If your nonprofit’s gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less, you file Form 990-N — the e-Postcard — electronically through IRS.gov, using an ID.me account, by the 15th day of the fifth month after your tax year ends. The whole thing takes a few minutes once you have eight basic pieces of information in hand. There is no paper version and no fee.
Confirm You’re the Right Filer
The 990-N is for tax-exempt organizations that are not private foundations and whose annual gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less.1Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations – Form 990-N (e-Postcard) Gross receipts means everything your organization took in — donations, grants, fundraising, investment income, dues — before subtracting any expenses.2Internal Revenue Service. Gross Receipts Defined
A few groups cannot use the 990-N even if they meet the dollar threshold. Private foundations file Form 990-PF. Section 509(a)(3) supporting organizations file Form 990 or 990-EZ. Political organizations under IRC Section 527 file the longer forms.3Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs: Who Must File Churches, their integrated auxiliaries, and conventions or associations of churches don’t file an annual return at all.4Internal Revenue Service. Filing Requirements for Churches and Religious Organizations Subordinates covered by a parent’s group return are also off the hook, unless the parent didn’t include them on the list of subordinates sent to the IRS.
Know Your Deadline
The e-Postcard is due by the 15th day of the fifth month after your tax year closes. For a calendar-year nonprofit, that’s May 15. If your fiscal year ends June 30, it’s November 15.5Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs: When to File
No extension is available. There’s also no monetary penalty for filing late, so if you’ve missed the date, file anyway.1Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations – Form 990-N (e-Postcard) The real damage only starts if you skip three years in a row.
Gather Your Eight Items
The 990-N asks for only eight things. Have them ready before you log in:1Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations – Form 990-N (e-Postcard)
- Employer Identification Number (EIN)
- The tax year you’re filing for
- Your organization’s legal name as the IRS has it on file
- Current mailing address
- Any other names the organization uses (“doing business as”)
- The name and mailing address of a principal officer
- Confirmation that gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less
- A termination statement, if the organization has closed or is closing
Everything you submit becomes public record through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool, with bulk data updated monthly.6Internal Revenue Service. Tax Exempt Organization Search Bulk Data Downloads
Set Up Your IRS.gov Account
Filing happens directly on IRS.gov. The agency moved the process away from its previous third-party site to its own portal, so if you filed years ago through Urban Institute’s system, you’ll need a new account.7Internal Revenue Service. New Form 990-N Submission Website Now Open
First-time filers register through ID.me, which handles identity verification for the IRS. You’ll need a government-issued photo ID — driver’s license, state ID, or passport — and you’ll be asked to take a selfie or join a short video chat with an ID.me agent.8Internal Revenue Service. How to Register for IRS Online Self-Help Tools If you already have an ID.me account from another government agency, sign in with that and skip the verification. People with an ITIN rather than a Social Security Number can also register through ID.me.
Submit the Filing
Once you’re in, enter your EIN to open a filing for the tax year. The system walks you through screens matching the eight items above. Enter your legal name and address exactly as the IRS has them recorded; a mismatch can bounce the filing. Confirm the gross receipts threshold, review the summary screen, and apply your electronic signature, which is your confirmation that you’re authorized to file on the organization’s behalf.
After you submit, the system generates a confirmation number. Save it right then. It’s your only proof that the filing went through on time.
If Something Goes Wrong
The most common snag is an EIN error. If the system rejects your EIN and you know it’s correct, the IRS probably doesn’t have your organization listed as tax-exempt in its filing system yet — often because a determination is still pending. Call IRS Customer Account Services at 877-829-5500 and ask them to set your organization up for 990-N filing. Allow about six weeks for the update to take effect. No penalty applies for that delay.9Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs: How to File
For technical trouble, don’t file from a phone or tablet. Stick to letters, numbers, and hyphens in text fields. If the site freezes, sign out, shut down your computer, wait a minute, restart, and try again. If it still won’t work, call 877-829-5500 for technical help.9Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs: How to File
What Happens If You Skip It
A single late filing costs nothing. The IRS will mail a reminder, and you should file as soon as you can.1Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations – Form 990-N (e-Postcard)
Miss three years in a row, though, and your tax-exempt status is automatically revoked, effective on the due date of the third missed year.10Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption No warning letter, no discretion. Once revoked, the organization is treated as taxable and must file a return such as Form 1120 and pay any income taxes owed.11Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption for Non-Filing: Frequently Asked Questions For former 501(c)(3) organizations, donors can no longer deduct contributions until the organization is reinstated.
To check whether your organization has already been revoked, use the Tax Exempt Organization Search tool at apps.irs.gov/app/eos, choose the Auto-Revocation List database, and search by EIN or name.10Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption If it’s on that list, filing another 990-N won’t restore your status; you’d need to go through the IRS reinstatement process, which requires a new exemption application and user fee.12Internal Revenue Service. Reinstatement of Tax-Exempt Status After Automatic Revocation
State Filings Aren’t Covered
Filing the federal 990-N doesn’t satisfy state requirements. Most states want a separate annual report, a charitable solicitation registration, or both, with fees and deadlines that vary by jurisdiction. Check with your state’s secretary of state or attorney general’s office to stay current. Losing state good standing can be just as disruptive as losing federal exemption.