Nonprofit Law Firm James C. Provenza & Associates, PC Helps With:
Form 990 Preparation for Small Nonprofits
Once your nonprofit has successfully acquired a tax-exempt status, you most likely need to file your annual returns with the IRS. Known as Form 990, this is the document that allows you to keep your beneficial tax status and operate as an Illinois nonprofit. Form 990 makes many aspects of the nonprofit publicly available for review, including the nonprofit’s mission, activities, and finances, among a series of other pieces of information.
Filing the right forms by your deadline and including as much information are essential. To make sure that your Form 990 meets the legal requirements for your small nonprofit, Chicago nonprofit lawyer James C. Provenza provides full-service form preparation and administration, keeping your nonprofit in complete compliance with IRS regulations.
Who Must File a Form 990
The size and activities of a nonprofit (its finances, assets, and employees) makes a difference for which Form 990 the IRS requires. Likewise, although nearly all 501(c)(3) public charities and nonprofits need to file their annual returns, there are exemptions. Many churches and certain church-related organizations do not have to file these forms, for example. Before you can file your annual returns with the IRS, you also need to register with them. If your nonprofit is a 501(c)(3), your filing requirements are listed below:
- Very small nonprofits (gross receipts are less than $50,000) must file Form 990-N (e-Postcard)
- Small nonprofits (gross receipts are less than $200,000 and total assets are less than $500,000) must file Form 990-EZ or 990
- Large nonprofits (gross receipts are more than $200,000 and total assets are more than $500,000) must file Form 990.
Also, all private foundations must file a Form 990-PF, regardless of the foundation’s financial status.
Organizations Ineligible to File Form 990-N
In Chicago and throughout Illinois, there are countless nonprofits involved in a myriad of activities in local communities, ranging from education, charitable, scientific, athletics, animals organizations, religious, and more. The specific designation of your nonprofit dictates what you have to file. For instance, if your small nonprofit has gross receipts of less than $50,000, you may not be eligible to file the Form 990-N. These nonprofits include:
- 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
Call James C. Provenza & Associates, PC For Trusted Legal Help
If you run a tax-exempt nonprofit, preparing and filing your Form 990 is perhaps one of the most important tasks of the fiscal year. Mistakes, filing the wrong forms, or missing deadlines can negatively affect your nonprofit’s tax status. For example, for each day your Form 990 is late, the IRS will impose a $20 penalty, with a maximum penalty of $10,000 or five percent of total gross receipts. As such, it is important to acquire an experienced nonprofit lawyer who fully understands the legal issues surrounding Form 990.
Chicago nonprofit law firm James C. Provenza & Associates, PC has helped many tax-exempt organizations throughout the northern Illinois area, and we’ll be able to take care of all Form 990 preparation needs. Call us today at (847) 729-3939.
