Form 990-EZ is filed electronically with the IRS through an authorized Modernized e-File (MeF) provider. Paper filing is not an option. The Taxpayer First Act closed that door for tax years ending July 31, 2021, and later, and the IRS will not accept a mailed return.1Internal Revenue Service. Filing Procedures: Certain Organizations Required to File Electronically So the question isn’t online or by mail — it’s which e-file provider you’ll use and what you need to have ready before you start.
How to E-File Through an Authorized Provider
The IRS doesn’t offer a free direct-file portal for Form 990-EZ. To submit the return, your organization has to go through software from a provider that has been approved by the IRS and passed its Assurance Testing System requirements. The IRS publishes the current list of approved providers for exempt organizations each year.2Internal Revenue Service. Tax Year 2024 Exempt Organizations and Other Tax-Exempt Entities Modernized e-File (MeF) Providers
Contacting the provider and confirming the software fits your organization is your responsibility, not the IRS’s.3Internal Revenue Service. E-file for Charities and Nonprofits Providers differ in price, in which schedules they support, and in whether they handle state charitable filings alongside the federal return. Once your return goes through, you’ll get electronic acknowledgment that the IRS received it, which removes the uncertainty that came with certified mail.
What You’ll Need Before You File
The 990-EZ pulls from several corners of your books at once, and it goes faster if you assemble the pieces first.
Revenue and Expenses
Revenue is reported by source: contributions and grants, membership dues, investment income, and proceeds from asset sales. Expenses split into program services, management and general, and fundraising, with specific lines for professional fees, salaries and wages, and supplies. Financial statements should follow an accepted accounting method — cash, accrual, or modified cash — applied consistently from one year to the next.4Internal Revenue Service. 2025 Instructions for Form 990-EZ
If your organization has $1,000 or more of unrelated business income, you’ll also file Form 990-T. That’s a separate return; it doesn’t replace the 990-EZ or affect your eligibility to use it.4Internal Revenue Service. 2025 Instructions for Form 990-EZ
Balance Sheet and Compensation
You’ll report total assets, liabilities, and net assets as of the last day of the tax year. A separate section requires disclosure of compensation paid to every officer, director, and trustee, plus the five highest-compensated employees who received more than $100,000.
Program Service Accomplishments
The narrative section asks what the organization actually did during the year. The IRS wants specifics: how many people you served, what services you provided, what results you achieved. This section is also what shows up publicly when someone looks up your organization, so it’s worth writing carefully.
Common Schedules to Attach
Depending on your activities and organization type, one or more supplemental schedules travel with the return.4Internal Revenue Service. 2025 Instructions for Form 990-EZ
- Schedule A, required for every Section 501(c)(3) filer, establishes public charity status and shows the public support calculation.
- Schedule B reports significant contributors. Names and addresses are generally not part of the publicly disclosed version, except for Section 527 political organizations.
- Schedule C is required if the organization engaged in political campaign activity, lobbying, or had reportable proxy tax expenses.
- Schedule G covers gaming, fundraising events above certain revenue thresholds, and the use of professional fundraisers.
- Schedule L reports loans and other transactions with officers, directors, and key employees, plus any excess benefit transactions.
- Schedule O is the catch-all for narrative explanations tied to multiple line items — other revenue, grants paid, other expenses, changes in net assets.
Schedule O is the one that most often gets missed. Any line on the main form that says “see instructions” is worth checking against Schedule O before you file.5Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Schedule O (Form 990)
When It’s Due and How to Get an Extension
Form 990-EZ is due by the 15th day of the fifth month after your fiscal year ends.6Internal Revenue Service. Exempt Organization Annual Filing Requirements Overview For a calendar-year organization, that’s May 15. If the due date falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it shifts to the next business day.
Need more time? File Form 8868 before the original due date and you get an automatic six-month extension. No explanation required.7Internal Revenue Service. Extension of Time to File Exempt Organization Returns The extension covers the return only, not any unrelated business income tax owed; that payment is still expected by the original deadline.
What Happens If You File Late or Not at All
Late filing penalties run daily and depend on the size of the organization:8Internal Revenue Service. Exempt Organizations Annual Reporting Requirements – Filing Procedures: Late Filing of Annual Returns
- Organizations with gross receipts under $1,208,500 owe $20 per day, capped at $12,000 or 5% of gross receipts, whichever is less.
- Organizations with gross receipts over $1,208,500 owe $120 per day, capped at $60,000.
The IRS can waive penalties for reasonable cause, but ordinary busyness or forgetfulness won’t clear that bar. Filing Form 8868 is almost always cheaper than asking for forgiveness later.
The bigger risk is what happens over time. An organization that fails to file its required annual return for three consecutive years is automatically revoked under Section 6033(j). The revocation happens by operation of law; the IRS has no discretion to reverse it, and there is no appeal.9Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption Getting reinstated means filing a new exemption application and paying the associated user fee, and in most cases the exemption is restored only from the date of the new application, not retroactively.10Internal Revenue Service. Reinstatement of Tax-Exempt Status After Automatic Revocation
After You File: Public Disclosure and State Filings
Submitting the return to the IRS isn’t the end of the obligation. Your organization must make the filed 990-EZ available for public inspection for three years after the due date (including extensions) or the date actually filed, whichever is later.11Internal Revenue Service. Exempt Organizations Annual Reporting Requirements: Public Disclosure and Availability of Exempt Organizations Returns and Applications A walk-in visitor at your principal office is entitled to inspect the return the same day. Written requests, including email and fax, give you 30 days to respond, and you can charge reasonable copying and postage costs as long as you notify the requester of the approximate cost within seven days. Contributor names and addresses are redacted from the public version, except for Section 527 political organizations. Ignoring inspection requests carries a $20-per-day penalty, up to $10,000 per return, with a separate $5,000 penalty for willful noncompliance.12Internal Revenue Service. Political Organization Filing Requirements: Penalties for Failing to Make Forms 990 Publicly Available
Federal filing also doesn’t cover your state obligations. Roughly 40 states require charitable organizations to register before soliciting donations from their residents, with their own fees and deadlines.13Internal Revenue Service. Charitable Solicitation – Initial State Registration Many states accept a copy of the filed 990-EZ as part of that package, which is a practical reason to keep the federal filing on schedule. An organization that solicits across state lines may need to register in each state where it asks for donations, not only the state where it’s based.