Exempt organizations, other than private foundations, must file their annual information returns on Form 990, or Form 990–EZ.

Generally, political organizations with gross receipts of $25,000 ($100,000 for a qualified state or local political organization (QSLPO)) or more for the tax year are required to file Form 990 (990–EZ) unless specifically excepted from filing the annual return. The following political organizations are not required to file Form 990 (Form 990–EZ).

This is a shortened version of Form 990. It is designed for use by small exempt organizations and nonexempt charitable trusts.

An organization may file Form 990–EZ, instead of Form 990, if it meets both of the following requirements.

If your organization does not meet either of these conditions, you cannot file Form 990–EZ. Instead you must file Form 990.

A group return on Form 990 may be filed by a central, parent, or like organization for two or more local organizations, none of which is a private foundation. This return is in addition to the central organization's separate annual return if it must file a return. It cannot be included in the group return. See the instructions for Form 990 for the conditions under which this procedure may be used.

Organizations, other than private foundations, that are described in section 501(c)(3) and that are otherwise required to file Form 990 or 990–EZ must also complete Schedule A of that form.

Organizations that file Form 990 or 990–EZ use this schedule to provide required information regarding their contributors.

All private foundations exempt under section 501(c)(3) must file Form 990–PF. These organizations are discussed in chapter 3.

Form 990, 990–EZ, or 990–PF must be filed by the 15th day of the 5th month after the end of your organization's accounting period. Thus, for a calendar year taxpayer, Form 990, 990–EZ, or 990–PF is due May 15 of the following year.

An organization that claims to be exempt under section 501(a) of the Code but has not established its exempt status by the due date for filing an information return should complete and file Form 990 or 990–EZ (or Form 990–PF if it considers itself a private foundation). If the organization's application is pending with the IRS, it must so indicate on Form 990, 990–EZ, or 990–PF (whichever applies) by checking the application pending block at the top of page 1 of the return.

For more information on the filing requirements, see the instructions for Forms 990, 990–EZ, and 990–PF.

Copies of Form 990, 990–EZ, or 990–PF may be used to satisfy state reporting requirements. See the instructions for those forms.

Organizations that filed a Form 990, 990–EZ, or 990–PF, and paid premiums or received transfers on certain life insurance, annuity, and endowment contracts (personal benefit contracts), must file Form 8870. For more information, see Form 8870 and its instructions.

An exempt organization that fails to file a required return must pay a penalty of $20 a day for each day the failure continues. The same penalty will apply if the organization does not give all the information required on the return or does not give the correct information.

The maximum penalty for any one return is the smaller of $10,000 or 5% of the organization's gross receipts for the year.

For an organization that has gross receipts of over $1 million for the year, the penalty is $100 a day up to a maximum of $50,000.

If the organization is subject to this penalty, the IRS may specify a date by which the return or correct information must be supplied by the organization. Failure to comply with this demand will result in a penalty imposed upon the manager of the organization, or upon any other person responsible for filing a correct return. The penalty is $10 a day for each day that a return is not filed after the period given for filing. The maximum penalty imposed on all persons with respect to any one return is $5,000.

No penalty will be imposed if reasonable cause for failure to file timely can be shown.

Exempt organizations must make quarterly payments of estimated tax on unrelated business income. An organization must make estimated tax payments if it expects its tax for the year to be $500 or more.

Travel tour activities that are a trade or business are an unrelated trade or business if the activities are not substantially related to the purpose to which tax exemption was granted to the organization.

Whether travel tour activities conducted by an organization are substantially related to the organization's tax exempt purpose is determined by looking at all the relevant facts and circumstances, including, but not limited to, how a travel tour is developed, promoted, and operated.

If any person required to collect, truthfully account for, and pay over any of these taxes willfully fails to satisfy any of these requirements or willfully tries in any way to evade or defeat any of them, that person will be subject to a penalty. The penalty, often called the trust fund recovery penalty is equal to the tax evaded, not collected, or not accounted for and paid over. The term person includes:

The penalty is not imposed on any unpaid volunteer director or member of a board of trustees of an exempt organization if the unpaid volunteer serves solely in an honorary capacity, does not participate in the day-to-day or financial operations of the organization, and does not have actual knowledge of the failure on which the penalty is imposed.

This exception does not apply if it results in no one being liable for the penalty.

Payments for services performed by a minister of a church in the exercise of the ministry, or a member of a religious order performing duties required by the order, are generally not subject to FICA or FUTA taxes.

Payments for services performed by an employee of a religious, charitable, educational, or other organization described in section 501(c)(3) that are generally subject to FICA taxes if the payments are $100 or more for the year, are not subject to FUTA taxes.

Churches and qualified church-controlled organizations can elect exemption from employer FICA taxes by filing Form 8274, Certification by Churches and Qualified Church-Controlled Organizations Electing Exemption from Employer Social Security and Medicare Taxes.

To elect exemption, Form 8274 must be filed before the first date on which a quarterly employment tax return would otherwise be due from the electing organization. The organization may make the election only if it is opposed for religious reasons to the payment of FICA taxes.

The election applies to payments for services of current and future employees other than services performed in an unrelated trade or business.

The election can be revoked by the IRS if the organization fails to file Form W–2, Wage and Tax Statement, for 2 years and fails to furnish certain information upon request by the IRS. Such revocation will apply retroactively to the beginning of the 2-year period.

For purposes of this election, the term church means a church, a convention or association of churches, or an elementary or secondary school that is controlled, operated, or principally supported by a church or by a convention or association of churches.

The term qualified church-controlled organization means any church-controlled section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, other than an organization that both:

If a church or qualified church-controlled organization has made an election, payment for services performed for that church or organization, other than in an unrelated trade or business, will not be subject to FICA taxes. However, the employee, unless otherwise exempt, will be subject to self-employment tax on the income. The tax applies to income of $108.28 or more for the tax year from that church or organization, and no deductions for trade or business expenses are allowed against this self-employment income.

Schedule SE (Form 1040), Self-Employment Tax, should be attached to the employee's income tax return.

A political organization is a party, committee, association, fund, or other organization (whether or not incorporated) organized and operated primarily for the purpose of directly or indirectly accepting contributions or making expenditures, or both, for an exempt function.

An exempt function means influencing or attempting to influence the selection, nomination, election, or appointment of any individual to any federal, state, local public office or office in a political organization, or the election of the Presidential or Vice Presidential electors, whether or not such individual or electors are selected, nominated, elected, or appointed. It also includes certain office expenses of a holder of public office or an office in a political organization.

Political organization taxable income is the excess of:

To figure taxable income, allow for a $100 specific deduction, but do not allow for the net operating loss deduction, the dividends-received deduction, and other special deductions for corporations.

A section 501(c) organization can set up a separate segregated fund that will be treated as an independent political organization. The earnings and expenditures made by the separate fund will not be attributed to the section 501(c) organization.

Form 1120–POL is due by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the end of the tax year. Thus, for a calendar year taxpayer, Form 1120–POL is due on March 15 of the following year. If any due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the organization may file the return on the next business day.

Form 1120–POL is not required of an exempt organization that makes expenditures for political purposes if its gross income does not exceed its directly connected deductions by more than $100 for the tax year.

A political organization that fails to file Form 1120–POL, or fails to include the required information on the form, is subject to a penalty of $20 per day for each day such failure continues. The maximum penalty imposed on failures regarding any one return is the lesser of $10,000 or 5% of the gross receipts of the organization for the year. In the case of an organization having gross receipts exceeding $1,000,000 for any year, the penalty is increased to $100 per day with a maximum penalty of $50,000.

An organization that does not pay the tax when due generally may have to pay a penalty of 1/2 of 1% of the unpaid tax for each month or part of a month the tax is not paid, up to a maximum of 25% of the unpaid tax. The penalty will not be imposed if the organization can show that the failure to pay on time was due to reasonable cause.

A political organization must electronically file Form 8871 to notify the IRS that it is to be treated as a section 527 organization. However, an organization is not required to file Form 8871 if:

All other political organizations are required to file Form 8871.

An organization must provide on Form 8871:

Before filing Form 8871, the political organization must have its own EIN even if it has no employees. To get an EIN, file Form SS-4 with the IRS. Form SS-4 can be obtained by downloading it from the IRS Internet web site at www.irs.gov or by calling 1–800–TAX–FORM.

The initial Form 8871 must be filed within 24 hours of the date on which the organization was established. If there is a material change an amended Form 8871 must be filed within 30 days of the material change. When the organization terminates its existence, it must file a final Form 8871 within 30 days of termination.

If the due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the organization may file on the next business day.

An organization must file Form 8871 electronically via the IRS Internet web site at www.irs.gov/polorgs (Keyword: political orgs).

An organization that is required to file Form 8871, but fails to do so on a timely basis, will not be treated as a tax-exempt section 527 organization for any period before the date Form 8871 is filed. Also, the taxable income of the organization for that period will include its exempt function income (including contributions received, membership dues, and political fund-raising receipts) minus any deductions directly connected with the production of that income.

Failure to file an amended Form 8871 will cause the organization not to be treated as a tax-exempt section 527 organization. If an organization is treated as not being a tax-exempt section 527 organization, the taxable income of the organization will be determined by considering any exempt function income and deductions during the period beginning on the date of the material change and ending on the date that the amended Form 8871 is filed.

The tax is computed by multiplying the organization's taxable income by the highest corporate tax rate.

Any individual or corporation that willfully delivers or discloses to the IRS any list, return, account, statement or other document known to be fraudulent or false as to any material matter will be fined not more than $10,000 ($50,000 in the case of a corporation) or imprisoned not more than 1 year or both.

The IRS may waive any additional tax assessed on an organization for failure to file Form 8871 if the failure was due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect.

For more information on Form 8871, see the form and its instructions. For a discussion on the public inspection requirements for the form, see Public Inspection of Exemption Applications, Annual Returns, and Political Organization Reporting Forms, later.

Every tax-exempt section 527 political organization that accepts a contribution or makes an expenditure, for an exempt function during the calendar year, must file Form 8872 except:

All other tax-exempt section 527 organizations that accept contributions or make expenditures for an exempt function are required to file Form 8872.

A state or local political organization may be a QSLPO if:

If an organization pays an individual $500 or more for the calendar year, the organization is required to disclose the individual's name, address, occupation, employer, amount of the expense, the date the expense was paid, and the purpose of the expense on Form 8872.

If an organization receives contributions of $200 or more from one contributor for the calendar year, the organization must disclose the donor's name, address, occupation, employer, and the date the contributions were made.

For additional information that is required, see Form 8872.

The due dates for filing Form 8872 vary depending on whether the form is due for a reporting period that occurs during a calendar year in which a regularly scheduled election is held, or any other calendar year ( a non-election year).

In election years, Form 8872 must be filed on either a quarterly or a monthly basis. Both a pre-election report and a post-election report are also required to be filed in an election years.

In non-election years, the form must be filed on a semiannual or monthly basis. A complete listing of these filing periods are in the Form 8872 instructions.

An election year is any year in which a regularly scheduled general election for federal office is held (an even-numbered year). A non-election year is any odd-numbered year.

For Forms 8872 filed before June 30, 2003, complete and file Form 8872 in one of two ways:

The form must be signed by an official authorized by the organization to sign Form 8872.

An organization that files Form 8871 electronically will receive a user ID and a password needed to file Form 8872 electronically. If an organization does not receive its user ID and password, it may request one by writing to the following address:

Organizations required to file Form 8872 on or after June 30, 2003, must file the form electronically if the organization expects to have contributions or expenditures exceeding $50,000.

A penalty will be imposed if the organization is required to file Form 8872 and it:

The penalty is 35% of the total amount of contributions and expenditures to which a failure relates.

Any individual or corporation that willfully delivers or discloses any list, return, account, statement or other document known to be fraudulent or false as to any material matter, will be fined not more than $10,000 ($50,000 in the case of a corporation), or imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both.

The IRS may waive any additional tax assessed on an organization for failure to file Form 8872 if the failure was due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect.

If an organization receives charitable deduction property and within 2 years sells, exchanges, or disposes of the property, the organization must file Form 8282, Donee Information Return. However, an organization is not required to file Form 8282 if :

Form 8282 must be filed within 125 days after the disposition. A copy of Form 8282 must be given to the previous donor. If the organization fails to file the required information return, penalties may apply.

This is any property (other than money or publicly traded securities) for which the donee organization signed an appraisal summary or Form 8283, Noncash Charitable Contributions.

These are securities for which market quotations are readily available on an established securities market as of the date of the contribution.

If the value of the donated property exceeds $5,000, the donor must get a qualified appraisal for contributions of property (other than money or publicly traded securities). The donee organization is not a qualified appraiser for the purpose of valuing the donated property. For more information, get Publication 561, Determining the Value of Donated Property.

For noncash donations over $5,000, the donor must attach Form 8283 to the tax return to support the charitable deduction. The donee must sign Part IV of Section B, Form 8283 unless publicly traded securities are donated. The person who signs for the donee must be an official authorized to sign the donee's tax or information returns, or a person specifically authorized to sign by that official. The signature does not represent concurrence in the appraised value of the contributed property. A signed acknowledgement represents receipt of the property described on Form 8283 on the date specified on the form. The signature also indicates knowledge of the information reporting requirements on dispositions, as previously discussed. A copy of Form 8283 must be given to the donee.

This is a payment a donor makes to a charity partly as a contribution and partly for goods or services. For example, if a donor gives a charity $100 and receives a concert ticket valued at $40, the donor has made a quid pro quo contribution. In this example, the charitable contribution part of the payment is $60. Even though the deductible part of the payment is not more than $75, a disclosure statement must be filed because the donor's payment (quid pro quo contribution) is more than $75.

The required written disclosure statement must:

The charity must furnish the statement in connection with either the solicitation or the receipt of the quid pro quo contribution. If the disclosure statement is furnished in connection with a particular solicitation, it is not necessary for the organization to provide another statement when it actually receives the contribution.

No disclosure statement is required if any of the following are true.

An organization may use any reasonable method to estimate the fair market value (FMV) of goods or services it provided to a donor, as long as it applies the method in good faith.

The organization may estimate the FMV of goods or services that generally are not commercially available by using the FMV of similar or comparable goods or services. Goods or services may be similar or comparable even if they do not have the unique qualities of the goods or services being valued.

A penalty is imposed on a charity that does not make the required disclosure of a quid pro quo contribution of more than $75. The penalty is $10 per contribution, not to exceed $5,000 per fund-raising event or mailing. The charity can avoid the penalty if it can show that the failure was due to reasonable cause.

If the donee provides goods or services to the donor in exchange for the contribution (a quid pro quo contribution), the acknowledgement must include a good faith estimate of the value of the goods or services. See Disclosure of Quid Pro Quo Contributions, earlier.

Although there is no prescribed format for the written acknowledgement, it must provide enough information to substantiate the amount of the contribution. For more information, get IRS Publication 1771, Charitable Contributions – Substantiation and Disclosure Requirements.

An exempt organization must make available for public inspection, upon request and without charge, a copy of its original and amended annual information returns. Each information return must be made available from the date it is required to be filed (determined without regard to any extensions), or is actually filed, whichever is later. An original return does not have to be made available if more than 3 years have passed from the date the return was required to be filed (including any extensions) or was filed, whichever is later. An amended return does not have to be made available if more than 3 years have passed from the date it was filed.

An annual information return includes an exact copy of the return (Form 990, 990–EZ, 990–BL, 990–PF, or 1065), and amended return if any, and all schedules, attachments, and supporting documents filed with the IRS. It does not include Schedule A of Form 990–BL, Form 990–T, Schedule K–1 of Form 1065, or Form 1120–POL. In the case of a tax-exempt organization other than a private foundation, an annual information return does not include the names and addresses of contributors to the organization.

An exempt organization must also make available for public inspection without charge its application for tax-exempt status. An application for tax exemption includes the application form (such as Form 1023 or 1024), all documents and statements the IRS requires the organization to file with the form, any statement or other supporting document submitted by an organization in support of its application, and any letter or other document issued by the IRS concerning the application.

The application for exemption does not include:

If there is no prescribed application form, see section 301.6104(d)–1(b)(3)(ii) of the regulations for a list of the documents that must be made available.

Material that is required to be withheld from public inspection includes:

The annual returns and exemption application must be made available for inspection, without charge, at the organization's principal, regional, and district offices during regular business hours. The organization may have an employee present during inspection, but must allow the individual to take notes freely and to photocopy at no charge if the individual provides the photocopying equipment. Generally, regional and district offices are those that have paid employees who together are normally paid at least 120 hours a week.

If the organization does not maintain a permanent office, it must make its application for tax exemption and its annual information returns available for inspection at a reasonable location of its choice. It must permit public inspection within a reasonable amount of time after receiving a request for inspection (normally not more than 2 weeks) and at a reasonable time of day. At its option, it may mail, within 2 weeks of receiving the request, a copy of its application for tax exemption and annual information returns to the requester in lieu of allowing an inspection. The organization may charge the requester for copying and actual postage costs only if the requester consents to the charge.

An organization that has a permanent office, but has no office hours or very limited hours during certain times of the year, must make its documents available during those periods when office hours are limited or not available as though it were an organization without a permanent office.

An exempt organization also must provide a copy of all, or any specific part or schedule, of its three most recent annual information returns and/or exemption application to anyone who requests a copy either in person or in writing at its principal, regional or district office during regular business hours. If the individual made the request in person, the copy must be provided on the same business day the request is made unless there are unusual circumstances. Unusual circumstances are defined in section 301.6104(d)–1(d)(1)(ii) of the regulations.

The organization must honor a written request for a copy of documents or specific parts or schedules of documents that are required to be disclosed. However, this rule only applies if the request:

The organization must mail the copy within 30 days from the date it receives the request. The organization may request payment in advance and must then provide the copies within 30 days from the date it receives payment.

The organization may charge a reasonable fee for providing copies. It can charge no more for the copies than the per page rate the IRS charges for providing copies. That rate is stated in section 601.702(f)(5)(iv)(B) of the regulations. (As of June 2001, the rate was $1.00 for the first page and 15 cents for each additional page.) The organization can also charge the actual postage costs it pays to provide the copies.

Generally, the same rules regarding public inspection and providing copies of applications and annual returns that apply to a principal office of an exempt organization also apply to its regional and district offices. However, a regional or district office is not required to make its annual information return available for inspection or to provide copies until 30 days after the date the return is required to be filed (including any extensions) or is actually filed, whichever is later.

A local or subordinate organization is an exempt organization that did not file its own application for tax exemption because it is covered by a group exemption letter. Generally, a local or subordinate organization of an exempt organization must, upon request, make available for public inspection, or provide copies of:

However, if the central or parent organization submits to the IRS a list or directory of local or subordinate organizations covered by the group exemption letter, the local or subordinate organization is required to provide only the application for the group exemption ruling and the pages of the list or directory that specifically refer to it.

The local or subordinate organization must permit public inspection or comply with a request for copies made in person, within a reasonable amount of time (normally not more than 2 weeks) after receiving a request made in person for public inspection or copies and at a reasonable time of day. In lieu of allowing an inspection, the local or subordinate organization may mail a copy of the applicable documents to the person requesting inspection within the same time period. In that case, the organization may charge the requester for copying and actual postage costs only if the requester consents to the charge. If the local or subordinate organization receives a written request for a copy of its application for exemption, it must fulfill the request in the time and manner specified earlier.

The requester has the option of requesting from the central or parent organization, at its principal office, inspection or copies of the application for group exemption and the material submitted by the central or parent organization to include a local or subordinate organization in the group ruling. If the central or parent organization submits to the IRS a list or directory of local or subordinate organizations covered by the group exemption letter, it must make the list or directory available for public inspection, but it is required to provide copies only of those pages of the list or directory that refer to particular local or subordinate organizations specified by the requester. The central or parent organization must fulfill such requests in the time and manner specified earlier.

A local or subordinate organization that does not file its own annual information return (because it is affiliated with a central or parent organization that files a group return) must, upon request, make available for public inspection, or provide copies of, the group returns filed by the central or parent organization. However, if the group return includes separate schedules for each local or subordinate organization included in the group return, the local or subordinate organization receiving the request may omit any schedules relating only to other organizations included in the group return. The local or subordinate organization must permit public inspection, or comply with a request for copies made in person, within a reasonable amount of time (normally not more than 2 weeks) after receiving a request made in person for public inspection or copies and at a reasonable time of day.

In lieu of allowing an inspection, the local or subordinate organization may mail a copy of the applicable documents to the person requesting inspection within the same time period. In this case, the organization can charge the requester for copying and actual postage costs only if the requester consents to the charge. If the local or subordinate organization receives a written request for a copy of its annual information return, it must fulfill the request by providing a copy of the group return in the time and manner specified earlier. The requester has the option of requesting from the central or parent organization, at its principal office, inspection or copies of group returns filed by the central or parent organization. The central or parent organization must fulfill such requests in the time and manner specified earlier.

If an organization fails to comply, it may be liable for a penalty. See Penalties, later.

An exempt organization does not have to comply with requests for copies of its annual returns or exemption application if it makes them widely available. However, making these documents widely available does not relieve the organization from making its documents available for public inspection.

The organization can make its application and returns widely available by posting the application and returns on a World Wide Web page. For the rules to follow so that the Internet posting will be considered widely available, see section 301.6104(d)–2(b) of the regulations.

If the organization has made its application for tax exemption and/or annual returns widely available, it must inform any individual requesting a copy where the documents are available, including the address on the World Wide Web, if applicable. If the request is made in person, the notice must be provided immediately. If the request is made in writing, the notice must be provided within 7 days.

If the tax-exempt organization is the subject of a harassment campaign, the organization may not have to fulfill requests for information. For more information, see section 301.6104(d)–3 of the regulations.

Forms 8871 and 8872 (discussed earlier under Reporting Requirements for a Political Organization) are open to public inspection.

Form 8871 (including any supporting papers) and any letter or other document the IRS issues with regard to Form 8871 is open to public inspection at the IRS in Washington, DC.

Copies of Form 8871 that have been filed will be made available on the IRS Internet web site (www.irs.gov/polorgs) 48 hours after the notice has been filed and are considered widely available as long as the organization provides the IRS web site address to the person making the request. In addition, the organization must make a copy of these materials available for public inspection during regular business hours at the organization's principal office and at each of its regional or district offices having at least 3 paid employees.

Form 8872 (including Schedules A and B) is open to public inspection. Copies of Form 8872 that are required to be filed electronically will be made available on the Internet web site (www.irs.gov/polorgs) within 48 hours after it has been filed.

An organization is required to file Form 8872 electronically if it has, or has reason to expect to have, contributions or expenditures exceeding $50,000 for the tax year.

In addition, the organization is required to make a copy of this form available for public inspection during regular business hours at the organization's principal office and at each of its regional or district offices having at least 3 paid employees.

The penalty for failure to allow public inspection of annual returns is $20 for each day the failure continues. The maximum penalty on all persons for failures involving any one return is $10,000.

The penalty for failure to allow public inspection of exemption applications is $20 for each day the failure continues.

The penalty for willful failure to allow public inspection of a return or exemption application is $5,000 for each return or application. The penalty also applies to a willful failure to provide copies.

The penalty for failure to allow public inspection of a political organization's section 527 notice (Form 8871) is $20 for each day the failure continues.

The penalty for failure to allow public inspection of a section 527 organization's contributions and expenditures report (Form 8872) is $20 for each day the failure continues. The maximum penalty on all persons for failures involving any one report is $10,000.

An organization must follow these disclosure requirements if it is exempt under section 501(c), other than section 501(c)(1), or under section 501(d), unless the organization is eligible to receive tax deductible charitable contributions under section 170(c). These requirements must be followed by, among others:

This disclosure requirement applies to a fund-raising solicitation if all of the following are true.

Failure by an organization to make the required statement will result in a penalty of $1,000 for each day the failure occurred, up to a maximum penalty of $10,000 for a calendar year. No penalty will be imposed if it is shown that the failure was due to reasonable cause. If the failure was due to intentional disregard of the requirements, the penalty may be higher and is not subject to a maximum amount.

A penalty is provided for failure to comply with this requirement if the failure is due to intentional disregard of the requirement. The penalty is the greater of $1,000 for each day the failure occurred, or 50% of the total cost of all offers and solicitations that were made by the organization the same day that it fails to meet the requirement.

If your exempt organization changes its legal structure, such as from a trust to a corporation, you must file a new exemption application to establish that the new legal entity qualifies for exemption. If your organization becomes inactive for a period of time but does not cease being an entity under the laws of the state in which it was formed, its exemption will not be terminated. However, unless you are covered by one of the filing exceptions, you will have to continue to file an annual information return during the period of inactivity. If your organization has been liquidated, dissolved, terminated, or substantially contracted, you should file your annual return of information by the 15th day of the 5th month after the change and follow the applicable instructions to the form.

If your organization amends its articles of organization or its internal regulations (bylaws), you should send a conformed copy of these changes to the appropriate EO area manager. (An organization that is covered by a group exemption letter should send two copies of these changes.) If you did not give the IRS a copy of the amendments previously, you may include it when you file Form 990 (or 990–EZ or Form 990–PF), if that return is required.

The procedures that an organization must follow to change its accounting period differ for an individual organization and for a central organization that seeks a group change for its subordinate organizations.

that wish to change annual accounting periods generally need only file an information return for the short period indicating that a change is being made. However, if the organization has changed its accounting period within the previous 10 years, it must file Form 1128, Application to Adopt, Change, or Retain a Tax Year. Form 1128 is attached to the short period return. See Revenue Procedure 85–58.

may obtain approval for a group change in an annual accounting period for their subordinate organizations on a group basis only by filing Form 1128 with the Service Center where it files its annual information return. For more information, see Revenue Procedure 76–10, as modified by Revenue Procedure 79–3 or later update.

must be filed by the 15th day of the 5th month following the close of the short period.