Jennifer Schmerer, Staff Accountant
By: Jennifer Schmerer, Staff Accountant, The Nichols Accounting Group
Within the last few years, the IRS has cracked down on exempt organizations that failed to file information returns. For nonprofits that fail to file for three consecutive years, the IRS can, and most recently has, revoked their exempt status. And remember that big, long, hairy application you had fill out to get your exempt designation to begin with? You may- or may not- have to complete it again. It all depends on your filing designation:
1) If your gross receipts are normally less than or equal to $50,000 annually, you should have been filing a form 990-N, which is a simple information e-postcard.
2) If your gross receipts are less than $200,000 and your total assets are less than $500,000, you should have been filing form 990-EZ.
3) If your gross receipts are greater than or equal to $200,000 OR your total assets are greater than or equal to $500,000, you should have been filing form 990.
For those 990-N and 990-EZ filers, good news! It’s possible that we can apply for reinstatement with a simple electronic 
form, form 1023-EZ. If you are a form 990 filer, the correct application, form 1023, is a little more involved and will require more information and time to complete. However, the important thing is the time frame. You must have your reinstatement application complete within 15 months of revocation for your reinstatement to be retroactive. In addition to reapplying, you must also file information returns for the past three years to “catch up.” Need help maneuvering through the process? Call us today!
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