Title 26 of the U.S. Code is known as the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). This is where most laws that deal with federal taxation are codified. Some tax-related laws are published in other titles of the U.S. Code.
"The code is the most authoritative source of federal tax law and is the foundation for tax research. All tax documents, including regulations, case law, and agency decisions, tie into the code itself." Christopher C. Dykes, Federal Income Tax Law: A Legal Research Guide 5 (2nd ed. 2021).
The U.S. Code is available in numerous places, including in print, on subscription databases like Lexis and Westlaw, and freely available online. A selection of these resources is listed below. For a full list of how to access the U.S. Code, see the United States Code research guide.
New tax legislation is also published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin. For where to find the Internal Revenue Bulletin, see the Internal Revenue Bulletin page of this guide.
For historical versions of the Internal Revenue Code as available in the U.S. Code, see the Historical US Code page of the United States Code guide.
TaxNotes Tax Analysts
Internal Revenue Code of 1986. Can browse by section or search by key term.
United States Code govinfo (GPO)
Coverage begins with 1994. Can Browse by year and title. To search the U.S. Code, click the orange "Search" button, select "Advanced", then under "Refine by Collection" select "United States Code". Search results can be further refined by using the side panel on the search results screen. For additional information and tips, see the About the United States Code page.
The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
United States Code Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives
Coverage begins with 1994.
The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
U.S. Code Legal Information Institute, Cornell University Law School
Current edition only. See individual title information for currency. Able to browse by title or search by citation. Includes Table of Popular Names.
The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
The following member database includes access to the U.S. Code. Members must be logged in to jenkinslaw.org to access this database. This database is also available in the library.
United States Code - Title 26 Internal Revenue Code
Available on Fastcase. 2000-Current.
To search the United States Code, use the "Jurisdictions" option to the right of the main search bar and make sure either All Federal or United States is selected. Navigate to the Primary and Secondary Documents. Under Statutes, select Federal > U.S. > U.S. Code.
To browse the United States Code, under the main search bar, select Browse Libraries. To the left, under Primary Material > Legislative Materials select United States Code. Annotations provided by Fastcase Authority Check.
The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
Historical statutes back to 2006 also available. For access instructions, see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
The following member database includes access to the U.S. Code. Members must be logged in to jenkinslaw.org to access this database. This database is also available in the library.
United States Code - Title 26 Internal Revenue Code
Available on HeinOnline. From "Browse Databases by Name", select U.S. Code > United States Code. The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
Coverage begins with 1925. Yearly supplements also available (once in the desired edition, the yearly supplements are located below the list of titles). The U.S.C. on HeinOnline is the unannotated publication prepared by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the United States House of Representatives. A delay between publication and availability on Hein may be possible.
The following member database includes access to the U.S. Code. Members must be logged in to jenkinslaw.org to access this database. This database is also available in the library.
United States Code Service (U.S.C.S.) - Title 26 Internal Revenue Code
Available on LexisNexis Digital Library. Annotations provided by LexisNexis. To search within the U.S.C.S., use the "Search this title" feature.
The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
Historical statutes back to 2013 also available. For access instructions, see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
USCS - Title 26 Internal Revenue Code
Available on the library's Lexis computers. From the Federal tab, select USCS - United States Code Service > Title 26 Internal Revenue Code. Current version only. To search only Title 26, check the box on right side of Title 26 before conducting your search in the main search bar.
For historical versions of the Internal Revenue Code as available in the U.S.C.S. on Lexis (beginning with 1992), see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
Internal Revenue Code
Available on the library's Westlaw computers. From the Practice Areas tab, select Tax > Statutes & Court Rules > Internal Revenue Code. Current version only.
For historical versions of the Internal Revenue Code as available in the U.S.C.A. on Westlaw (beginning with 1990), see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
Internal Revenue Code of 1954
Available on the library's Westlaw computers. From the Practice Areas tab, select Tax > Statutes & Court Rules > Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (located in the Tools & Resources box on the right). The Internal Revenue Code of 1954 was approved August 16, 1954 (c. 736, 68A Stat. 3). It was in effect until immediately before the Enactment of P.L. 99-514, or the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (October 22,1986). Contains all of the United States statutes of a general and permanent nature relating exclusively to internal revenue, in force on August 16, 1954. See the most recent text of 26 USCA §§ 7851 et seq. for additional information regarding the relation of this Code to subsequent enactments of the Code.
Internal Revenue Code of 1939
Available on the library's Westlaw computers. From the Practice Areas tab, select Tax > Statutes & Court Rules > Internal Revenue Code of 1939 (located in the Tools & Resources box on the right). The Internal Revenue Code of 1939 was approved February 10, 1939, and was published as Public Act. No. 1 of the 76th Congress. See the most recent text of 26 USCA s 7851 et seq., for additional information regarding the relation of this Code to subsequent enactments of the Code.
Internal Revenue Code
Available on the library's Bloomberg Law computers. From Browse, select Practice Centers > Tax > Primary Sources (scroll down to the left) > Statutes & Regulations > Internal Revenue Code. Archived versions (1939, 1954, 1987-present) and Topical Index also available.
Internal Revenue Code
Available on the library's VitalLaw computer. From Practice Areas, select Tax - Federal > Primary Sources > Laws & Regulations > Internal Revenue Code. Current version only. For prior versions of the IRC on VitalLaw, see the Standard Federal Tax Reporter.
United States Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.) West/Thomson Reuters
Annotations provided by West/Thomson Reuters. Also available on the library's Westlaw computers.
The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
United States Code Service (U.S.C.S.) LexisNexis
Annotations provided by LexisNexis. Also available on the LexisNexis Digital Library and the library's Lexis computers.
The Internal Revenue Code is located in Title 26.
The Standard Federal Tax Reporter includes the full text of the Internal Revenue Code. Legislative history notes, regulations, and annotations follow each code section.
Jenkins has access to the Standard Federal Tax Reporter on the library's VitalLaw computer beginning with 1986. Pre-1986 coverage is available on the member database HeinOnline. Select coverage is also available in print. See the Standard Federal Tax Reporter page of this guide for more information and how to locate the materials.