer who wants separate letter rulings on multiple issues should make this clear in the request and submit two copies of the request. Additional checklists are solely for the specific issues designated.

In issuing each letter ruling, the Service will state that it has issued separate letter rulings or that requests for other letter rulings are pending.



Power of attorney

(2) Recipient of original letter ruling or determination letter. The Service will send the original of the letter ruling or determination letter to the taxpayer and a copy of the letter ruling or determination letter to the taxpayer's representative. In this case, the letter ruling or determination letter is addressed to the taxpayer. A Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative (Rev. March 2004), must be used to provide the representative's authorization except in certain employee plans matters. See section 9.02(12) of this revenue procedure.



Copies of letter ruling or determination letter sent to multiple representatives

(a) To have copies sent to multiple representatives. When a taxpayer has more than one representative, the Service will send the copy of the letter ruling or determination letter to the first representative named on the most recent power of attorney. If the taxpayer wants an additional copy of the letter ruling or determination letter sent to the second representative listed in the power of attorney, the taxpayer must check the appropriate box on Form 2848. If this form is not used, the taxpayer must state in the power of attorney that a copy of the letter ruling or determination letter is to be sent to the second representative listed in the power of attorney. Copies of the letter ruling or determination letter, however, will be sent to no more than two representatives.



Copy of letter ruling or determination letter sent to taxpayer's representative

(b) To have copy sent to taxpayer's representative.

A copy of the letter ruling or determination letter will be sent to the taxpayer's representative.

If the taxpayer wants a copy of the letter ruling or determination letter sent to the taxpayer's second representative, the taxpayer must check the appropriate box on Form 2848.



No copy of letter ruling or determination letter sent to taxpayer's representative

(c) To have no copy sent to taxpayer's representative. If a taxpayer does not want a copy of the letter ruling or determination letter sent to any representative, the taxpayer must check the appropriate box on Form 2848.



Expedited handling

(3) To request expedited handling. The Service ordinarily processes requests for letter rulings and determination letters in order of the date received. Expedited handling means that a request is processed ahead of the regular order. Expedited handling is granted only in rare and unusual cases, both out of fairness to other taxpayers and because the Service seeks to process all requests as expeditiously as possible and to give appropriate deference to normal business exigencies in all cases not involving expedited handling.

A taxpayer who has a compelling need to have a request processed ahead of the regular order may request expedited handling. This request must explain in detail the need for expedited handling. The request must be made in writing, preferably in a separate letter with, or soon after filing, the request for the letter ruling or determination letter. If the request is not made in a separate letter, then the letter in which the letter ruling or determination letter request is made should say, at the top of the first page: "Expedited Handling Is Requested. See page ___of this letter."

A request for expedited handling will not be forwarded to the appropriate group for action until the check or money order for the user fee in the correct amount is received.

Whether the request will be granted is within the Service's discretion. The Service may grant a request when a factor outside a taxpayer's control creates a real business need to obtain a letter ruling or determination letter before a certain time in order to avoid serious business consequences. Examples include situations in which a court or governmental agency has imposed a specific deadline for the completion of a transaction, or a transaction must be completed expeditiously to avoid an imminent business emergency (such as the hostile takeover of a corporate taxpayer), provided that the taxpayer can demonstrate that the deadline or business emergency, and the need for expedited handling, resulted from circumstances that could not reasonably have been anticipated or controlled by the taxpayer. To qualify for expedited handling in such situations, the taxpayer must also demonstrate that the taxpayer submitted the request as promptly as possible after becoming aware of the deadline or emergency. The extent to which the letter ruling or determination letter complies with all of the applicable requirements of this revenue procedure, and fully and clearly presents the issues, is a factor in determining whether expedited treatment will be granted. When the Service agrees to process a request out of order, it cannot give assurance that any letter ruling or determination letter will be processed by the time requested. The scheduling of a closing date for a transaction or a meeting of the board of directors or shareholders of a corporation, without regard for the time it may take to obtain a letter ruling or determination letter, will not be considered a sufficient reason to process a request ahead of its regular order. Also, the possible effect of fluctuation in the market price of stocks on a transaction will not be considered a sufficient reason to process a request out of order.

Because most requests for letter rulings and determination letters cannot be processed ahead of their regular order, the Service urges all taxpayers to submit their requests well in advance of the contemplated transaction. In addition, in order to facilitate prompt action on letter ruling requests taxpayers are encouraged to ensure that their initial submissions comply with all of the requirements of this revenue procedure (including the requirements of other applicable guidelines set forth in section 10 of this revenue procedure), and to provide any additional information requested by the Service promptly.



Facsimile transmission (fax)

(4) To receive a letter ruling or submit a request for a letter ruling by facsimile transmission (fax).

(a) To receive a letter ruling by fax. A letter ruling ordinarily is not sent by fax. However, if the taxpayer requests, a copy of a letter ruling may be faxed to the taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative. A letter ruling, however, is not issued until the ruling is mailed. See § 301.6110-2(h).

A request to fax a copy of the letter ruling to the taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative must be made in writing, either as part of the original letter ruling request or prior to the approval of the letter ruling. The request must contain the fax number of the taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative to whom the letter ruling is to be faxed.

The Service will take certain precautions to protect confidential information. For example, the Service will use a cover sheet that identifies the intended recipient of the fax and the number of pages transmitted. The cover sheet, if possible, will not identify the specific taxpayer by name, and it will be the first page covering the letter ruling being faxed.

(b) To submit a request for a letter ruling by fax. Original letter ruling requests sent by fax are discouraged because such requests must be treated in the same manner as requests by letter. For example, the faxed letter ruling request will not be forwarded to the applicable office for action until the check for the user fee is received.



Requesting a conference

(5) To request a conference. A taxpayer who wants to have a conference on the issues involved should indicate this in writing when, or soon after, filing the request. See also sections 12.01, 12.02, and 13.09(2) of this revenue procedure.



Address to send the request

.04



Requests for letter rulings

(1) Requests for letter rulings should be sent to the following offices (as appropriate):

Internal Revenue Service
Attention: EP Letter Rulings
P.O. Box 27063
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
Internal Revenue Service
Attention: EO Letter Rulings
P.O. Box 27720
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
Hand delivered requests must be marked RULING REQUEST SUBMISSION. The delivery should be made between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.; where a receipt will be given:

Courier's Desk
Internal Revenue Service
Attention: SE:T:EP:RA or SE:T:EO:RA
1111 Constitution Avenue, NW - PE
Washington, DC 20224


Requests for information letters

(2) Requests for information letters on either employee plans matters or exempt organizations matters should be sent to Employee Plans or Exempt Organizations (as appropriate):

Internal Revenue Service
Commissioner, TE/GE
Attention: SE:T:EP:RA or SE:T:EO:RA
1111 Constitution Avenue, NW - PE
Washington, DC 20224


Requests for determination letters

(3) Requests for determination letters should be sent to:

Internal Revenue Service
P.O. Box 192
Covington, KY 41012-0192
For fees required with determination letter requests, see section 6 of Rev. Proc. 2008-8.



Pending letter ruling requests

.05

(1) Circumstances under which the taxpayer must notify EP or EO Technical. The taxpayer must notify EP or EO Technical if, after the letter ruling request is filed but before a letter ruling is issued, the taxpayer knows that --

(a) an examination of the issue or the identical issue on an earlier year's return has been started by an EP or EO Examinations office;

(b) in employee plans matters, the issue is being considered by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation or the Department of Labor; or

(c) legislation that may affect the transaction has been introduced ( see section 9.02(8) of this revenue procedure).

(2) Taxpayer must notify EP or EO Technical if return is filed and must attach request to return. If the taxpayer files a return before a letter ruling is received from EP or EO Technical concerning the issue, the taxpayer must notify EP or EO Technical that the return has been filed. The taxpayer must also attach a copy of the letter ruling request to the return to alert the EP or EO Examinations office and thereby avoid premature EP or EO Examinations office action on the issue.



When to attach letter ruling to return

.06 A taxpayer who receives a letter ruling before filing a return about any transaction that is relevant to the return being filed must attach a copy of the letter ruling to the return when it is filed.



How to check on status of request

.07 The taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative may obtain information regarding the status of a request by calling the person whose name and telephone number are shown on the acknowledgement of receipt of the request.



Request may be withdrawn or EP or EO Technical may decline to issue letter ruling

.08

(1) In general. A taxpayer may withdraw a request for a letter ruling or determination letter at any time before the letter ruling or determination letter is signed by the Service. Correspondence and exhibits related to a request that is withdrawn or related to a letter ruling request for which the Service declines to issue a letter ruling will not be returned to the taxpayer. See section 9.02(2) of this revenue procedure. In appropriate cases, the Service may publish its conclusions in a revenue ruling or revenue procedure.

A request for a letter ruling will not be suspended in EP or EO Technical at the request of a taxpayer.

(2) Notification of Director, EP or EO Examinations. If a taxpayer withdraws a request for a letter ruling or if EP or EO Technical declines to issue a letter ruling, EP or EO Technical will notify the Director, EP or EO Examinations and may give its views on the issues in the request to the Director, EP or EO Examinations to consider in any later examination of the return.

(3) Refunds of user fee. The user fee will not be returned for a letter ruling request that is withdrawn. If the Service declines to issue a letter ruling on all of the issues in the request, the user fee will be returned. If the Service, however, issues a letter ruling on some, but not all, of the issues, the user fee will not be returned. See section 10 of Rev. Proc. 2008-8 for additional information regarding refunds of user fees.



Compliance with Treasury Department Circular No. 230

.09 The taxpayer's authorized representative, whether or not enrolled, must comply with Treasury Department Circular No. 230, which provides the rules for practice before the Service. In those situations when EP or EO Technical believes that the taxpayer's representative is not in compliance with Circular No. 230, EP or EO Technical will bring the matter to the attention of the Director, Office of Professional Responsibility.

For the requirement regarding compliance with the conference and practice requirements, see section 9.02(12) of this revenue procedure.



SECTION 10. WHAT SPECIFIC, ADDITIONAL PROCEDURES APPLY TO CERTAIN REQUESTS?



In general

.01 Specific revenue procedures supplement the general instructions for requests explained in section 9 of this revenue procedure and apply to requests for letter rulings or determination letters regarding the Code sections and matters listed in this section.



Exempt Organizations

.02 If the request is for the qualification of an organization for exemption from federal income tax under § 501 or 521, see Rev. Proc. 72-5, 1972-1 C.B. 709, regarding religious and apostolic organizations; Rev. Proc. 80-27, 1980-1 C.B. 677, concerning group exemptions; and Rev. Proc. 2007-52 , regarding applications for recognition of exemption, determinations for which § 7428 applies, and conference protest and appeal rights.



Employee Plans

.03

(1) For requests to obtain approval for a retroactive amendment described in § 412(c)(8) of the Code and section 302(c)(8) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) that reduces accrued benefits, see Rev. Proc. 94-42, 1994-1 C.B. 717.

(2) For requests for a waiver of the minimum funding standard, see Rev. Proc. 2004-15.

(3) For requests for a waiver of the 100 percent tax imposed under § 4971(b) of the Code on a pension plan that fails to meet the minimum funding standards of § 412, see Rev. Proc. 81-44, 1981-2 C.B. 618.

(4) For requests for a determination that a plan amendment is reasonable and provides for only de minimis increases in plan liabilities in accordance with §§ 401(a)(33) and 412(f)(2)(A), see Rev. Proc. 79-62, 1979-2 C.B. 576.

(5) For requests to obtain approval for an extension of an amortization period of any unfunded liability in accordance with § 412(e), see Rev. Proc. 2004-44, 2004-2 C.B. 134.

(6) For requests by administrators or sponsors of a defined benefit plan to obtain approval for a change in funding method, see Rev. Proc. 2000-41, 2000-2 C.B. 371.

(7) For requests for the return to the employer of certain nondeductible contributions, see Rev. Proc. 90-49, 1990-2 C.B. 620 (as modified by Rev. Proc. 2008-8).

(8) For requests for determination letters for plans under §§ 401, 403(a), 409, and 4975(e)(7), and for the exempt status of any related trust under § 501, see Rev. Proc. 2008-6, Rev. Proc. 93-10 and Rev. Proc. 93-12.



SECTION 11. HOW DOES EP OR EO TECHNICAL HANDLE LETTER RULING REQUESTS?



In general

.01 The Service will issue letter rulings on the matters and under the circumstances explained in sections 4 and 6 of this revenue procedure and in the manner explained in this section and section 13 of this revenue procedure.



Is not bound by informal opinion expressed

.02 The Service will not be bound by the informal opinion expressed by the group representative or any other authorized Service representative under this procedure, and such an opinion cannot be relied upon as a basis for obtaining retroactive relief under the provisions of § 7805(b).



Tells taxpayer if request lacks essential information during initial contact

.03 If a request for a letter ruling or determination letter does not comply with all the provisions of this revenue procedure, the request will be acknowledged and the Service representative will tell the taxpayer during the initial contact which requirements have not been met.



Information must be submitted within 30 calendar days

If the request lacks essential information, which may include additional information needed to satisfy the procedural requirements of this revenue procedure, as well as substantive changes to transactions or documents needed from the taxpayer, the Service representative will tell the taxpayer during the initial contact that the request will be closed if the Service does not receive the information within 30 calendar days unless an extension of time is granted. See section 11.04 of this revenue procedure for information on extension of time and instructions on submissions of additional information.



Letter ruling request mistakenly sent to EP or EO Determinations Processing

A request for a letter ruling sent to EP/EO Determinations Processing that does not comply with the provisions of this revenue procedure will be returned by EP/EO Determinations Processing so that the taxpayer can make corrections before sending it to EP or EO Technical.



Requires prompt submission of additional information requested after initial contact

.04 Material facts furnished to the Service by telephone or fax, or orally at a conference, must be promptly confirmed by letter to the Service. This confirmation and any additional information requested by the Service that is not part of the information requested during the initial contact must be furnished within 21 calendar days to be considered part of the request.

Additional information submitted to the Service must be accompanied by the following declaration: "Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this information, including accompanying documents, and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, the information contains all the relevant facts relating to the request for the information, and such facts are true, correct, and complete." This declaration must be signed in accordance with the requirements in section 9.02(13)(b) of this revenue procedure. A taxpayer who submits additional factual information on several occasions may provide one declaration subsequent to all submissions that refers to all submissions.



Encourage use of fax

(1) To facilitate prompt action on letter ruling requests, taxpayers are encouraged to submit additional information by fax as soon as the information is available. The Service representative who requests additional information can provide a telephone number to which the information can be faxed. A copy of this information and a signed perjury statement, however, must be mailed or delivered to the Service.



Address to send additional information

(2) Additional information should be sent to the same address as the original letter ruling request. See section 9.04. However, the additional information should include the name, office symbols, and room number of the Service representative who requested the information and the taxpayer's name and the case control number (which the Service representative can provide).



Number of copies of additional information to be submitted

(3) Generally, a taxpayer needs only to submit one copy of the additional information. However, in appropriate cases, the Service may request additional copies of the information.



30-day or 21-day period may be extended if justified and approved

(4) An extension of the 30-day period under section 11.03 or the 21-day period under section 11.04, will be granted only if justified in writing by the taxpayer and approved by the manager of the group to which the case is assigned. A request for extension should be submitted before the end of the 30-day or 21-day period. If unusual circumstances close to the end of the 30-day or 21-day period make a written request impractical, the taxpayer should notify the Service within the 30-day or 21-day period that there is a problem and that the written request for extension will be coming soon. The taxpayer will be told promptly, and later in writing, of the approval or denial of the requested extension. If the extension request is denied, there is no right of appeal.



If taxpayer does not submit additional information

(5) If the taxpayer does not follow the instructions for submitting additional information or requesting an extension within the time provided, a letter ruling will be issued on the basis of the information on hand, or, if appropriate, no letter ruling will be issued. When the Service decides not to issue a letter ruling because essential information is lacking, the case will be closed and the taxpayer notified in writing. If the Service receives the information after the letter ruling request is closed, the request may be reopened and treated as a new request. However, the taxpayer must pay another user fee before the case can be reopened.



Near the completion of the ruling process, advises taxpayer of conclusions and, if the Service will rule adversely, offers the taxpayer the opportunity to withdraw the letter ruling request

.05 Generally, after the conference of right is held before the letter ruling is issued, the Service representative will inform the taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative of the Service's final conclusions. If the Service is going to rule adversely, the taxpayer will be offered the opportunity to withdraw the letter ruling request. If the taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative does not promptly notify the Service representative of a decision to withdraw the ruling request, the adverse letter will be issued. The user fee will not be refunded for a letter ruling request that is withdrawn. See section 10 of Rev. Proc. 2008-8.



May request draft of proposed letter ruling near the completion of the ruling process

.06 To accelerate issuance of letter rulings, in appropriate cases near the completion of the ruling process, the Service representative may request that the taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative submit a proposed draft of the letter ruling on the basis of discussions of the issues. The taxpayer, however, is not required to prepare a draft letter ruling in order to receive a letter ruling.

The format of the submission should be discussed with the Service representative who requests the draft letter ruling. The representative usually can provide a sample format of a letter ruling and will discuss the facts, analysis, and letter ruling language to be included.



Taxpayer may also submit draft on a word processing disk

In addition to a typed draft, taxpayers are encouraged to submit this draft on a disk or CD Rom in Rich Text Format. The typed draft will become part of the permanent files of the Service, and the word processing disk will not be returned. If the Service representative requesting the draft letter ruling cannot answer specific questions about the format of the word processing disk, the questions can be directed to Frances Sloan at (202) 283-9626 (Employee Plans), or Ted Lieber at (202) 283-8999 (Exempt Organizations) (not toll-free calls).

The proposed letter ruling (both typed draft and word processing disk) should be sent to the same address as any additional information and contain in the transmittal the information that should be included with any additional information (for example, a penalties of perjury statement is required). See section 11.04 of this revenue procedure.



SECTION 12. HOW ARE CONFERENCES SCHEDULED?



Schedules a conference if requested by taxpayer

.01 A taxpayer may request a conference regarding a letter ruling request. Normally, a conference is scheduled only when the Service considers it to be helpful in deciding the case or when an adverse decision is indicated. If conferences are being arranged for more than one request for a letter ruling involving the same taxpayer, they will be scheduled so as to cause the least inconvenience to the taxpayer. As stated in section 9.03(5) of this revenue procedure, a taxpayer who wants to have a conference on the issue or issues involved should indicate this in writing when, or soon after, filing the request.

If a conference has been requested, the taxpayer will be notified by telephone, if possible, of the time and place of the conference, which must then be held within 21 calendar days after this contact. Instructions for requesting an extension of the 21-day period and notifying the taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative of the Service's approval or denial of the request for extension are the same as those explained in section 11.04 of this revenue procedure regarding providing additional information.



Permits taxpayer one conference of right

.02 A taxpayer is entitled, as a matter of right, to only one conference, except as explained under section 12.05 of this revenue procedure. This conference normally will be held at the group level and will be attended by a person who, at the time of the conference, has the authority to sign the ruling letter in his or her own name or for the group manager.

When more than one group has taken an adverse position on an issue in a letter ruling request, or when the position ultimately adopted by one group will affect that adopted by another, a representative from each group with the authority to sign in his or her own name or for the group manager will attend the conference. If more than one subject is to be discussed at the conference, the discussion will constitute a conference on each subject.

To have a thorough and informed discussion of the issues, the conference usually will be held after the group has had an opportunity to study the case. However, at the request of the taxpayer, the conference of right may be held earlier.

No taxpayer has a right to appeal the action of a group to any other official of the Service. But see section 12.05 of this revenue procedure for situations in which the Service may offer additional conferences.



Disallows verbatim recording of conferences

.03 Because conference procedures are informal, no tape, stenographic, or other verbatim recording of a conference may be made by any party.



Makes tentative recommendations on substantive issues

.04 The senior Service representative present at the conference ensures that the taxpayer has the opportunity to present views on all the issues in question. A Service representative explains the Service's tentative decision on the substantive issues and the reasons for that decision. If the taxpayer asks the Service to limit the retroactive effect of any letter ruling or limit the revocation or modification of a prior letter ruling, a Service representative will discuss the recommendation concerning this issue and the reasons for the recommendation. The Service representatives will not make a commitment regarding the conclusion that the Service will finally adopt.



May offer additional conferences

.05 The Service will offer the taxpayer an additional conference if, after the conference of right, an adverse holding is proposed, but on a new issue, or on the same issue but on different grounds from those discussed at the first conference. There is no right to another conference when a proposed holding is reversed at a higher level with a result less favorable to the taxpayer, if the grounds or arguments on which the reversal is based were discussed at the conference of right.

The limit on the number of conferences to which a taxpayer is entitled does not prevent the Service from offering additional conferences, including conferences with an official higher than the group level, if the Service decides they are needed. Such conferences are not offered as a matter of course simply because the group has reached an adverse decision. In general, conferences with higher level officials are offered only if the Service determines that the case presents significant issues of tax policy or tax administration and that the consideration of these issues would be enhanced by additional conferences with the taxpayer.



Requires written confirmation of information presented at conference

.06 The taxpayer should furnish to the Service any additional data, reasoning, precedents, etc., that were proposed by the taxpayer and discussed at the conference but not previously or adequately presented in writing. The taxpayer must furnish the additional information within 21 calendar days from the date of the conference. See section 11.04 of this revenue procedure for instructions on submission of additional information. If the additional information is not received within that time, a ruling will be issued on the basis of the information on hand or, if appropriate, no ruling will be issued.

Procedures for requesting an extension of the 21-day period and notifying the taxpayer or the taxpayer's representative of the Service's approval or denial of the requested extension are the same as those stated in section 11.04 of this revenue procedure regarding submitting additional information.



May schedule a pre-submission conference

.07 Sometimes it will be advantageous to both the Service and the taxpayer to hold a conference before the taxpayer submits the letter ruling request to discuss substantive or procedural issues relating to a proposed transaction. These conferences are held only if the identity of the taxpayer is provided to the Service, only if the taxpayer actually intends to make a request, only if the request involves a matter on which a letter ruling is ordinarily issued, and only at the discretion of the Service and as time permits. For example, a pre-submission conference will not be held on an income tax issue if, at the time the pre-submission conference is requested, the identical issue is involved in the taxpayer's return for an earlier period and that issue is being examined. See section 6 of this revenue procedure. Generally, the taxpayer will be asked to provide before the pre-submission conference a statement of whether the issue is an issue on which a letter ruling is ordinarily issued and a draft of the letter ruling request or other detailed written statement of the proposed transaction, issue, and legal analysis. If the taxpayer's representative will attend the pre-submission conference, a power of attorney form is required. A Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, must be used to provide the representative's authorization.

Any discussion of substantive issues at a pre-submission conference is advisory only, is not binding on the Service, and cannot be relied upon as a basis for obtaining retroactive relief under the provisions of § 7805(b). A letter ruling request submitted following a pre-submission conference will not necessarily be assigned to the group that held the pre-submission conference.



Under limited circumstances, may schedule a conference to be held by telephone

.08 A taxpayer may request that their conference of right be held by telephone. This request may occur, for example, when a taxpayer wants a conference of right but believes that the issue involved does not warrant incurring the expense of traveling to Washington, DC. If a taxpayer makes such a request, the group manager will decide if it is appropriate in the particular case to hold the conference of right by telephone. If the request is approved by the group manager, the taxpayer will be advised when to call the Service representatives (not a toll-free call).



Conference rules for EO determination letters not subject to § 7428 or § 501 or § 521

.09 The procedures for requesting a conference for determination letters that are not subject to § 7428 or § 501 or § 521 are the same as described in this section, except that generally conferences will be held by telephone.



SECTION 13. WHAT EFFECT WILL A LETTER RULING HAVE?



May be relied on subject to limitations

.01 A taxpayer ordinarily may rely on a letter ruling received from the Service subject to the conditions and limitations described in this section.



Will not apply to another taxpayer

.02 A taxpayer may not rely on a letter ruling issued to another taxpayer. See § 6110(k)(3).



Will be used by the Director, EP or EO Examinations in examining the taxpayer's return

.03 When determining a taxpayer's liability, the Director, EP or EO Examinations must ascertain whether --

(1) the conclusions stated in the letter ruling are properly reflected in the return;

(2) the representations upon which the letter ruling was based reflected an accurate statement of the material facts;

(3) the transaction was carried out substantially as proposed; and

(4) there has been any change in the law that applies to the period during which the transaction or continuing series of transactions were consummated.

If, when determining the liability, the Director, EP Examinations finds that a letter ruling should be revoked or modified, unless a waiver is obtained from EP Technical, the findings and recommendations of the Director, EP Examinations will be forwarded to EP Technical for consideration before further action is taken by the Director, EP Examinations. Such a referral to EP Technical will be treated as a request for technical advice and the procedures of Rev. Proc. 2008-5 will be followed. Otherwise, the letter ruling is to be applied by the Director, EP Examinations in determining the taxpayer's liability. Appropriate coordination with EP Technical will be undertaken if any field official having jurisdiction over a return or other matter proposes to reach a conclusion contrary to a letter ruling previously issued to the taxpayer.

In certain exempt organizations cases, section 4.04 of Rev. Proc. 2008-5 provides that a request for a TAM is mandatory.



May be revoked or modified if found to be in error

.04 Unless it was part of a closing agreement as described in section 3.03 of this revenue procedure, a letter ruling found to be in error or not in accord with the current views of the Service may be revoked or modified. If a letter ruling is revoked or modified, the revocation or modification applies to all years open under the statute of limitations unless the Service uses its discretionary authority under § 7805(b) to limit the retroactive effect of the revocation or modification.

A letter ruling may be revoked or modified due to --

(1) a notice to the taxpayer to whom the letter ruling was issued;

(2) the enactment of legislation or ratification of a tax treaty;

(3) a decision of the United States Supreme Court;

(4) the issuance of temporary or final regulations; or

(5) the issuance of a revenue ruling, revenue procedure, notice, or other statement published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.

Consistent with these provisions, if a letter ruling relates to a continuing action or a series of actions, it ordinarily will be applied until any one of the events described above occurs or until it is specifically withdrawn.

Publication of a notice of proposed rulemaking will not affect the application of any letter ruling issued under this revenue procedure.



Not generally revoked or modified retroactively

.05 Except in rare or unusual circumstances, the revocation or modification of a letter ruling will not be applied retroactively to the taxpayer for whom the letter ruling was issued or to a taxpayer whose tax liability was directly involved in the letter ruling provided that --

(1) there has been no misstatement or omission of material facts;

(2) the facts at the time of the transaction are not materially different from the facts on which the letter ruling was based;

(3) there has been no change in the applicable law;

(4) the letter ruling was originally issued for a proposed transaction; and

(5) the taxpayer directly involved in the letter ruling acted in good faith in relying on the letter ruling, and revoking or modifying the letter ruling retroactively would be to the taxpayer's detriment. For example, the tax liability of each employee covered by a ruling relating to a qualified plan of an employer is directly involved in such ruling. However, the tax liability of a member of an industry is not directly involved in a letter ruling issued to another member and, therefore, the holding in a revocation or modification of a letter ruling to one member of an industry may be retroactively applied to other members of the industry. By the same reasoning, a tax practitioner may not extend to one client the non-retroactive application of a revocation or modification of a letter ruling previously issued to another client.

If a letter ruling is revoked or modified by letter with retroactive effect, the letter will, except in fraud cases, state the grounds on which the letter ruling is being revoked or modified and explain the reasons why it is being revoked or modified retroactively.



Retroactive effect of revocation or modification applied only to a particular transaction

.06 A letter ruling issued on a particular transaction represents a holding of the Service on that transaction only. It will not apply to a similar transaction in the same year or any other year. And, except in unusual circumstances, the application of that letter ruling to the transaction will not be affected by the later issuance of regulations (either temporary or final), if conditions (1) through (5) in section 13.05 of this revenue procedure are met.

However, if a letter ruling on a transaction is later found to be in error or no longer in accord with the position of the Service, it will not protect a similar transaction of the taxpayer in the same year or later year.



Retroactive effect of revocation or modification applied to a continuing action or series of actions

.07 If a letter ruling is issued covering a continuing action or series of actions and the letter ruling is later found to be in error or no longer in accord with the position of the Service, the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division, ordinarily will limit the retroactive effect of the revocation or modification to a date that is not earlier than that on which the letter ruling is revoked or modified.



May be retroactively revoked or modified when transaction is completed without reliance on the letter ruling

.08 A taxpayer is not protected against retroactive revocation or modification of a letter ruling involving a completed transaction other than those described in section 13.07 of this revenue procedure, because the taxpayer did not enter into the transaction relying on a letter ruling.



Taxpayer may request that retroactivity be limited

.09 Under § 7805(b), the Service may prescribe any extent to which a revocation or modification of a letter ruling or determination letter will be applied without retroactive effect.

A taxpayer to whom a letter ruling or determination letter has been issued may request that the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division, limit the retroactive effect of any revocation or modification of the letter ruling or determination letter.



Format of request

(1) Request for relief under § 7805(b) must be made in required format.

A request to limit the retroactive effect of the revocation or modification of a letter ruling must be in the general form of, and meet the general requirements for, a letter ruling request. These requirements are given in section 9 of this revenue procedure. Specifically, the request must also --

(a) state that it is being made under § 7805(b);

(b) state the relief sought;

(c) explain the reasons and arguments in support of the relief requested (including a discussion of the five items listed in section 13.05 of this revenue procedure and any other factors as they relate to the taxpayer's particular situation); and

(d) include any documents bearing on the request. A request that the Service limit the retroactive effect of a revocation or modification of a letter ruling may be made in the form of a separate request for a letter ruling when, for example, a revenue ruling has the effect of revoking or modifying a letter ruling previously issued to the taxpayer, or when the Service notifies the taxpayer of a change in position that will have the effect of revoking or modifying the letter ruling. However, when notice is given by the Director, EP or EO Examinations during an examination of the taxpayer's return or by an Appeals Area Director, or the Appeals Area Director, LMSB, during consideration of the taxpayer's return before an appeals office, a request to limit retroactive effect must be made in the form of a request for technical advice as explained in section 19 of Rev. Proc. 2008-5.

When germane to a pending letter ruling request, a request to limit the retroactive effect of a revocation or modification of a letter ruling may be made as part of the request for the letter ruling, either initially or at any time before the letter ruling is issued. When a letter ruling that concerns a continuing transaction is revoked or modified by, for example, a subsequent revenue ruling, a request to limit retroactive effect must be made before the examination of the return that contains the transaction that is the subject of the letter ruling request.

Consideration of relief under § 7805(b) will be included as one of the taxpayer's steps in exhausting administrative remedies only if the taxpayer has requested such relief in the manner described in this revenue procedure. If the taxpayer does not complete the applicable steps, the taxpayer will not have exhausted the taxpayer's administrative remedies as required by § 7428(b)(2) and § 7476(b)(3) and will, thus, be precluded from seeking a declaratory judgment under § 7428 or § 7476. Where the taxpayer has requested § 7805(b) relief, the taxpayer's administrative remedies will not be considered exhausted until the Service has had a reasonable time to act upon the request.



Request for conference

(2) Taxpayer may request a conference on application of § 7805(b).

A taxpayer who requests the application of § 7805(b) in a separate letter ruling request has the right to a conference in EP or EO Technical as explained in sections 12.01, 12.02, 12.03, 12.04 and 12.05 of this revenue procedure. If the request is made initially as part of a pending letter ruling request or is made before the conference of right is held on the substantive issues, the § 7805(b) issue will be discussed at the taxpayer's one conference of right as explained in section 12.02 of this revenue procedure. If the request for the application of § 7805(b) relief is made as part of a pending letter ruling request after a conference has been held on the substantive issue and the Service determines that there is justification for having delayed the request, the taxpayer is entitled to one conference of right concerning the application of § 7805(b), with the conference limited to discussion of this issue only.



SECTION 14. WHAT EFFECT WILL A DETERMINATION LETTER HAVE?



Has same effect as a letter ruling

.01 A determination letter issued by EP or EO Determinations has the same effect as a letter ruling issued to a taxpayer under section 13 of this revenue procedure.

If the Director, EP or EO Examinations proposes to reach a conclusion contrary to that expressed in a determination letter, he or she need not refer the matter to EP or EO Technical. However, the Director, EP or EO Examinations must refer the matter to EP or EO Technical if the Director, EP or EO Examinations desires to have the revocation or modification of the determination letter limited under § 7805(b).



Taxpayer may request that retroactive effect of revocation or modification be limited

.02 The Director, EP or EO Examinations does not have authority under § 7805(b) to limit the revocation or modification of the determination letter. Therefore, if the Director, EP or EO Examinations proposes to revoke or modify a determination letter, the taxpayer may request limitation of the retroactive effect of the revocation or modification by asking EP or EO Determinations to seek technical advice from EP or EO Technical. See section 19 of Rev. Proc. 2008-5.



Format of request

(1) Request for relief under § 7805(b) must be made in required format.

A taxpayer's request to limit the retroactive effect of the revocation or modification of the determination letter must be in the form of, and meet the general requirements for, a technical advice request. See section 18.06 of Rev. Proc. 2008-5. The request must also --

(a) state that it is being made under § 7805(b);

(b) state the relief sought;

(c) explain the reasons and arguments in support of the relief sought (including a discussion of the five items listed in section 13.05 of this revenue procedure and any other factors as they relate to the taxpayer's particular situation); and

(d) include any documents bearing on the request.



Request for conference

(2) Taxpayer may request a conference on application of § 7805(b).

When technical advice is requested regarding the application of § 7805(b), the taxpayer has the right to a conference in EP or EO Technical to the same extent as does any taxpayer who is the subject of a technical advice request. See section 11 of Rev. Proc. 2008-5.



Exhaustion of administrative remedies

(3) Taxpayer steps in exhausting administrative remedies.

Consideration of relief under § 7805(b) will be included as one of the taxpayer's steps in exhausting administrative remedies only if the taxpayer has requested such relief in the manner described in this revenue procedure. If the taxpayer does not complete the applicable steps, the taxpayer will not have exhausted the taxpayer's administrative remedies as required by § 7428(b)(2) and § 7476(b)(3) and will, thus, be precluded from seeking a declaratory judgment under § 7428 or § 7476. Where the taxpayer has requested § 7805(b) relief, the taxpayer's administrative remedies will not be considered exhausted until the Service has had a reasonable time to act upon the request.



SECTION 15. UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES ARE MATTERS REFERRED BETWEEN DETERMINATIONS AND TECHNICAL?



Requests for determination letters

.01 Requests for determination letters received by EP or EO Determinations that, under the provisions of this revenue procedure, may not be issued by EP or EO Determinations, will be forwarded to EP or EO Technical for reply. EP or EO Determinations will notify the taxpayer that the matter has been referred.

EP or EO Determinations will also refer to EP or EO Technical any request for a determination letter that in its judgment should have the attention of EP or EO Technical.



No-rule areas

.02 If the request involves an issue on which the Service will not issue a letter ruling or determination letter, the request will not be forwarded to EP or EO Technical. EP or EO Determinations will notify the taxpayer that the Service will not issue a letter ruling or a determination letter on the issue. See section 8 of this revenue procedure for a description of no-rule areas.



Requests for letter rulings

.03 Requests for letter rulings received by EP or EO Technical that, under section 6 of this revenue procedure, may not be acted upon by EP or EO Technical will be forwarded to the Director, EP or EO Examinations. The taxpayer will be notified of this action. If the request is on an issue or in an area of the type discussed in section 8 of this revenue procedure, and the Service decides not to issue a letter ruling or an information letter, EP or EO Technical will notify the taxpayer and will then forward the request to the Director, EP or EO Examinations for association with the related return.



SECTION 16. WHAT ARE THE GENERAL PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO INFORMATION LETTERS ISSUED BY THE HEADQUARTERS OFFICE?



Will be made available to the public

.01 Information letters that are issued by the headquarters office to members of the public will be made available to the public. These documents provide general statements of well-defined law without applying them to a specific set of facts. See section 3.06 of this revenue procedure. Information letters that are issued by the field, however, will not be made available to the public.

The following documents also will not be available for public inspection as part of this process:

(1) letters that merely transmit Service publications or other publicly available material, without significant legal discussion;

(2) responses to taxpayer or third party contacts that are inquiries with respect to a pending request for a letter ruling, technical advice memorandum, or Chief Counsel Advice (whose public inspection is subject to § 6110); and

(3) responses to taxpayer or third party communications with respect to any investigation, audit, litigation, or other enforcement action.



Deletions made under the Freedom of Information Act

.02 Before any information letter is made available to the public, the headquarters office will delete any name, address, and other identifying information as appropriate under the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA") (for example, FOIA personal privacy exemption of 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(6) and tax details exempt pursuant to § 6103, as incorporated into FOIA by 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(3). Because information letters do not constitute written determinations (including Chief Counsel Advice) as defined in § 6110, these documents are not subject to public inspection under § 6110.



Effect of information letters

.03 Information letters are advisory only and have no binding effect on the Service. See section 3.06 of this revenue procedure. If the headquarters office issues an information letter in response to a request for a letter ruling that does not meet the requirements of this revenue procedure, the information letter is not a substitute for a letter ruling.



SECTION 17. WHAT IS THE EFFECT OF THIS REVENUE PROCEDURE ON OTHER DOCUMENTS?

Rev. Proc. 2007-4 is superseded.



SECTION 18. EFFECTIVE DATE

This revenue procedure is effective January 7, 2008.



SECTION 19. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT

The collections of information contained in this revenue procedure have been reviewed and approved by the Office of Management and Budget in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. § 3507) under control number 1545-1520.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of information displays a valid OMB control number.

The collections of information in this revenue procedure are in sections 7.07, 9.02, 9.03, 9.04, 9.05, 9.06, 10.02, 10.03, 11.03, 11.04(1)-(5), 11.06, 12.01, 12.06, 12.07, 13.09(1), 14.02(1), and in Appendices B, C, D and E. This information is required to evaluate and process the request for a letter ruling or determination letter. In addition, this information will be used to help the Service delete certain information from the text of the letter ruling or determination letter before it is made available for public inspection, as required by § 6110. The collections of information are required to obtain a letter ruling or determination letter. The likely respondents are businesses or other for-profit institutions.

The estimated total annual reporting and/or recordkeeping burden is 12,650 hours.

The estimated annual burden per respondent/recordkeeper varies from 15 minutes to 16 hours, depending on individual circumstances and the type of request involved, with an estimated average burden of 6.01 hours. The estimated number of respondents and/or recordkeepers is 2,103.

The estimated annual frequency of responses is one request per applicant, except that a taxpayer requesting a letter ruling may also request a presubmission conference.

Books or records relating to a collection of information must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any internal revenue law. Generally, tax returns and tax return information are confidential, as required by § 6103.



DRAFTING INFORMATION

The principal author of this revenue procedure is Ingrid Grinde of the Employee Plans, Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division. For further information regarding how this revenue procedure applies to employee plans matters, contact the Employee Plans Customer Assistance Service at 877-829-5500 (a toll-free call). For employee plans matters, Ms. Grinde can be emailed at RetirementPlanQuestions@irs.gov. For exempt organization matters, please contact Mr. Ted Lieber at (202) 283-8999 (not a toll-free call).
INDEX



--additional information
........................ sec. 9.02(9), 9.03, 11.03, 11.04

--closing agreement ... sec. 3.03, 6.06(4), 9.02(4), 9.02(15), 13.04

--conference .......... sec. 9.02(9), 9.03(5), 12.01-.09, 13.09(2), 14.02(2)

--disclose ............ sec. 9.02(9)

--exempt organization ... sec. 6.01

--expeditious handling ... sec. 9.03(3)

--extension ............ sec. 6.02, 6.04, 11.04, 12.01, 12.06

--fax ................. sec. 9.03(4), 11.04

--fee ................. sec. 9.02(14), 11.04(5)

--hand delivered ...... 9.04(1)

--information letter ... sec. 3.07, 8.01, 15.03

--no rule ............. sec. 8, 15.02

--perjury statement ... sec. 9.02(13), 11.04, 11.06

--power of attorney ... sec. 9.02(12), 9.03(2)

--reliance ............ sec. 3.09, 11.02, 12.07, 13, 14

--representatives ..... sec. 3.09, 9.02(10)-(11), 9.03(2)

--retroactive ......... sec. 11.02, 12.04, 12.07, 13, 14

--revenue ruling ...... sec. 3.07, 13.04, 13.09(1)

--section 6110 ........ sec. 9.02(9), 13.02

--status .............. sec. 9.07

--technical advice ..... sec. 7.08, 13.03, 13.09(1), 14

--telephone ........... sec. 9.02(1), 11.04, 12.01, 12.08

--where to send ....... sec. 9.04

--withdraw ............. sec. 9.08




APPENDIX A

SAMPLE FORMAT FOR A LETTER RULING REQUEST

( Insert the date of request)

Internal Revenue Service
Commissioner, TE/GE
Attention: SE:T:EP:RA
P.O. Box 27063
McPherson Station
Washington, DC 20038
Dear Sir or Madam:

( Insert the name of the taxpayer) (the "Taxpayer") requests a ruling on the proper treatment of ( insert the subject matter of the letter ruling request) under § ( insert the number) of the Internal Revenue Code.

[ If the taxpayer is requesting expedited handling, the letter ruling request must contain a statement to that effect. This statement must explain the need for expeditious handling. See section 9.03(3).]


A. STATEMENT OF FACTS




1. Taxpayer Information

[Provide the statements required by sections 9.02(1)(a), (b), and (c) of Rev. Proc. 2008-4, 2008-1 I.R.B. 121]. (Hereafter, all references are to Rev. Proc. 2008-4 unless otherwise noted.)]

For example, a taxpayer that maintains a qualified employee retirement plan and files an annual Form 5500 series of returns may include the following statement to satisfy sections 9.02(1)(a), (b), and (c):

The Taxpayer is a construction company with principal offices located at 100 Whatever Drive, Wherever, Maryland 12345, and its telephone number is (123) 456-7890. The Taxpayer's federal employer identification number is 00-1234567. The Taxpayer uses the Form 5500 series of returns on a calendar year basis to report its qualified employee retirement plan and trust.



2. Detailed Description of the Transaction.

[The ruling request must contain a complete statement of the facts relating to the transaction that is the subject of the letter ruling request. This statement must include a detailed description of the transaction, including material facts in any accompanying documents, and the business reasons for the transaction. See sections 9.02(1)(b), 9.02(1)(c), and 9.02(2).]


B. RULING REQUESTED


[The ruling request should contain a concise statement of the ruling requested by the taxpayer.]


C. STATEMENT OF LAW


[The ruling request must contain a statement of the law in support of the taxpayer's views or conclusion, including any authorities believed to be contrary to the position advanced in the ruling request. This statement must also identify any pending legislation that may affect the proposed transaction. See sections 9.02(6), 9.02(7), and 9.02(8).]


D. ANALYSIS


[The ruling request must contain a discussion of the facts and an analysis of the law. See sections 9.02(3), 9.02(6), 9.02(7), and 9.02(8).]


E. CONCLUSION


[The ruling request should contain a statement of the taxpayer's conclusion on the ruling requested.]


F. PROCEDURAL MATTERS




1. Rev. Proc. 2008-4 statements

a. [The statement required by section 9.02(4).]

b. [The statement required by section 9.02(5).]

c. [The statement required by section 9.02(6) regarding whether the law in connection with the letter ruling request is uncertain and whether the issue is adequately addressed by relevant authorities.]

d. [The statement required by section 9.02(7) when the taxpayer determines that there are no contrary authorities.]

e. [If the taxpayer wants to have a conference on the issues involved in the letter ruling request, the ruling request should contain a statement to that effect. See section 9.03(5).]

f. [If the taxpayer is requesting the letter ruling to be issued by fax, the ruling request should contain a statement to that effect. See section 9.03(4).]

g. [If the taxpayer is requesting separate letter rulings on multiple issues, the letter ruling request should contain a statement to that effect. See section 9.03(1).]



2. Administrative

a. A Power of Attorney is enclosed. [See sections 9.02(12) and 9.03(2).]

b. The deletions statement and checklist required by Rev. Proc. 2008-4 are enclosed. [See sections 9.02(9) and 9.02(17).]

c. The required user fee is enclosed. [See section 9.02(14).]
Very truly yours,

( Insert the name of the taxpayer or the taxpayer's authorized representative)

By:

____________________

Signature Date

Typed or printed name of person signing request

DECLARATION: [See section 9.02(13).]

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this request, including accompanying documents, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, the request contains all the relevant facts relating to the request and such facts are true, correct, and complete.

( Insert the name of the taxpayer)

By:

____________________

Signature
Title Date

Typed or printed name of person signing declaration


APPENDIX B



CHECKLIST IS YOUR RULING REQUEST COMPLETE?




INSTRUCTIONS

The Service will be able to respond more quickly to your letter ruling request if it is carefully prepared and complete. To ensure that your request is in order, use this checklist. Complete the four items of information requested before the checklist. Answer each question by circling "Yes," "No," or "N/A." When a question contains a place for a page number, insert the page number (or numbers) of the request that gives the information called for by a yes answer to a question. Sign and date the checklist (as taxpayer or authorized representative) and place it on top of your request.

If you are an authorized representative submitting a request for a taxpayer, you must include a completed checklist with the request, or the request will either be returned to you or substantive consideration of it will be deferred until a completed checklist is submitted. If you are a taxpayer preparing your own request without professional assistance, an incomplete checklist will not be cause for returning your request or deferring substantive consideration of the request. However, you should still complete as much of the checklist as possible and submit it with your request.

TAXPAYER'S NAME ...

TAXPAYER'S I.D. No. ...

ATTORNEY/P.O.A. ...

PRIMARY CODE SECTION ...


CIRCLE ONE ITEM

Yes No N/A 1. Does your request involve an issue under the
jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and
Government Entities Division? See section 5 of Rev. Proc.
2008-4, 2008-1 I.R.B. 121, for issues under the
jurisdiction of other offices. (Hereafter, all references
are to Rev. Proc. 2008-4 unless otherwise noted.)




Yes No N/A 2. If your request involves a matter on which letter
rulings are not ordinarily issued, have you given
compelling reasons to justify the issuance of a private
letter ruling? Before preparing your request, you may want
to call the office responsible for substantive
interpretations of the principal Internal Revenue Code
section on which you are seeking a letter ruling to
discuss the likelihood of an exception. The appropriate
office to call for this information may be obtained by
calling (202) 283-9660 (Employee Plans matters), or (202)
283-2300 (Exempt Organizations matters) (not toll-free
calls).




Yes No N/A Page ____ 3. If the request involves an employee plans qualification
matter under § 401(a), § 409, or § 4975(e)(7), have you
demonstrated that the request satisfies the three criteria
in section 6.03 for a headquarters office ruling?




Yes No N/A Page ____ 4. If the request deals with a completed transaction, have
you filed the return for the year in which the transaction
was completed? See sections 6.01 and 6.02.




Yes No 5. Are you requesting a letter ruling on a hypothetical
situation or question? See section 8.03.




Yes No 6. Are you requesting a letter ruling on alternative plans
of a proposed transaction? See section 8.03.




Yes No 7. Are you requesting the letter ruling for only part of
an integrated transaction? See section 8.04.




Yes No 8. Have you submitted another letter ruling request for
the transaction covered by this request?




Yes No 9. Are you requesting the letter ruling for a business,
trade, industrial association, or similar group concerning
the application of tax law to its members? See section
6.07.




Yes No Pages ____ 10. Have you included a complete statement of all the
facts relevant to the transaction? See section 9.02(1).




Yes No N/A 11. Have you submitted with the request true copies of all
wills, deeds, plan documents, and other documents relevant
to the transaction, and labeled and attached them in
alphabetical sequence? See section 9.02(2).




Yes No Page ____ 12. Have you included, rather than merely by reference,
all material facts from the documents in the request? Are
they accompanied by an analysis of their bearing on the
issues that specifies the document provisions that apply?
See section 9.02(3).




Yes No Page ____ 13. Have you included the required statement regarding
whether the same issue in the letter ruling request is in
an earlier return of the taxpayer or in a return for any
year of a related taxpayer? See section 9.02(4).




Yes No Page ____ 14. Have you included the required statement regarding
whether the Service previously ruled on the same or
similar issue for the taxpayer, a related taxpayer, or a
predecessor? See section 9.02(5).




Yes No Page ____ 15. Have you included the required statement regarding
whether the taxpayer, a related taxpayer, a predecessor,
or any representatives previously submitted the same or
similar issue but withdrew it before the letter ruling was
issued? See section 9.02(5).




Yes No Page ____ 16. Have you included the required statement regarding
whether the law in connection with the request is
uncertain and whether the issue is adequately addressed by
relevant authorities? See section 9.02(6).




Yes No Page ____ 17. Have you included the required statement of relevant
authorities in support of your views? See section 9.02(6).




Yes No N/A Page ____ 18. Does your request discuss the implications of any
legislation, tax treaties, court decisions, regulations,
notices, revenue rulings, or revenue procedures you
determined to be contrary to the position advanced? See
section 9.02(7), which states that taxpayers are
encouraged to inform the Service of such authorities.




Yes No N/A Page ____ 19. If you determined that there are no contrary
authorities, have you included a statement to this effect
in your request? See section 9.02(7).




Yes No N/A Page ____ 20. Have you included in your request a statement
identifying any pending legislation that may affect the
proposed transaction? See section 9.02(8).




Yes No 21. Is the request accompanied by the deletions statement
required by § 6110? See section 9.02(9).




Yes No N/A Page ____ 22. Have you (or your authorized representative) signed
and dated the request? See section 9.02(10).




Yes No N/A 23. If the request is signed by your representative, or if
your representative will appear before the Service in
connection with the request, is the request accompanied by
a properly prepared and signed power of attorney with the
signatory's name typed or printed? See section 9.02(12).




Yes No N/A Page ____ 24. Have you included, signed and dated, the penalties of
perjury statement in the form required by section
9.02(13)?




Yes No N/A 25. Have you included the correct user fee with the
request and made your check or money order payable to the
United States Treasury? See section 9.02(14) and
Rev. Proc. 2008-8, page 233, this Bulletin, for the
correct amount and additional information on user fees.




Yes No N/A 26. Are you submitting your request in duplicate if
necessary? See section 9.02(15).




Yes No N/A Page ____ 27. If you are requesting separate letter rulings on
different issues involving one factual situation, have you
included a statement to that effect in each request? See
section 9.03(1).




Yes No N/A 28. If you do not want a copy of the letter ruling to be
sent to any representative, does the power of attorney
contain a statement to that effect? See section 9.03(2).




Yes No N/A Page ____ 29. If you have more than one representative, have you
designated whether the second representative listed on the
power of attorney is to receive a copy of the letter
ruling? See section 9.03(2).




Yes No N/A 30. If you want your letter ruling request to be processed
ahead of the regular order or by a specific date, have you
requested expedited handling in the form required by
section 9.03(3) and stated a compelling need for such
action in the request?




Yes No N/A 31. If you want to have a conference on the issues
involved in the request, have you included a request for
conference in the ruling request? See section 9.03(5).




Yes No N/A 32. If your request is covered by any of the guideline
revenue procedures or other special requirements listed in
section 10 of Rev. Proc. 2008-4, have you complied with
all of the requirements of the applicable revenue
procedure?




Yes No N/A Page ____ 33. If you are requesting relief under § 7805(b)
(regarding retroactive effect), have you complied with all
of the requirements in section 13.09?




Yes No N/A 34. Have you addressed your request to the appropriate
office listed in section 9.04? Improperly addressed
requests may be delayed (sometimes for over a week) in
reaching the appropriate office for initial processing.





________________________________ ________________________________ _______________
Signature Title or authority Date



___________________________________

Typed or printed name of person signing checklist


APPENDIX C



Additional Checklist for Roth IRA Recharacterization Ruling Requests


In order to assist EP Technical in processing a ruling request involving a Roth IRA recharacterization, in addition to the items in Appendix B, please check the following list.


Yes No N/A 1. Did you include the name(s) of trustee and/or custodian
Page _____ of the traditional individual retirement account (IRA)
(generally, a financial institution)?

Yes No N/A 2. Is each IRA identification number present?
Page ____

Yes No N/A 3. If the ruling request involves Roth conversions both of
Page ____ a husband and wife, is the necessary information with
respect to each IRA of each party present?
Note: as long as husband and wife file a joint federal
Form 1040, the Service can issue one ruling covering both
parties. Furthermore, if a joint federal income tax return
has been filed for the year or years in question, the
Service only requires one user fee even if both husband
and wife had failed conversions.

Yes No N/A 4. If there was one or more attempted conversions, are the
Page ____ applicable dates on which the attempted IRA conversion(s)
occurred included?

Yes No N/A 5. If the reason that a conversion failed is that the
Page ____ taxpayer or related taxpayers relied upon advice of a tax
professional such as a CPA, an attorney, or an enrolled
actuary, is the name and occupation of that adviser
included?

Yes No N/A 6. Is certification that the taxpayer or taxpayers timely
Page ____ filed the relevant federal tax return(s) present?

Yes No N/A 7. Is there a short statement of facts with respect to the
Page ____ conversion? For example, if the ruling request involves a
conversion attempted in 1998, there should be a statement
of the facts that includes a representation of why the due
date(s) found in Announcement 99-57 and
Announcement 99-104 were not met.

Yes No N/A 8. If the taxpayer recharacterized his/her Roth IRA to a
Page ____ traditional IRA prior to submitting a request for § 9100
relief, are the date(s) of the recharacterization(s),
name(s) of trustees and/or custodians, and the
identification numbers of the traditional IRA(s) present?

Yes No N/A 9. Does the request include the type of contribution (
Page ____ i.e., regular or conversion) and amount of the
contribution being recharacterized?




APPENDIX D



Additional Checklist for Government Pick-Up Plan Ruling Requests


In order to assist EP Technical in processing a ruling request involving government pick-up plans, in addition to the items in Appendix B please check the following list.


Yes No N/A 1. Is the plan qualified under § 401(a) of the Code?
Page _____ (Evidence of qualification or representation that the plan
is qualified.)

Yes No N/A 2. Is the organization that established the plan a State
Page _____ or political subdivision thereof, or any agency or
instrumentality of the foregoing? An example of this would
be a representation that the organization that has
established the plan is a political subdivision or
municipality of the State.

Yes No N/A 3. Is there specific information regarding who are the
Page _____ eligible participants?

Yes No N/A 4. Are the contributions that are the subject of the
Page _____ ruling request mandatory employee contributions? These
contributions must be for a specified dollar amount or a
specific percentage of the participant's compensation and
the dollar amount or percentage of compensation cannot be
subject to change.

Yes No N/A 5. Does the plan provide that the participants do not have
Page _____ the election to opt in and/or out of the plan?

Yes No N/A 6. Are copies of the enacting legislation providing that
Page _____ the contributions although designated as employee
contributions are being paid by the employer in lieu of
contributions by the employee included?

Yes No N/A 7. Are copies of the specific enabling authorization that
Page _____ provides the employee must not have the option of choosing
to receive the contributed amounts directly instead of
having them paid by the employer to the plan included? For
example, a resolution, ordinance, plan provision, or
collective bargaining agreement could specify this
information.




APPENDIX E



Additional Checklist for Church Plan Ruling Requests


In order to assist EP Technical in processing a church plan ruling request, in addition to the items in Appendix B, please check the following list.


Yes No N/A 1. Is there specific information showing that the
Page _____ submission is on behalf of a plan established by a named
church or convention or association of churches? The
information must show how the sponsoring organization is
controlled by, or associated with, the named church or
convention or association of churches. For example, the
sponsoring organization might be listed in the church's
official directory of related organizations whose mission
is to further the objectives of the church. In order to be
considered associated with a church or convention or
association of churches, the organization must share
common religious bonds and convictions with that church or
convention or association of churches.

Yes No N/A 2. Is there specific information showing that the
Page _____ organization that has established the plan is a tax-exempt
organization as described in § 501 of the Code?

Yes No N/A 3. Is there representation that the plan for which the
Page _____ ruling is being requested is qualified under § 401(a) of
the Code or meets the requirements of § 403(b) of the
Code?

Yes No N/A 4. Does the ruling clearly state who are the eligible
Page _____ participants and the name of the employer of these
eligible participants?

Yes No N/A 5. Is there a representation that none of the eligible
Page _____ participants are or can be considered employed in
connection with one or more unrelated trades or businesses
within the meaning of § 513 of the Code?

Yes No N/A 6. Is there a representation that all of the eligible
Page _____ participants are or will be employed by the named church
or convention or association of churches, and will not
include employees of forprofit entities? An example of an
eligible employee includes a duly ordained, commissioned,
or licensed minister of a church in the exercise of his or
her ministry.

Yes No N/A 7. Is there specific information showing an existing plan
Page _____ committee whose principal purpose or function is the
administration or funding of the plan. This committee must
be controlled by or associated with the named church or
convention or association of churches?

Yes No N/A 8. Is the composition of the committee stated?
Page _____