The human low affinity Fc␥RII family includes both the activating receptor Fc␥RIIA and the inhibitory receptor Fc␥RIIB2. These receptors have opposing signaling functions but are both capable of internalizing IgG-containing immune complexes through clathrin-mediated endocytosis. We demonstrate that upon engagement by multivalent aggregated human IgG, Fc␥RIIA expressed in ts20 Chinese hamster fibroblasts is delivered along with its ligand to lysosomal compartments for degradation, while Fc␥RIIB2 dissociates from the ligand and is routed separately into the recycling pathway. Fc␥RIIA sorting to lysosomes requires receptor multimerization, but does not require either Src family kinase activity or ubiquitylation of receptor lysine residues. The sorting of Fc␥RIIB2 away from a degradative fate is not due to its lower affinity for IgG and occurs even upon persistent receptor aggregation. Upon co-engagement of Fc␥RIIA and Fc␥RIIB2, the receptors are sorted independently to distinct final fates after dissociation of co-clustering ligand. These results reveal fundamental differences in the trafficking behavior of different Fc␥ receptors.Fc␥ receptors (Fc␥R) 2 are key players in immune responses. Widely expressed on cells of the hematopoietic system, these receptors mediate a multitude of biological responses that are triggered upon receptor engagement by multivalent IgG-containing immune complexes (1). These responses include production of inflammatory cytokines, antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, and induction of dendritic cell maturation. Fc␥R also mediate the internalization of immune complexes. Soluble immune complexes are internalized by clathrin-mediated endocytosis whereas large (Ͼ0.5 m) antibody-coated particles are internalized via phagocytosis. These uptake processes are important in host defense against infection; moreover, defects in immune complex clearance are associated with the development of autoimmunity (2).Fc␥Rs can be categorized into two functional groups. The activating Fc␥R have an immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM) within the cytoplasmic domain of the receptor itself or an associated FcR␥ signaling subunit. Phosphorylation of tyrosine residues in the ITAM by Src family kinases after receptor aggregation initiates signaling cascades that trigger downstream effector responses (3). In contrast, inhibitory Fc␥R contain an immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motif (ITIM), which recruits phosphatases that antagonize ITAM-mediated signaling. Therefore, the responsiveness of effector cells to immune complexes is determined by the balance between activating and inhibitory receptors (1).A feature of the human immune system that distinguishes it from that of mouse is the presence of both activating and inhibitory members of the low affinity Fc␥RII subfamily. Fc␥RIIA is an activating Fc␥R unique to humans and other primates, and is the most widely expressed Fc␥R on human leukocytes (4). In addition, Fc␥RIIA is unusual among activating Fc␥R in having both ligand binding and ITA...