IRS Form 990-N: E-Filing for Small Organizations
If your nonprofit had previously been exempt from filing a Form 990 with the IRS, you are most likely now required to file a Form 990-N.
A provision in the Pension Protection Act of 2006 requires small nonprofits to file the Form 990-N if they had been exempt from filing the Form 990 because their annual gross receipts are $25,000 or less. The due date for filing the form is the 15th day of the fifth month after the close of an organization’s tax year.
While there is no penalty for late filings, those organizations that fail file a Form 990-N for three consecutive years will automatically lose their tax-exempt status.
The IRS has a frequently asked questions section about the 990-N. This, and more about the 990-N is at www.irs.gov/charities/article/0,,id=169250,00.html.
Filing Thresholds for 990 and 990-EZ
The thresholds for the 990-EZ have been adjusted temporarily to allow more organizations to file the simpler form, providing a gradual transition to the revised Form 990. For tax year 2008, organizations with annual receipts of less than $1,000,000 and assets of less than $2.5 million may file the 990-EZ. The 2009 and 2010 filing thresholds are online at www.irs.gov/charities/article/0,,id=184445,00.html.
Among the provisions in the instructions to the Form 990-EZ, the IRS will allow EZ filers to choose between two methods for reporting compensation to officers, directors, trustees and key employees. They may either use the method from the prior Form 990-EZ, or the new method for the Form 990 which requires calendar-year reporting. 501(c)(3) organizations that file the EZ will still be required to complete Schedule C if they engage in political or lobbying activities.
For more information on the instructions go to www.irs.gov/charities/article/0,,id=186630,00.html.
These articles originally appeared in the June and the October 2008 issues of New York Nonprofits, the monthly publication of the Nonprofit Coordinating Committee of New York, Inc. www.npccny.org