What is the TTOC list, and how was it built?

The statutory hook

Section 224 of the Internal Revenue Code, enacted by P.L. 119-21 §70201 on July 4, 2025, allows an above-the-line deduction for qualified tips received by an individual in an occupation that customarily and regularly received tips on or before December 31, 2024. The statute does not list the qualifying occupations itself; it directs the Secretary of the Treasury to publish the list via regulation. The Secretary did so in TD 10044, published in 91 FR 19026 on April 13, 2026, codified at 26 CFR §1.224-1.^[1][2]

The final regulation is effective June 12, 2026, but applies retroactively to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2024 — meaning tax year 2025 returns and tax year 2026 returns are both governed by the 71-occupation list. Tax year 2025 returns are also governed by the IRS Notice 2025-69 transition relief regime, which simplifies reporting for the first year before the new W-2 Box 14b infrastructure is mandatory.^[3][4]

The 8-category structure

Treasury organized the 71 occupations into eight numbered categories. The category number is descriptive — it sits alongside the three-digit code in the regulation and in the public-facing IRS materials, but the legal hook is the three-digit TTOC itself, not the category. The categories:

• 100sBeverage and Food Service10
• 200sEntertainment and Events11
• 300sHospitality and Guest Services4
• 400sHome Services9
• 500sPersonal Services10
• 600sPersonal Appearance and Wellness11
• 700sRecreation and Instruction6
• 800sTransportation and Delivery10
• Total71

The proposed regulation REG-110032-25 (September 19, 2025) had 68 occupations across the same eight categories. Treasury added three occupations in the final regulation based on public comments: TTOC 509 (Visual Artists), TTOC 510 (Floral Designers), and TTOC 810 (Gas Pump Attendants). If you worked in one of those three trades in tax year 2025 and assumed you did not qualify because the proposed reg did not list you, re-check — the final reg is retroactive to TY2025.^[1][2]

The SSTB-reserved rule and Notice 2025-69 §6

Section 224(d) cross-references §199A(d)(2) for the Specified Service Trade or Business exclusion. §199A(d)(2) names ten SSTB fields: health, law, accounting, actuarial science, performing arts, consulting, athletics, financial services, brokerage services, and any business whose principal asset is the reputation or skill of one or more employees. On a strict reading, occupations in those fields would be carved out of the §224 deduction.^[1]

When Treasury wrote the §224 final regulation TD 10044, it deliberately reserved §1.224-1(g) — the subsection that would set the SSTB rule for §224 specifically. The reserved status is a deliberate signal that Treasury has not finalized whether the §199A SSTB carve-outs flow through to §224. While the reservation stands, IRS Notice 2025-69 §6 transition relief governs: any occupation that customarily and regularly received tips on or before December 31, 2024 is treated as not in an SSTB for §224 purposes. The transition relief continues until January 1 of the first calendar year following the issuance of final SSTB regulations.^[2]

What this means in practice: every occupation on the 71-trade list is currently treated as not in an SSTB for §224 purposes. Performing arts (TTOCs 205–208), athletics (TTOC 706), and health (TTOC 602 massage therapists) all qualify under transition relief, even though they overlap with §199A(d)(2) named SSTB fields. This can change. Watch the policy-state pin on this site; the day Treasury issues final SSTB rules under §1.224-1(g) is the day the answer can shift for those occupations.

What “customarily and regularly received tips” means

The phrase “customarily and regularly received tips” comes from the §224(b) eligibility framing and is the test that guided Treasury's occupation selection. Treasury looked at Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment data, IRS tip-reporting compliance data (W-2 lines 1 and 7, Form 4137 for unreported tips, the GITCA and TRDA programs), and public comments to identify occupations where tipping was an established compensation mode on or before December 31, 2024.

Some occupations that intuitively seem like tipped work are deliberately not on the list — Uber Eats and DoorDash drivers, for example, are TTOC 804 (Goods Delivery People) and qualify, but ride-share Uber and Lyft drivers belong in TTOC 802 (Taxi and Rideshare Drivers and Chauffeurs). Some occupations that historically received tips (some healthcare ancillary roles, for example) are not on the list because Treasury concluded they did not customarily and regularly receive tips on or before the §224 statutory date. The list is finite and exclusive; if your trade is not on it, the §224 deduction does not apply — though the trade may still customarily receive tips under non-§224 rules.

What “qualified tips” means under 26 CFR §1.224-1(b)

Within a TTOC-eligible occupation, only qualified tips count toward the deduction. Qualified tips are cash tips received from customers (or through tip-sharing arrangements like a tip pool), paid voluntarily by the customer, not subject to negotiation, with the customer free to set the amount including zero. The cash-equivalent rule in §1.224-1(b) treats payments by check, credit card, debit card, gift card, and mobile or electronic payment as cash for §224 purposes. Digital-asset payments (cryptocurrencies and stablecoins under §6045(g)(3)(D)) are excluded. So are mandatory service charges, automatic gratuities, surcharges, and tips for illegal activity.^[1][2]

The deciding question for any payment is whether the customer was free to set the amount, including zero. A 20% house gratuity added to every check is a service charge — wages, not a qualified tip. A suggested 20% tip prompt on a credit-card terminal where the customer can override or skip is a qualified tip — the customer had the choice.