United States · Tax Court
When must I move to vacate or revise a Tax Court decision?
Tax Court Rule 162 ordinarily requires a motion to vacate or revise a decision within 30 days after decision entry, unless the court permits otherwise. Opinion service is the separate Rule 161 trigger. Rule 163 requires separate motions.
- Period
- 30 calendar days
- Trigger
- Decision-entry date
- Rule
- Tax Court Rule 162
Amended through August 2024, current court-linked compilation reviewed
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Which event starts the 30-day period?
Rule 162 uses entry of the Tax Court decision. Establish that event from the entered decision and docket rather than opinion publication or service.
An opinion and an entered decision are distinct records. The Rule 161 service date does not substitute for the Rule 162 entry date.
The phrase unless the court shall otherwise permit does not establish permission in a particular case. Check actual court action and the decision’s finality separately.
Tax Court Rules 161, 162 and 163How are the 30 Tax Court calendar days counted?
- Establish entry of the Tax Court decision. Do not substitute opinion service or the date you received a copy.
- Exclude the established trigger day.
- Count 30 calendar days.
- If the final day is a Saturday, Sunday or Tax Court legal holiday, continue to the next day that is not. Rule 25(a)(5) includes DC Emancipation Day, April 16, and additional presidential, congressional or DC holidays. Check actual clerk inaccessibility separately.
Exclude the established trigger day. Count every following calendar day, including intermediate Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, under Tax Court Rule 25(a)(1).
Count 30 days from decision entry. Receipt or mailed service of the decision does not add a service-based period to this entry-based calculation.
Tax Court Rule 25(a)(1)–(3)What does a worked calculation look like?
Fictitious example
Fictitious Tax Court decision entered August 3, 2026. No different court permission applies to the ordinary Rule 162 period. Exclude August 3. August 4–31 supplies 28 days. September 1 and 2 supply the remaining two.
| Step | What is counted | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Decision-entry date | August 3, 2026 |
| Count | 30 calendar days after the trigger | September 2, 2026 |
Fictitious facts. No different court order, additional declared holiday or actual clerk inaccessibility is assumed.
Try these dates in the calculatorWhich qualifications and separate procedures should I check?
- Court permission
- Rule 162 permits the court to allow otherwise. This calculator does not establish a right to later filing or the court’s power to disturb a final decision.
- New or further trial
- Rule 162 applies with or without a new or further trial. Its ordinary period still starts from decision entry.
- Separate Rule 161 motion
- Rule 163 requires motions under Rules 161 and 162 to be separate from each other and not joined to or made part of any other motion.
- Appeal and finality
- Appeal timing and finality require their own governing provisions and docket facts. This rule-based date does not establish appellate jurisdiction or a changed appeal period.
- This page does not compute a later permitted date, select vacatur grounds or determine finality.
- Check any appeal independently. A calculated motion date does not prove an appeal deadline changed.
What should I check before filing?
Common questions
The procedure and trigger
Does the 30-day period start when the opinion is served?
No. Rule 162 starts from decision entry. Rule 161 uses service of an opinion or qualifying oral-findings record. These events can differ.
Tax Court Rules 161, 162 and 163Does mailed notice add three days to decision-entry counting?
No automatic service addition applies to this entry trigger. Rule 162 uses decision entry, and Tax Court Rule 25 contains no FRCP three-day addition. Confirm any actual permitted or ordered time.
Tax Court Rules 161, 162 and 163Can I join reconsideration and vacatur in one motion?
Rule 163 requires separate Rule 161 and Rule 162 motions. Neither may be joined to or made part of any other motion.
Tax Court Rules 161, 162 and 163Tax Court counting and filing
Does April 16 count as a Tax Court legal holiday?
Yes. Rule 25(a)(5)(C) includes DC Emancipation Day, April 16. If it is the final day, move to the next day that is not a weekend or legal holiday. Intermediate holidays still count. The court can be open on a computation holiday.
Tax Court Rule 25(a)(4), (5), (b) and (c)Does electronic filing use midnight in my own time zone?
No. Rule 22(d) and Rule 25(a)(3)(A) use 11:59 p.m. Eastern, subject to a different statutory or court-ordered time. Check DAWSON filing instructions. The calculator supplies a date, not proof of completed filing.
Tax Court Rule 22Does putting the paper in the mail prove timely filing?
No. Rule 22(a) ordinarily requires paper filing with the Washington, DC clerk during business hours. Rule 22(b) permits specified alternative filing procedures. Rule 22(c) refers timely mailing to Code section 7502. This page does not determine compliance with that statute.
Tax Court Rule 22What if the clerk is inaccessible on this filing date?
Unless the court orders otherwise, Rule 25(a)(2) extends a nonpetition filing deadline to the first accessible day that is not a weekend or legal holiday. Check actual court notices. The calculator does not infer a DAWSON outage or clerk closure. Petition filing has a separate statutory provision.
Tax Court Rule 25(a)(1)–(3)Can a court order change this ordinary rule-based period?
Check the actual order. Rule 25(b)(1) permits good-cause extension before expiry and, on motion, excusable-neglect relief after expiry unless a statute precludes it. Rule 25(c) permits shortening. A request or calculation does not establish that relief was granted.
Tax Court Rule 25(a)(4), (5), (b) and (c)Official sources and review
Provisions used (7)
| Provision | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Tax Court Rules 161, 162 and 163 | Procedure-specific actor, trigger, period and qualifications |
| Tax Court Rule 21(b) | Actual service event and separate service requirements |
| Tax Court Rule 21(b)(2)(B) and (5) | Actual service event and separate service requirements |
| Tax Court Rule 22 | Electronic and paper filing boundaries |
| Tax Court Rule 25(a)(1)–(3) | Computation, holidays, inaccessibility and court orders |
| Tax Court Rule 25(a)(4), (5), (b) and (c) | Computation, holidays, inaccessibility and court orders |
| Tax Court Rules 25(c) and 26 | Electronic filing and shortening orders |