Tax990 Knowledge Base

Who can file a 990-N e-Postcard?

Generally, small tax-exempt organizations with gross receipts of $50,000 or less for the corresponding tax year can file an IRS Form 990-N (e-Postcard). 

As per the IRS, gross receipts are considered to be $50,000 or less under the following conditions:

• The organization has been in existence for a year or less and has gross receipts ≤ $75,000.
• The organization has been in existence for 1 - 3 years and has average gross receipts of ≤ $60,000 for each of the two years.
• The organization has been in existence for 3 years or more and has average gross receipts of ≤ $50,000 for 3 preceding years.

Exceptions:

There are a few organizations that cannot file Form 990-N, even if their gross receipts are $50,000 or less. This includes,

• Private foundations
• Supporting Organizations
• Section 527 - Political Organizations
• Section 501(c)(1) – U.S. government instrumentalities
• Section 501(c)(20) – Group legal services plans
• Section 501(c)(23) – Pre-1880 Armed Forces organizations
• Section 501(c)(24) –ERISA sec. 4049 trusts
• Section 501(d) – Religious and apostolic organizations
• Section 529 – Qualified tuition programs
• Section 4947(a)(2) – Split-interest trusts
• Section 4947(a)(1) – Charitable trusts treated as private foundations