Form 990-ez requirements: who files it and how

Last updated 2026-07-24

What is Form 990, and where does the 990-EZ fit in?

Form 990 is the annual information return the IRS requires from most tax-exempt organizations, the paperwork that reports income, expenses, assets, and activities to keep the public (and the IRS) informed about how a nonprofit spends its money. It is not a tax bill in the usual sense. Most booster clubs, PTOs, and youth sports leagues owe no income tax, but they still have to file something every year or risk losing their exempt status ^[1]. The IRS actually has a family of these forms, sized to the organization. Form 990-EZ is the mid-size version, a shortened four-page return for groups too big for the postcard filing but not big enough to justify the full form. Think of it as the form for the booster club that just had a great fundraising year, or the PTO running a bigger auction than usual. If you're new to this whole system, it helps to read a plain overview of Form 990 before you dig into the EZ-specific thresholds below. The core idea across all versions is the same: report your money, report your governance, file on time.

What is the 990 tax form, exactly, and is it really a 'tax form'?

Calling it a 990 tax form is common, but it's a bit of a misnomer. Form 990 is an information return, not a tax return in the way a Form 1040 or 1120 is. Tax-exempt organizations generally don't calculate tax owed on this form unless they have unrelated business income, which gets reported separately on Form 990-T ^[2]. What the 990 series actually does is prove your organization is still operating consistently with its exempt purpose. The IRS uses it to check that you're not paying yourself excessive salaries, not engaging in prohibited political activity, and not quietly turning into a for-profit business wearing a nonprofit's paperwork. For a booster club treasurer, the practical takeaway is this: filing your 990-series form isn't about writing a check to the IRS. It's about keeping your paperwork current so your group's tax-exempt status stays intact. Skip it three years running, and the exemption gets revoked automatically, no warning letter, no phone call ^[3]. If you're catching up on the basics, see our overview of the 990 for how the filing obligation actually works.

What are the exact Form 990-EZ requirements?

Form 990-N (e-Postcard)	Normally $50,000 or less	No asset test
Form 990-EZ	Less than $200,000	Less than $500,000
Form 990 (full)	$200,000 or more, OR	$500,000 or more	The IRS states it plainly in its Form 990-EZ instructions: organizations with gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000 at year end are permitted to file Form 990-EZ instead of the full Form 990 [4]. You're allowed to file the longer form voluntarily even if you qualify for the short one, some treasurers do this if they want more detailed records on file, but almost nobody does that by choice. A few nonprofit types can't use 990-EZ regardless of size, including sponsoring organizations of donor-advised funds and certain controlling organizations under section 512(b)(13). Private foundations file Form 990-PF instead, a different form entirely. If any of that sounds like your group, confirm with the IRS and, if relevant, your state charity office before you pick a form.

Form 990-EZ is available to tax-exempt organizations whose gross receipts are less than $200,000 AND whose total assets are less than $500,000 at the end of the tax year ^[4]. Both conditions have to be true. If you clear either threshold, you're bumped up to the full Form 990. Here's the quick version: | Filing option | Gross receipts | Total assets |

How is gross receipts calculated for the 990-EZ threshold?

Gross receipts means the total amount your organization received from all sources during its annual accounting period, before subtracting any costs or expenses ^[5]. This trips people up constantly. If your concession stand brought in $40,000 in sales but you spent $25,000 on inventory, your gross receipts figure is still $40,000, not the $15,000 net profit. Add up ticket sales, membership dues, raffle proceeds, sponsorship payments, grant money, and donations, all of it counts toward gross receipts before expenses. A booster club running a $180,000 gross fundraising year (concessions, spirit wear, a big raffle, and sponsorships) is right at the edge of 990-EZ eligibility even if net profit after costs is much smaller. The IRS has a specific normally-not-more-than test for organizations still qualifying for the simpler 990-N e-Postcard: gross receipts normally $50,000 or less, averaged over the current and prior two tax years, using a sliding formula for younger organizations ^[6]. Once you cross that averaged threshold but stay under $200,000, 990-EZ is your form.

What does the 990-EZ actually ask for?

Form 990-EZ runs about four pages and asks for a summary of revenue, expenses, and changes in net assets, a balance sheet, a statement of program service accomplishments, and information about officers, directors, and key employees, plus several yes/no compliance questions ^[5]. It's shorter than the full 990 but it's a real financial statement, not a checkbox form. Expect to report: - Total revenue by source (contributions, program service revenue, investment income, and so on)

• Total expenses, broken into categories
• Net assets or fund balances at the start and end of the year
• A list of officers, directors, trustees, and key employees, even if unpaid
• Answers about lobbying, political activity, and related-party transactions Certain organizations also have to attach schedules. A group that received a lot from any single contributor might need Schedule B. A group holding a raffle or gaming activity as a fundraiser typically needs Schedule G if gaming or fundraising event gross income crosses IRS reporting thresholds ^[7]. If your booster club runs a raffle, check both the federal Schedule G threshold and your state's raffle licensing rules since those are separate systems entirely.

When is Form 990-EZ due, and what happens if you're late?

Form 990-EZ is due on the 15th day of the 5th month after the end of your organization's accounting period ^[8]. For a calendar-year filer (fiscal year ending December 31), that's May 15 of the following year. For a fiscal year ending June 30, common for school-affiliated booster clubs, that's November 15. You can request an automatic 6-month extension using Form 8868, filed by the original due date ^[9]. This is genuinely automatic; you don't need a reason, and the IRS doesn't ask for one on the initial extension. The real danger isn't a single late filing, it's silence. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 built in an automatic revocation rule: any organization required to file an annual return or notice that fails to do so for three consecutive years automatically loses its tax-exempt status, effective on the filing due date of the third year ^[3]. No hearing, no appeal before the fact, it just happens. If you've inherited a set of books and you're not sure the last treasurer filed anything, that's the first thing to check, not the last.

What if my group is under the threshold, do I still have to file something?

Yes. Even the smallest booster club, PTO, or youth sports group has to file annually if it's recognized as tax-exempt, there's no size floor that exempts you from filing entirely. Organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less file Form 990-N, the electronic notice sometimes called the e-Postcard ^[6]. 990-N asks for almost nothing: your EIN, tax year, legal name and address, any other names used, confirmation your gross receipts are still under the threshold, and a statement that the organization hasn't terminated. It takes most treasurers under fifteen minutes once they have the EIN in hand. The trap here is the word 'normally.' If your group had one unusually strong fundraising year that pushed gross receipts over $50,000, you may have crossed into 990-EZ territory for that year even though you'd normally file the e-Postcard. Check the IRS's averaging rule each year rather than assuming last year's form still fits ^[6]. Our guide to 990-N walks through the exact averaging formula if you're on the edge.

What is a treasurer, and what does a treasurer do?

A treasurer is the person responsible for tracking, safeguarding, and reporting an organization's money. In a booster club, PTO, or youth sports league, that means keeping the checkbook (or bookkeeping software) current, reconciling bank statements, tracking income from fundraisers and dues, paying approved bills, and reporting the group's financial position to the board and members. What does a club treasurer do day to day? Mostly unglamorous, repetitive work: depositing checks and cash promptly, logging every transaction with a description, matching receipts to expenses, and preparing a simple financial report for each meeting. What does a treasurer do in a club beyond bookkeeping? Usually also files the group's annual paperwork, whether that's Form 990-N, 990-EZ, or the full 990, and often handles state charitable registration renewals too. What does a treasurer of a club do that a bookkeeper doesn't? A treasurer typically has fiduciary and often signing authority, meaning they can be personally accountable to the board (and sometimes to the state) for accuracy and honesty in the group's finances, more than data entry. Many bylaws also require the treasurer to present a report at every meeting and an annual summary at year end. If you've just taken over a set of books mid-year, our treasurer-basics overview covers the handoff checklist most new volunteers wish they'd had on day one.

What is Form 990 used for beyond IRS compliance?

Form 990 (in any version, N, EZ, or full) becomes public information once filed. Sites like the IRS's own Tax Exempt Organization Search let anyone look up whether your group filed, and full 990 and 990-EZ filings are posted for public inspection . Parents, sponsors, and grant-making foundations routinely check this before writing a check to a booster club or PTO. A clean, on-time filing history signals a well-run organization. A gap in filings, or worse, an 'automatically revoked' status showing up in the IRS database, is the kind of thing that makes a potential corporate sponsor or grant reviewer quietly move on to a different group. If your organization was auto-revoked and you're now working through reinstatement, the process involves filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ again along with any missing returns, and the IRS has a specific retroactive reinstatement procedure under Revenue Procedure 2014-11 for organizations that qualify . This is also where a lot of new treasurers get anxious for no reason. Filing 990-EZ correctly doesn't require an accountant for most small booster clubs and PTOs; the form is designed to be completed by a volunteer using basic bookkeeping records. Where it gets genuinely complicated (large gaming income, related-party transactions, complex investments) that's the point to bring in a professional.

What's the difference between Form 990-EZ and the full Form 990?

The full Form 990 is roughly a dozen pages plus schedules, versus about four pages for the 990-EZ, and it demands considerably more detail: compensation tables for the five highest-paid employees over $100,000, a full statement of functional expenses by program, governance policy questions (conflict of interest, whistleblower, document retention), and often multiple additional schedules ^[5]. The practical difference for a booster club treasurer is time and complexity. A 990-EZ, once you have clean books, might take a few hours to complete using IRS instructions or basic nonprofit tax software. A full Form 990 for an organization crossing $200,000 in gross receipts often benefits from a CPA's help, particularly the functional expense allocation and governance sections, which trip up volunteers who've never seen the form before. Neither the 990-EZ nor the full 990 guarantees your tax-exempt status stays intact; filing accurately and on time is necessary but the IRS can still review your activities separately. See our comparison of irs form 990 versions if you're trying to figure out which one your specific group needs this year.

Do state filings and raffle rules interact with the 990-EZ?

Separately from the IRS, most states require nonprofits soliciting donations to register with a state charity office or attorney general, and many require an annual renewal that often asks you to attach a copy of your federal 990 filing . These are two entirely different systems, federal tax-exempt status and state charitable solicitation registration, and keeping one current doesn't automatically keep the other current. If your group runs raffles as a fundraiser, most states also require a separate raffle or gaming license, with its own reporting and net-proceeds rules, distinct from anything on the 990-EZ . A raffle can generate gross receipts that push you from 990-N eligibility into 990-EZ territory, so treasurers running a big annual raffle should check both the federal threshold and the state license terms every year, more than once at startup. Because every state's charity registration threshold, renewal fee, and raffle license process is different, and because rules change, confirm current requirements with the IRS and your specific state's charity registration office or attorney general before you file or renew anything.

How does a booster club treasurer actually prepare a 990-EZ, step by step?

Start with reconciled bank statements for the entire fiscal year, every deposit and withdrawal matched to a receipt or invoice. You cannot accurately fill out gross receipts or expense categories from memory or a shoebox of receipts, and guessing here is how organizations end up amending returns later. Next, total your revenue by category (contributions and grants, program service revenue like ticket or concession sales, investment income, and other) and your expenses by category, matching the line items the form actually asks for. Pull your beginning and ending balance sheet figures, cash, any investments, any liabilities like unpaid bills, so you can complete the balance sheet section accurately. List every officer, director, and key employee who served during the year, even briefly, along with their approximate hours per week and any compensation (most booster club officers are unpaid, which is fine, you still list them at $0). Answer the yes/no compliance questions honestly; a 'yes' to something like related-party transactions doesn't necessarily cause a problem, but answering incorrectly can. This is exactly the kind of recurring, state-specific paperwork a State-Personalized Treasurer Kit is built to shortcut: a one-time $99 setup that maps out your specific state's charity registration and raffle rules alongside the federal 990 thresholds, so you're not reverse-engineering all of this from scratch every filing season.

Frequently asked questions

What is a treasurer?

A treasurer is the officer responsible for managing an organization's money: tracking income and expenses, reconciling bank accounts, paying bills, reporting finances to the board, and usually handling required annual filings like Form 990-N, 990-EZ, or the full Form 990 with the IRS.

What does a treasurer do in a club?

A club treasurer keeps the books current, deposits and tracks all income and expenses, reconciles bank statements monthly, presents financial reports at meetings, and files required annual paperwork with the IRS and, often, the state charity registration office.

What is Form 990 used for?

Form 990 is the annual information return most tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS to report income, expenses, assets, and governance details. It's not an income tax bill; it's how the IRS and the public confirm the organization is still operating consistent with its exempt purpose.

What is the difference between Form 990-N, 990-EZ, and full Form 990?

990-N is a short electronic notice for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less. 990-EZ fits organizations with gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000. The full Form 990 is required above either threshold and asks for far more detail, per the IRS's Form 990-EZ instructions.

Who has to file Form 990-EZ?

Tax-exempt organizations with gross receipts less than $200,000 and total assets less than $500,000 at year end may file Form 990-EZ instead of the full Form 990, per IRS instructions. Some organization types, like sponsoring organizations of donor-advised funds, can't use it regardless of size.

What happens if a booster club doesn't file Form 990 for three years?

Under the Pension Protection Act of 2006, an organization that fails to file a required annual return or notice for three consecutive years automatically loses its tax-exempt status, effective on the third year's filing deadline, with no advance warning from the IRS.

Can a small PTO or booster club file Form 990-EZ without an accountant?

Yes, for most small groups. The 990-EZ is designed to be completed by a volunteer treasurer using organized bookkeeping records and the IRS's line-by-line instructions. Groups with complex compensation, related-party transactions, or large gaming income may benefit from professional help.

What counts as gross receipts for the 990-EZ threshold?

Gross receipts is the total amount received from all sources during the year before subtracting any costs or expenses. A fundraiser that brought in $60,000 in sales counts as $60,000 in gross receipts even if expenses reduced net profit to $20,000.

Is Form 990 the same as a tax return?

Not exactly. Form 990 (in any version) is an information return that reports finances and activities, not a document calculating income tax owed. Most tax-exempt organizations owe no income tax unless they have unrelated business income, which is reported separately on Form 990-T.

When is Form 990-EZ due?

Form 990-EZ is due the 15th day of the 5th month after the organization's fiscal year ends. A calendar-year filer's deadline is May 15. An automatic 6-month extension is available by filing Form 8868 before the original due date.

Does filing Form 990-EZ affect state raffle licensing?

Not directly, they're separate systems. Federal 990 filings go to the IRS; raffle licenses and charitable solicitation registrations go through your state's charity office or attorney general. A big raffle can push your gross receipts into 990-EZ territory though, so check both each year.

What is a 990 tax form, in plain terms?

It's the IRS's annual reporting form for tax-exempt organizations, sized by organization size: 990-N (postcard) for the smallest groups, 990-EZ for mid-size groups under $200,000 in receipts and $500,000 in assets, and the full Form 990 for larger organizations.

Can our organization voluntarily file the full Form 990 instead of the 990-EZ?

Yes. Organizations that qualify for 990-EZ or even 990-N are allowed to file the longer, more detailed Form 990 voluntarily. Some groups do this for more thorough public record-keeping, though most small booster clubs and PTOs stick with the simpler form they qualify for.

Sources

1. IRS, About Form 990-T: unrelated business income is reported separately from the 990-series information return
2. IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption: failing to file for three consecutive years triggers automatic revocation with no advance warning
3. IRS, Instructions for Form 990-EZ: 990-EZ eligibility requires gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000
4. IRS, Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations (Form 990-N): definition of gross receipts as total amounts received before subtracting costs or expenses
5. IRS, Form 990-EZ: what Form 990-EZ requires: revenue, expenses, balance sheet, officer list, and compliance questions
6. IRS, Instructions for Schedule G (Form 990): gaming and fundraising event income reporting thresholds requiring Schedule G
7. IRS, About Form 8868: Form 8868 provides an automatic 6-month filing extension
8. IRS, Tax Exempt Organization Search: 990-series filings become public and searchable once filed
9. IRS, Revenue Procedure 2014-11: retroactive reinstatement procedure for organizations auto-revoked for failing to file