Earlier this month, the IRS released Revenue Procedure 2024-24, which sets forth new requirements for requests for private letter rulings ("PLRs") on corporate spin-off and split-off transactions. (Both spin-offs...more
On January 14, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") released Revenue Procedure 2022-10, which establishes a "fast-track processing" pilot program for certain private letter ruling requests that are solely or primarily...more
Speaking at several tax conferences this month, several senior IRS officials, including the Associate Chief Counsel, Corporate, discussed the nuances of the device requirement for spinoffs and signaled a willingness to relax...more
On May 17, 2019, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published private letter ruling 201920008 (the PLR), which concluded that a transaction qualifies as a tax-free spin-off under Section 355 despite the fact that the...more
On September 21, 2017, the IRS announced in Revenue Procedure 2017-52 (the “Pilot Program Rev. Proc.”) that it is expanding the scope of spin-off private letter ruling requests that it will consider. The pilot program is...more
The IRS announced in May that it will resume issuing private letter rulings (PLRs) on two types of spinoff transactions — leveraged spinoffs and north-south spinoffs — that had been on its “no-rule” list since 2013. In a...more
The Internal Revenue Service has announced that it will recommence issuing private letter rulings concerning whether a distributing corporation’s transfer of stock or securities of a controlled corporation (or “Spinco”) in...more
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) released Revenue Procedure 2016-45 (the “Revenue Procedure”) on August 26, 2016, permitting taxpayers once again to seek private letter rulings on issues of “corporate business...more
The recent guidance under section 355 is a significant attempt by the IRS to clarify in a formal way what it historically has been able to do on a case-by-case basis through the private letter ruling process....more
In recent years, a number of public companies have sought to unlock the value embedded in their corporate real estate assets by separating the real estate and other assets into two separate entities – a so-called PropCo/OpCo...more
In issuing IRS Notice 2015-59 and Rev. Proc. 2015-43 last week, the IRS intentionally created significant market uncertainty about the viability of “PropCo/OpCo” spin-offs as part of the PropCo’s REIT conversion (e.g., where...more
On September 14, 2015, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2015-59 (the “Notice”) and Revenue Procedure 2015-43 (the “Rev Proc”; together with the Notice, the “Spin-Off Guidance”). Under the Spin-Off Guidance,...more
The IRS announced earlier this week that it may temporarily stop reviewing private letter ruling requests on the issue of whether a spin-off qualifies as tax-free under Section 355. More specifically, the IRS may hit pause on...more
Windstream Holdings, Inc. recently announced plans to spin off its copper, fiber and other fixed real estate assets into an independent publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT). Windstream received a private letter...more
In certain recent transactions, a corporation distributes a subsidiary corporation holding the distributing corporation’s real estate assets to the distributing corporation’s shareholders in a tax-free “spin-off.” Not only...more
Recent changes in IRS private letter ruling policy likely will result in greater taxpayer reliance on tax opinions, which may impact certain corporate strategies in the coming year. Tax-Free Spin-Offs - During...more
Top Five Traps for the Unwary in Spin-Offs - A wave of corporate breakups has swept through the United States over the last few years as investors have taken notice of the fact that smaller companies focused on a...more
On January 2, 2013, the Internal Revenue Service (the Service) released Rev. Proc. 2013-3, its annual list of areas in which it no longer will issue private letter rulings or determination letters (the 2013 No-Rule List). Of...more