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Treasury Regulations · 26 CFR

§ 1.511-2. Organizations subject to tax.

In effect eCFR current as of October 15, 2026

Regulation text, no changes From the eCFR, current as of October 15, 2026. The eCFR is an authoritative but unofficial editorial compilation of the Code of Federal Regulations; the official text is the annual CFR on govinfo. Compare it with this section on ecfr.gov (external site) or the official annual CFR on govinfo (external site).

Regulation under 26 U.S.C. § 511

Cite as 26 CFR § 1.511-2

At a glance

Read from the text and its source citation. Not part of the regulation.

Status
In the current eCFR
Issued
November 26, 1960 by T.D. 6500
Last amended
November 19, 2020 by T.D. 9923
Issued under
26 U.S.C. § 511
Length
1,730 words · about 8 min to read
Defines
1 term
Cross-references
cites 7 Code sections and 4 regulations; cited by 4
(a) Organizations other than trusts and title holding companies.
(1)
(i) The taxes imposed by section 511(a)(1) apply in the case of any organization (other than a trust described in section 511(b)(2) or an organization described in section 501(c)(1)) which is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) (except as provided in sections 507 through 515). For special rules concerning corporations described in section 501(c)(2), see paragraph (c) of this section.
(ii) In the case of an organization described in section 501(c)(4), (7), (8), (9), (10), (11), (12), (13), (14)(A), (15), (16), or (18), the taxes imposed by section 511(a)(1) apply only for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1969. In the case of an organization described in section 501(c)(14) (B) or (C), the taxes imposed by section 511(a)(1) apply only for taxable years beginning after February 2, 1966.
(2) The taxes imposed by section 511(a) apply in the case of any college or university which is an agency or instrumentality of any government or any political subdivision thereof, or which is owned or operated by a government or any political subdivision thereof or by any agency or instrumentality of any one or more governments or political subdivisions. Such taxes also apply in the case of any corporation wholly owned by one or more such colleges or universities. As here used, the word government includes any foreign government (to the extent not contrary to any treaty obligation of the United States) and all domestic governments (the United States and any of its Territories or possessions, any State, and the District of Columbia). Elementary and secondary schools operated by such governments are not subject to the tax on unrelated business income.
(3)
(i) For taxable years beginning before January 1, 1970, churches and associations or conventions of churches are exempt from the taxes imposed by section 511. The exemption is applicable only to an organization which itself is a church or an association or convention of churches. Subject to the provisions of subdivision (ii) of this subparagraph, religious organizations, including religious orders, if not themselves churches or associations or conventions of churches, and all other organizations which are organized or operated under church auspices, are subject to the tax imposed by section 511, whether or not they engage in religious, educational, or charitable activities approved by a church.
(ii) The term church includes a religious order or a religious organization if such order or organization (a) is an integral part of a church, and (b) is engaged in carrying out the functions of a church, whether as a civil law corporation or otherwise. In determining whether a religious order or organization is an integral part of a church, consideration will be given to the degree to which it is connected with, and controlled by, such church. A religious order or organization shall be considered to be engaged in carrying out the functions of a church if its duties include the ministration of sacerdotal functions and the conduct of religious worship. If a religious order or organization is not an integral part of a church, or if such an order or organization is not authorized to carry out the functions of a church (ministration of sacerdotal functions and conduct of religious worship) then it is subject to the tax imposed by section 511 whether or not it engages in religious, educational, or charitable activities approved by a church. What constitutes the conduct of religious worship or the ministration of sacerdotal functions depends on the tenets and practices of a particular religious body constituting a church. If a religious order or organization can fully meet the requirements stated in this subdivision, exemption from the tax imposed by section 511 will apply to all its activities, including those which it conducts through a separate corporation (other than a corporation described in section 501(c)(2)) or other separate entity which it wholly owns and which is not operated for the primary purpose of carrying on a trade or business for profit. Such exemption from tax will also apply to activities conducted through a separate corporation (other than a corporation described in section 501(c)(2)) or other separate entity which is wholly owned by more than one religious order or organization, if all such orders or organizations fully meet the requirements stated in this subdivision and if such corporation or other entity is not operated for the primary purpose of carrying on a trade or business for profit.
(iii) For taxable years beginning after December 31, 1969, churches and conventions or associations of churches are subject to the taxes imposed by section 511, unless otherwise entitled to the benefit of the transitional rules of section 512(b)(14) and § 1.512(b)-1(i).
(b) Trusts—
(1) In general. The taxes imposed by section 511(b) apply in the case of any trust which is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) (except as provided in sections 507 through 515), and which, if it were not for such exemption, would be subject to the provisions of subchapter J, chapter 1, of the Code. An organization which is considered as trustee of a stock bonus, pension, or profit-sharing plan described in section 401(a), a supplemental unemployment benefit trust described in section 501(c)(17), or a pension plan described in section 501(c)(18) (regardless of the form of such organization) is subject to the taxes imposed by section 511(b)(1) on its unrelated business income. However, if such an organization conducts a business which is a separate taxable entity on the basis of all the facts and circumstances, for example, an association taxable as a corporation, the business will be taxable as a feeder organization described in section 502.
(2) Effective dates. In the case of a trust described in section 501(c)(3), the taxes imposed by section 511(b) apply for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1953. In the case of a trust described in section 401(a), the taxes imposed by section 511(b) apply for taxable years beginning after June 30, 1954. In the case of a trust described in section 501(c)(17), the taxes imposed by section 511(b) apply for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1959. In the case of any other trust described in subparagraph (1) of this paragraph, the taxes imposed by section 511(b) apply for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1969.
(c) Title Holding Companies—
(1) In general. If a corporation described in section 501(c)(2) pays any amount of its net income for a taxable year to an organization exempt from taxation under section 501(a) (or would pay such an amount but for the fact that the expenses of collecting its income exceed its income), and if such corporation and such organization file a consolidated income tax return for such taxable year, then such corporation shall be treated, for purposes of the tax imposed by section 511(a), as being organized and operated for the same purposes as such organization, as well as for its title-holding purpose. Therefore, if an item of income of the section 501(c)(2) corporation is derived from a source which is related to the exempt function of the exempt organization to which such income is payable and with which such corporation files a consolidated return, such item is, together with all deductions directly connected therewith, excluded from the determination of unrelated business taxable income under section 512 and shall not be subject to the tax imposed by section 511(a). If, however, such item of income is derived from a source which is not so related, then such item, less all deductions directly connected therewith, is, subject to the modifications provided in section 512(b), unrelated business taxable income subject to the tax imposed by section 511(a).
(2) The provisions of subparagraph (1) of this paragraph may be illustrated by the following example:
Example.

The income of X, a section 501(c)(2) corporation, is required to be distributed to exempt organization A. During the taxable year X realizes net income of $900,000 from source M and $100,000 from source N. Source M is related to A's exempt function, while source N is not so related. X and A file a consolidated return for such taxable year. X has net unrelated business income of $100,000, subject to the modifications in section 512(b).

(3) Cross reference. For rules relating generally to the filing of consolidated returns by certain organizations exempt from taxation under section 501(a), see section 1504(e) of the Code and § 1.1502-100.
(4) Effective dates. Subparagraphs (1) through (3) of this paragraph apply with respect to taxable years beginning after December 31, 1969. For taxable years beginning before January 1, 1970, a corporation described in section 501(c)(2) and otherwise exempt from taxation under section 501(a) is taxable upon its unrelated business taxable income only if such income is payable either:
(i) To a church or convention or association of churches, or
(ii) To any organization subject, for taxable years beginning before January 1, 1970, to the tax imposed by section 511(a)(1).
(d) The fact that any class of organizations exempt from taxation under section 501(a) is subject to the unrelated business income tax under section 511 and this section does not in any way enlarge the permissible scope of business activities of such class for purposes of the continued qualification of such class under section 501(a).
(e) ABLE programs—
(1) Unrelated business taxable income. A qualified ABLE program described in section 529A and § 1.529A-1(b)(14) generally is exempt from Federal income taxation, but is subject to taxes imposed by section 511 relating to the imposition of tax on unrelated business income. A qualified ABLE program is required to file Form 990-T, “Exempt Organization Business Income Tax Return,” if such filing would be required under the rules of §§ 1.6012-2(e) and 1.6012-3(a)(5) if the ABLE program were an organization described in those sections.
(2) Applicability date. This paragraph (e) applies to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2020.

[T.D. 6500, 25 FR 11737, Nov. 26, 1960, as amended by T.D. 7183, 37 FR 7884, Apr. 21, 1972; T.D. 7632, 44 FR 42681, July 20, 1979; T.D. 9923, 85 FR 74034, Nov. 19, 2020]

Terms defined here

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Other regulations under § 511

Cross-references

Computed from the citations in the text of 26 CFR.

Code sections it cites

Regulations it cites

Cited by 4 other regulations

Amendment history

From the source citation at the end of the section, newest first. T.D. is a Treasury decision; FR is the Federal Register.

  1. Amended by T.D. 9923 (85 FR 74034)
  2. Amended by T.D. 7632 (44 FR 42681)
  3. Amended by T.D. 7183 (37 FR 7884)
  4. Issued by T.D. 6500 (25 FR 11737)

Where it sits in 26 CFR

  1. Subchapter A Income tax
  2. Part 1 Income taxes
  3. Taxation of Business Income of Certain Exempt Organizations

Nearby sections