IRS Form 990-N: what it is and who has to file it

Last updated 2026-07-24

What is Form 990?

Form 990 is the umbrella name for the annual information return that tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS. It's not a tax bill. Most booster clubs, PTOs, and youth sports groups don't owe income tax on their fundraising, so the 990 series exists mainly to keep the IRS (and the public) informed about what a nonprofit takes in, spends, and holds. There isn't just one "990." There's a family of forms sized to your organization's money. The full Form 990 is a multi-page return for larger nonprofits. Form 990-EZ is a shorter version for mid-size groups. And Form 990-N, the one most volunteer treasurers actually deal with, is a tiny electronic notice for the smallest organizations ^[1]. Which one you file depends entirely on your gross receipts, not on how much cash you have sitting in the bank account right now. Gross receipts means total money that came in during the year, before subtracting expenses. If you're trying to figure out which version applies to your group, the IRS keeps a comparison of the 990 tax form versions and their thresholds on its site.

What is the 990-N form (the e-Postcard)?

Form 990-N is an eight-question electronic form for tax-exempt organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less. The IRS calls it the "e-Postcard" because that's basically what it is: a short online notice, not a financial statement ^[1]. You file it entirely online through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search system. There's no paper option, no PDF to mail, and no fee. It asks for your organization's legal name, any other names it uses, mailing address, EIN, the name and address of a principal officer, your tax year, confirmation that gross receipts are $50,000 or less, and a statement if the organization has terminated or gone out of business ^[1]. That's it. No expense breakdowns, no board member list, no program descriptions. It typically takes about 10 minutes if you have your EIN and prior-year filing info handy. A quick reality check on the number: the $50,000 threshold applies based on a three-year average of gross receipts for organizations that have been around a while, with a slightly different test for brand-new orgs in their first, second, and third years ^[2]. If your booster club had one unusually big fundraiser year that pushed receipts over $50,000, don't panic and assume you owe 990-EZ forever; check the averaging rule (or ask your state charity office / a tax professional) before deciding.

Who has to file Form 990-N?

$50,000 or less	Form 990-N (e-Postcard)	Free
More than $50,000, less than $200,000, assets under $500,000	Form 990-EZ	Free (IRS doesn't charge; you may pay for prep help)
$200,000 or more, or assets $500,000+	Form 990	Free (IRS doesn't charge; prep costs vary)
Private foundations	Form 990-PF	Free	Source: IRS, Annual Exempt Organization Return: Who Must File [2].

Any tax-exempt organization with average annual gross receipts of $50,000 or less generally files Form 990-N unless it chooses to file the full 990 or 990-EZ instead ^[1]. Filing the longer form voluntarily is allowed and sometimes makes sense if a grantor or bank wants to see more detail, but nobody is required to file more than they have to. A few groups are off the hook entirely. Churches and certain church-affiliated organizations are not required to file an annual return at all, and neither are some government-related organizations ^[2]. Private foundations file a different form (990-PF) regardless of size. Here's the part that trips up new booster and PTO treasurers: even organizations that never applied for formal tax-exempt status recognition, or that assume they're "too small to count," still generally owe some version of the 990 if they're organized as a nonprofit and haven't been specifically excused. If your predecessor treasurer never filed anything, that's not proof you're exempt from filing. It's usually proof nobody set up the calendar reminder. | Gross receipts (average, 3-year) | Typical filing | Cost to file |

What does a treasurer do?

A treasurer is the person responsible for tracking an organization's money: what comes in, what goes out, and what's left. For a booster club, PTO, or youth sports group, that usually means running the bank account, recording every deposit and expense, reconciling statements monthly, and making sure the group files whatever it owes to the IRS and state. In plain terms, what does a treasurer do? Four things, mostly: collect and deposit money safely, pay bills and reimburse volunteers with a paper trail, keep books that another person could pick up and understand, and file the required reports (990-series with the IRS, plus any state charitable registration renewal) on time. What do treasurers do that isn't obvious until you're in the seat? A lot of quiet cross-checking. Comparing receipts to bank deposits. Making sure two people count concession cash, not one. Flagging when a "quick Venmo reimbursement" doesn't have a receipt attached. None of it is glamorous, and most of it only gets noticed when it's missing. What a treasurer does changes with the size of the group. A small team booster club treasurer might handle everything alone in a spreadsheet. A district-wide PTO council treasurer might work with a bookkeeper, a finance committee, and an outside CPA for an audit. The core job (accurate records, on-time filings, clear handoffs) stays the same either way.

What does a treasurer do in a club (booster club, PTO, youth sports)?

What does a treasurer of a club do day to day? Usually: deposit gate and concession cash within a day or two, log every transaction in a ledger or accounting app, pay vendors (uniforms, officials, venue rentals) with two-signature checks or a documented approval, and reconcile the bank statement every month against the ledger. What does a club treasurer do at year-end that's different? Close the books for the fiscal year, prepare (or hand off to a CPA) whatever 990-series form the receipts level requires, check whether the state's charitable solicitation registration needs annual renewal, and pull together a handoff packet for whoever takes over next season. Volunteer turnover is the single biggest risk factor in this world. A club that loses its only treasurer to a new job, with no binder, no login list, and no filing history, can lose its exempt status quietly and not find out for two years. What does a treasurer do when there's a raffle or a big one-time fundraiser? Check state raffle or gaming license requirements before selling a single ticket, keep the raffle's income and prize payouts separate and documented, and make sure that income gets folded into the year's gross receipts total for 990-series purposes. States vary widely here; confirm with your state charity office or attorney general's charitable division before running any raffle. If you're brand new to the role, the 990n filing process is the first concrete task most incoming treasurers should knock out, right after confirming the EIN and bank access are actually theirs.

What is a treasurer, exactly, in a small nonprofit?

A treasurer is an officer, usually elected or appointed by the board, legally and practically responsible for the organization's financial recordkeeping and reporting. In a small nonprofit, "legally responsible" doesn't mean personal liability for the group's debts in most cases (bylaws and state nonprofit law vary, so confirm with your state's nonprofit statute or a local attorney), but it does mean the treasurer is the name attached to filings and the person who answers when a bank, auditor, or IRS notice has a question. What is a treasurer supposed to know coming in? Not accounting theory. Mostly: where the EIN is, who has bank login access, where last year's 990-series filing confirmation lives, and what the group's fiscal year is. If you can't answer those four things on day one, that's the actual starting checklist, not a walk through debits and credits. Small nonprofit treasurers are volunteers in the overwhelming majority of cases. That's exactly why the paperwork needs to be simple enough to survive a leadership change. A treasurer role that only works because one particular person remembers everything is a treasurer role that will fail eventually.

How do you actually file the 990-N e-Postcard?

You file Form 990-N through the IRS's Tax Exempt Organization Search tool at irs.gov, using your organization's EIN to log in ^[1]. There is no paper form and the IRS will not mail you one; e-filing is the only method. Step by step: go to the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search page, choose the e-Postcard filing option, enter your EIN, confirm the organization's legal name matches IRS records, fill in the eight data points (tax year, gross receipts confirmation, address, principal officer, etc.), and submit. You'll get an on-screen confirmation, and the filing shows up in the IRS's public search tool within a few days. A common snag: your EIN needs to already be registered with the IRS as tax-exempt for the e-Postcard system to recognize it. If your booster club has an EIN but never applied for or received recognition of tax-exempt status, the 990-N system may reject the filing, and you may need to sort out your exemption status first (often via Form 1023 or 1023-EZ, or by confirming group exemption through a parent organization like a PTA state congress). That's a separate process from filing the e-Postcard itself. The due date is the 15th day of the 5th month after your fiscal year ends. For a calendar-year organization (Jan 1 to Dec 31), that's May 15 ^[1]. For a school-year organization (say, July 1 to June 30), that's November 15.

What happens if you file Form 990-N late, or don't file at all?

There's technically no dollar penalty for filing Form 990-N late, unlike the late-filing penalties attached to Form 990 or 990-EZ ^[1]. That sounds like good news, and it kind of is. But there's a much bigger consequence hiding behind it. "Organizations that fail to file for three consecutive years will automatically lose their tax-exempt status," is how the IRS describes the rule for the full 990 series, and Form 990-N counts toward that same three-year clock ^[3]. This is called auto-revocation, and it happens by statute (Internal Revenue Code Section 6033(j)), not by IRS discretion. There's no warning letter that says "last chance." The revocation is automatic on the filing due date after the third missed year. What auto-revocation actually costs you: your organization's donations stop being automatically tax-deductible to donors, you may owe federal income tax on money you previously treated as exempt, and many states will flag your charitable registration or state tax exemption too. Reinstatement is possible (via Form 1023 or 1023-EZ, sometimes with retroactive relief under Revenue Procedure 2014-11), but it takes real paperwork and, often, real fees. The IRS publishes a searchable list of organizations that have lost their status this way, called the Auto-Revocation List, inside the Tax Exempt Organization Search tool ^[4]. If you inherited a treasurer role and you're not 100% sure the group's filings are current, checking that list is a five-minute task worth doing today, not after the next fundraiser.

Form 990-N vs 990-EZ vs full Form 990: what's the real difference?

The differences come down to size and detail, not purpose. All three tell the IRS and the public what your organization took in and spent; they just require more granularity as receipts and assets grow. Form 990-N: gross receipts normally $50,000 or less. Eight questions, online only, no financial detail beyond confirming you're under the threshold ^[1]. Form 990-EZ: gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000. Multi-page form covering revenue and expense categories, compensation of officers, and a balance sheet, though shorter than the full return ^[2]. Form 990 (full): gross receipts $200,000 or more, or total assets $500,000 or more. Detailed reporting on programs, governance, compensation, and finances; often the version that shows up when journalists or watchdog sites look up a nonprofit. A useful way to think about it: a small youth soccer club running one spring fundraiser and paying for uniforms and field time is almost always a 990-N filer. A district-wide booster association running a stadium concession stand, a golf tournament, and a scholarship fund might cross into 990-EZ or even full 990 territory in a strong year. If you're not sure which bucket you're in, add up total deposits (not net profit) for the year across every account, including in-kind and pass-through, and compare it to the irs form 990 thresholds directly.

How does the 990-N relate to state raffle licensing and charitable registration?

Form 990-N is federal. Most states run a completely separate system for charitable solicitation registration, and many run a separate system again for raffle or gaming licenses. Filing your 990-N with the IRS does not satisfy any state requirement, and vice versa. If your booster club or PTO plans to run a raffle, confirm with your state charity office or attorney general's charitable division before selling a single ticket. Requirements swing wildly by state: some states require a specific raffle or gaming permit tied to a nonprofit registration number, some cap prize values or ticket sales, some exempt very small raffles, and some require a post-event financial report showing gross ticket sales against prizes awarded. There is no single national rule here, so "confirm with the IRS and your state charity office" isn't a hedge, it's the actual first step. Separately, many states require an annual charitable registration renewal (sometimes tied to your federal 990-series filing) for any organization soliciting donations from the public. Miss that renewal and you can end up unable to legally fundraise in your own state even while your federal exemption is fine, or vice versa. Keep the two calendars (IRS 990-series due date, state registration renewal date) on separate lines in whatever tracker you use, because they rarely land on the same day.

What should a new treasurer check first?

Start with five things, in this order: confirm the EIN, confirm bank account access is actually transferred to you (more than "you can see the balance"), find last year's 990-series filing confirmation, check the IRS Auto-Revocation List for your organization's name, and check your state's charity registration status. That sequence matters because each step depends on the last one working. You can't file a 990-N without the EIN. You can't reconcile the books without bank access. You can't tell if you're behind on filings without seeing last year's confirmation. And you can't fix an auto-revocation problem if you don't know it happened. A lot of this is exactly why a standardized starting kit helps. BoosterLedger's $99 one-time State-Personalized Treasurer Kit (at /treasurer-kit-builder) builds the checklist, filing calendar, and handoff documents around your specific state's rules, so a new volunteer isn't reconstructing all of this from scratch mid-season. One honest caveat: no kit or article, including this one, guarantees a filing outcome or a specific tax-exempt status result. The IRS and your state charity office make those calls, and their rules change. Treat everything here as a starting map, and confirm current thresholds, forms, and deadlines directly with the IRS and your state before you file.

Where do you go for the most current 990-N rules and thresholds?

Two places, always: the IRS's own Charities and Nonprofits section of irs.gov, and your state's charity registration office or attorney general's charitable division. Both change rules periodically, and neither publishes a reliable "what changed this year" summary that a volunteer treasurer can count on finding easily. The IRS's main hub for exempt organizations covers 990-series filing requirements, the e-Postcard system, and the Auto-Revocation List ^[4]. For general orientation on the whole 990 family before you file anything, the internal ^[990](/articles/treasurer-basics/990) and form 990-n overviews on this site walk through which version applies and what each asks for, in plainer language than the IRS instructions. This article is a reference for volunteer treasurers, not tax or legal advice, and BoosterLedger is not an accounting or law firm. When a real dollar figure, deadline, or licensing question is on the line for your specific organization, confirm directly with the IRS and your state charity office, or with a CPA or attorney familiar with nonprofit filings in your state.

Frequently asked questions

What is Form 990-N used for?

Form 990-N (the e-Postcard) lets small tax-exempt organizations, those with average annual gross receipts of $50,000 or less, satisfy their annual IRS filing requirement with an eight-question online form instead of a full financial return. It confirms basic identity info and that the organization is still under the receipts threshold ^[1].

Is Form 990-N free to file?

Yes. The IRS does not charge anything to file Form 990-N, and it's only available online through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool. Some organizations pay a bookkeeper or accountant for help gathering the numbers, but the filing itself has no government fee attached ^[1].

What happens if my organization misses the 990-N deadline?

There's no dollar penalty for a single late 990-N. But miss it for three consecutive years and the IRS automatically revokes your tax-exempt status under Internal Revenue Code Section 6033(j), no warning letter required ^[4][5]. Reinstatement is possible but requires new paperwork and often a fee.

What is Form 990 in simple terms?

Form 990 is the IRS's umbrella name for the annual information return tax-exempt organizations file to report income, spending, and assets. It comes in three sizes depending on gross receipts: Form 990-N for the smallest orgs, Form 990-EZ for mid-size, and the full Form 990 for larger nonprofits ^[1][2].

What does a treasurer do in a booster club or PTO?

A treasurer deposits and records all incoming money, pays bills with documented approval, reconciles the bank statement monthly, and files the required IRS 990-series form and any state charitable registration renewal each year. In small clubs, one volunteer often handles all of it alone.

How do I know if my group qualifies for the 990-N instead of 990-EZ?

Check your average gross receipts over the last three years. If it's $50,000 or less, you generally qualify for Form 990-N. Above that, up to $200,000 in receipts and under $500,000 in assets, you move to Form 990-EZ ^[2]. Confirm current thresholds directly with the IRS since rules can change.

Can a treasurer file Form 990-N without an accountant?

Yes, most volunteer treasurers file it themselves. It's eight questions with no financial statements required, just your EIN, address, principal officer name, tax year, and confirmation of the gross receipts threshold ^[1]. An accountant becomes more useful once you're closer to the 990-EZ or full 990 territory.

What is the deadline to file Form 990-N?

The 15th day of the 5th month after your organization's fiscal year ends. For a calendar-year filer (Jan-Dec), that's May 15. For a school-year filer (July-June), that's November 15 ^[1]. Missing one year alone carries no fee, but it starts the three-year auto-revocation clock.

How do I check if my organization already lost its tax-exempt status?

Search your organization's name or EIN in the IRS's Tax Exempt Organization Search tool, which includes the Auto-Revocation List. If your group appears there, it lost exempt status for not filing a 990-series return for three consecutive years, and needs to reapply for recognition ^[6].

Does filing Form 990-N cover state raffle licensing too?

No. Form 990-N is strictly a federal IRS filing. State raffle and charitable gaming licenses are entirely separate, run by your state's gaming commission, attorney general, or charity office, and requirements vary widely by state. Confirm with your state charity office before running any raffle.

What is a treasurer of a club responsible for legally?

Generally, accurate financial recordkeeping, timely filings, and following the organization's bylaws around approvals and reporting. Personal liability rules vary by state nonprofit law and organizational structure, so confirm specifics with your state's nonprofit statute or a local attorney; this isn't something a single article can answer for every state.

What's the difference between an EIN and tax-exempt status?

An EIN (Employer Identification Number) is just an ID number from the IRS, similar to a Social Security number for an organization. Tax-exempt status is a separate recognition (usually via Form 1023 or 1023-EZ) that the IRS grants after review. You can have an EIN without tax-exempt status, and the 990-N system needs both.

Sources

1. IRS, Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations - Form 990-N (e-Postcard): Form 990-N requirements, eight data points, filing method, and due date
2. IRS, Annual Exempt Organization Return: Who Must File: Gross receipts thresholds distinguishing 990-N, 990-EZ, and full 990, and the three-year averaging rule
3. IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption: Organizations that fail to file for three consecutive years automatically lose tax-exempt status
4. IRS, Tax Exempt Organization Search: Auto-Revocation List is searchable within the Tax Exempt Organization Search tool
5. IRS: Form 990-EZ is a shorter alternative return that organizations with gross receipts below a certain threshold may file instead of the full Form 990.
6. IRS: The IRS instructions for Form 990 detail filing thresholds and requirements distinguishing which organizations must file the full Form 990 versus 990-EZ or 990-N.
7. IRS: Nonprofit treasurers must track and reimburse volunteer or staff mileage using IRS standard mileage rates when managing organizational expenses.