To file Form 990-N, the e-Postcard, log in to the IRS submission portal with a Login.gov or ID.me account, enter your organization’s EIN and seven other basic facts, and submit. It is free, entirely online, and usually takes a few minutes. The deadline is the 15th day of the 5th month after your tax year ends — May 15 for calendar-year organizations.1Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice Form 990-N for Small Organizations FAQs When to File
Before You Start, Confirm You Can Use the 990-N
The e-Postcard is only for tax-exempt organizations whose gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less.2Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations – Form 990-N (e-Postcard) Gross receipts means everything you received from every source during the year, before subtracting any costs. The IRS uses an averaging calculation to decide whether you meet the threshold: if your organization is three years old or more, you qualify when you averaged $50,000 or less across the most recent three tax years, including the current one. Newer organizations use different tests — $75,000 or less in the first year, or an average of $60,000 or less across the first two years.
A few types of organizations cannot use the e-Postcard regardless of size. Private foundations must file Form 990-PF. Section 509(a)(3) supporting organizations must file Form 990 or 990-EZ. Churches, conventions or associations of churches, and integrated auxiliaries of churches are not required to file any annual return or notice at all.3Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption for Non-Filing Frequently Asked Questions If your organization is a subordinate covered by a parent’s group return, that filing already satisfies your requirement.4Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs: Who Must File
You can also choose to file up. If your board or funders want the transparency of a full return, filing Form 990 or 990-EZ voluntarily is always allowed.
The Eight Pieces of Information You’ll Enter
The form asks for exactly eight items. Have them ready before you log in:5Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice Form 990-N for Small Organizations – What to Report
- Your organization’s Employer Identification Number (EIN). Use your own, not a parent organization’s.
- The tax year you’re reporting for.
- The organization’s legal name, exactly as it appears in your articles of incorporation or organizing document.
- The current mailing address.
- Any DBA (doing business as) names.
- The name and address of a principal officer — typically the president, vice president, secretary, or treasurer.
- Your website address, if you have one.
- Whether the organization has terminated or is in the process of terminating.
That’s the whole form. No financial statements, no schedules, no narrative questions.
Filing the e-Postcard Step by Step
Form 990-N is submitted through the IRS online portal. There is no paper version, and no third-party software is required. Filing costs nothing.6Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs: How to File
Set Up or Sign Into Login.gov or ID.me
The IRS uses Login.gov and ID.me for authentication. You’ll need one of these accounts to access the 990-N system, and the email should match the one on your IRS account.2Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations – Form 990-N (e-Postcard) First-time setup includes identity verification, so plan for an extra 10 to 15 minutes if you’ve never done it before.
Enter Your EIN and Tax Year
Once logged in, enter your EIN and select the tax year you’re filing for. The system checks the EIN against IRS records. If it doesn’t match a recognized exempt organization, the filing will be rejected. Common causes of rejection include a mistyped EIN, an organization that has not yet received its determination letter, or an organization that should be filing Form 990-PF instead.
Fill In the Remaining Fields
Enter your legal name, mailing address, DBA names, principal officer information, website URL, and termination status. If your address or principal officer has changed since last year, just enter the current information.
Review and Submit
The system shows a summary before you finalize. Check every field against your official records. The EIN and the tax year are the two most common sources of rejected filings, so give those an extra look. When you submit, the IRS returns an electronic confirmation. Save it. That confirmation is your proof of filing.
When It’s Due
The deadline is the 15th day of the 5th month after the close of your tax year — May 15 for calendar-year filers. If that falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. Unlike Forms 990 and 990-EZ, there are no extensions for the e-Postcard.7Internal Revenue Service. Return Due Dates for Exempt Organizations: Annual Return
There is no per-day penalty for filing a single year’s e-Postcard late. The IRS does not fine you the way it does for late 990 or 990-EZ returns. Still, don’t treat lateness as safe — the real cost comes from missing multiple years, not one.
After You File
You cannot amend a Form 990-N. If you spot a mistake after submitting, you’ll correct it when you file next year’s e-Postcard.8Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs: After You File That’s why the review screen matters.
Anyone can look up your filing through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool, which displays 990-N filings alongside determination letters and revocation status.9Internal Revenue Service. Tax Exempt Organization Search Funders often check it before writing grants, so a clean filing history is worth maintaining.
Why Missing Filings Matters
Under federal law, any exempt organization that fails to file its required annual return or notice for three consecutive years automatically loses tax-exempt status. Revocation takes effect on the filing due date of the third missed year.10Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption The IRS is required by statute to send a notice after two consecutive missed filings, but the revocation itself is automatic and cannot be stopped by pleading with the agency.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 6033 – Returns by Exempt Organizations
Once revocation happens, your organization is treated as a taxable entity and may owe corporate income tax on its revenue. Contributions stop being deductible for donors after the IRS publishes your name on the Auto-Revocation List.3Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption for Non-Filing Frequently Asked Questions Most foundation and government grant programs require current exempt status, so grant eligibility disappears. Getting reinstated means filing a new exemption application (Form 1023, 1023-EZ, 1024, or 1024-A) with a user fee of $275 or $600 depending on the form.12Internal Revenue Service. Form 1023 and 1023-EZ – Amount of User Fee The process can take months, and paths back are limited.13Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Reinstatement of Tax-Exempt Status Filing the e-Postcard takes about five minutes and costs nothing. The math is not close.
If Your Organization Grows Past $50,000
If your averaged gross receipts move above the threshold, you’ll switch to Form 990-EZ (gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000) or Form 990 (gross receipts of $200,000 or more, or total assets of $500,000 or more).14Internal Revenue Service. Form 990 Series Which Forms Do Exempt Organizations File Filing Phase In Because the threshold uses an average, one strong fundraising year doesn’t automatically move you off the e-Postcard. Run the three-year average before assuming you need to change forms. If you’re on the edge, filing the 990-EZ voluntarily is the safer call: filing a more detailed return than required carries no penalty, but filing a less detailed one than required does.