Last updated 2026-07-24
TL;DR
Form 990 is the annual information return tax-exempt nonprofits file with the IRS. Which version you file (990-N postcard, 990-EZ, or full 990) depends on gross receipts and assets. Miss three straight years and the IRS auto-revokes your tax-exempt status [1]. Due date is the 15th day of the 5th month after your fiscal year ends.
What is Form 990?
Form 990 is the annual information return that tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS. It's not a tax bill in the way your personal 1040 is. Most booster clubs, PTOs, and youth sports nonprofits owe zero income tax. The 990 exists so the IRS (and the public) can see what a tax-exempt group did with its money that year. The IRS says the return "provides the public with financial information about a nonprofit organization" and is often the primary or only source that information [1]. Donors, grantmakers, and state charity regulators pull it too. GuideStar and Candid post them online, so a sloppy 990 is public forever. Here's the part new treasurers miss: there isn't one "990 form." There's a family of them, sized to your organization's money. A tiny booster club with a $12,000 bank balance files something completely different from a school-district-wide PTO council sitting on $300,000.
What is the 990 tax form, exactly, and who has to file it?
| Gross receipts normally $50,000 or less | 990-N (e-Postcard) [3] | |
|---|---|---|
| Gross receipts under $200,000 AND total assets under $500,000 | 990-EZ (or full 990) [4] | |
| Gross receipts $200,000 or more OR total assets $500,000 or more | Full Form 990 [4] | |
| Private foundations (rare for booster groups) | 990-PF | "Normally $50,000 or less" is an average over your current year and the two prior years, not a hard single-year cutoff, which matters if you had one unusually big fundraiser [3]. |
Any organization recognized as tax-exempt under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c) generally has to file some version of Form 990 every year, unless it falls into a narrow exception (churches, for instance, are excused) [2]. That includes your booster club, PTO, or youth sports association if it has 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) status, or even if it never formally applied for exemption but operates as one. A lot of small booster clubs assume that because they don't owe tax, they don't have to file anything. That's wrong, and it's the single most common way these groups end up on the IRS auto-revocation list. Filing something, even the free 990-N postcard, is mandatory once you're exempt. Which version you file depends on two numbers: gross receipts for the year, and total assets at year end. The IRS updates these thresholds periodically, so confirm the current figures on irs.gov before you file, but as of the current guidance the breakpoints are roughly: | Filing situation | Which form |
What does a treasurer do? (the short version)
A treasurer is the person legally and practically responsible for a nonprofit's money: tracking it, reporting it, and making sure two other people also know where it is. That's the whole job in one sentence, and everything else is detail. What do treasurers do day to day? They record income and expenses, reconcile the bank statement every month, keep receipts, write checks (with a second signature on anything over a threshold the board sets), and prepare a written report for every board meeting. Good treasurers also flag when cash handling looks sloppy before it becomes a problem, not after. What does a treasurer do in a club specifically, versus a company finance role? A club treasurer is almost always a volunteer, usually a parent, doing this alongside a full-time job. There's no finance department behind them. That's exactly why the paperwork side (the 990, state charity registration, raffle permits) trips people up: nobody handed them a manual when they took the binder.
What does a club treasurer do specifically for the 990?
What does a treasurer of a club do when tax season, or really "filing season," rolls around? For most booster clubs, the treasurer is the one who: Gathers the year's financial records: bank statements, the check register, receipts for fundraisers and purchases, and any grant or sponsorship paperwork. Figures out gross receipts for the year (total money in, before subtracting expenses) to know which form applies. Either files the 990-N directly through the IRS's e-Postcard system, or assembles the numbers an accountant or board volunteer needs to prepare a 990-EZ or full 990. Brings the filed confirmation (or a copy of the completed return) to the board so there's a paper trail beyond the treasurer's own laptop. Small booster clubs sometimes think this is optional because "we're not a real nonprofit, we're just parents." If the group has applied for or received a federal Employer Identification Number and represents itself as tax-exempt (even informally, even without a 501(c)(3) letter), the IRS still expects an annual filing. When in doubt, confirm your group's exempt status and filing obligation directly with the IRS.
What happens if we skip the 990 for a few years?
The IRS automatically revokes tax-exempt status for any organization that fails to file the required 990 series return for three consecutive years [5]. This isn't a warning-then-penalty system with a lot of grace. It's automatic, and it happens without a phone call. "Organizations that fail to file for three consecutive years lose their tax-exempt status," is how the IRS states it on its own automatic revocation guidance page [5]. Once revoked, the organization is added to the IRS's public Auto-Revocation List, donations stop being tax-deductible, and many states pull the matching state exemption or charity registration too. The practical damage for a booster club: your title sponsor's accountant finds you on the revocation list right before the golf tournament, and suddenly your $5,000 sponsorship is in limbo because the donor can't deduct it. Getting reinstated means filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ again, paying the application fee, and often back-filing the missed returns. It's avoidable homework that becomes a much bigger project once it's late. For a full walkthrough of the numbered forms and thresholds, see form 990 and irs form 990.
What is the 990-N (e-Postcard) and how do you file it?
The 990-N, sometimes called the e-Postcard, is the simplest version, built for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less [3]. It's not a paper postcard anymore. It's a short online form filed through the IRS's Form 990-N Electronic Filing system. You need eight pieces of information: your EIN, tax year, legal name and mailing address, any other names the organization uses, the name and address of a principal officer, your website if you have one, and confirmation that gross receipts are still under the threshold [3]. There's no financial detail beyond that confirmation, no schedules, and no fee. The due date is the 15th day of the 5th month after your organization's accounting period ends. For a booster club running on a calendar year, that's May 15. For one running on a school-year fiscal calendar ending June 30, that's November 15. Miss the 990-N deadline and nothing happens immediately, no penalty for a single late e-Postcard, but three misses in a row triggers automatic revocation [5]. See 990n and form 990-n for the filing walkthrough.
What is Form 990-EZ and when do you need it instead?
Form 990-EZ is the mid-size version, for organizations with gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000 at year end [4]. It's a real tax form, four pages, asking for a summarized income statement, balance sheet, program service accomplishments, and some governance and compensation questions. A booster club that runs a big enough concession stand or hosts a large annual fundraiser can cross the $50,000 gross receipts line without noticing, especially in a year with a major raffle or gala. That pushes you from the free e-Postcard into 990-EZ territory, where mistakes are more visible because the form is public. Many groups in this range hire a bookkeeper or accountant for an hour or two rather than DIY it, since 990-EZ has real line items (functional expense categories, a statement of program service accomplishments) that benefit from someone who's filled one out before. That's a reasonable use of $150 to $400 in professional fees for a club this size; it's not a place to guess.
What is the full Form 990 and who actually needs it?
The full Form 990 is the long version, required once gross receipts hit $200,000 or more, or total assets reach $500,000 or more [4]. This is the form most people picture when they think "nonprofit tax return": roughly a dozen pages plus schedules covering governance, compensation of officers and key employees, related-party transactions, and a detailed statement of revenue and expenses. Most booster clubs and school-level PTOs never reach this size. It's more common for district-wide PTO councils, large multi-team athletic boosters with paid coaching staff or facility costs, or foundations that pool money across several schools. If your group is approaching this range, this is the point to bring in a CPA who files 990s regularly, not a volunteer with a spreadsheet. The stakes (public disclosure, potential state attorney general review, grantor due diligence) are higher, and the form has enough judgment calls (functional expense allocation, related-organization disclosures) that a general volunteer shouldn't carry it alone.
Does our state require anything besides the federal 990?
Often, yes, and this is the step new treasurers forget most. A federal 990 filing doesn't automatically satisfy state requirements. Many states run a separate charitable solicitation registration program through the Attorney General's office or Secretary of State, and a lot of them let you submit your federal 990 as part of that state filing, but you still have to register and file it there [6]. California, for example, requires charities to register with the Attorney General's Registry of Charitable Trusts and file annual renewals (Form RRF-1) alongside the federal 990 series return [7]. New York has its own Charities Bureau registration and annual filing (CHAR500) with its own thresholds . Rules and fee schedules change, so confirm with your state charity office (often housed in the Attorney General's office) what your specific group owes. This is exactly the kind of state-specific paperwork that trips up a first-year treasurer who assumes "we filed our 990-N, we're done." Confirm with your state charity regulator whether a separate annual registration or renewal applies to your booster club or PTO.
How do you fix it if the IRS already revoked your status?
First, check the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool to confirm the revocation and see the last return the IRS has on file for your group . It's a fast, free lookup and it settles the question before you spend hours on the phone. Reinstatement generally means filing Form 1023 (or the shorter, cheaper Form 1023-EZ if you qualify) to apply for exemption again, paying the user fee, and in some cases requesting retroactive reinstatement if you can show reasonable cause for missing three years of filings [5]. The IRS's own guidance on automatic revocation lays out the retroactive reinstatement process and the documentation it wants. Second, you'll likely need to back-file the missed 990-N, 990-EZ, or 990 returns for the years you skipped, even though the exemption itself lapsed. Boards sometimes assume a clean slate erases the old obligation; it doesn't. Third, tell your donors and your bank. If a bank account or grant application lists your old EIN as tax-exempt, and it's currently on the revocation list, that mismatch will surface eventually, usually at the worst time (audit, grant renewal, or a sponsor's year-end tax prep).
What records does a treasurer need on hand to file any version of the 990?
Whichever version applies, you need the same core records pulled together before you touch the actual form: twelve months of bank statements, a check register or accounting software export, receipts for major purchases, records of fundraiser income (concessions, raffles, sponsorships, membership dues), and a list of who served as an officer during the year. A reasonably organized booster club treasurer can pull this together from QuickBooks, a shared spreadsheet, or even a well-kept paper ledger in an afternoon. A disorganized handoff from a prior treasurer, missing receipts, no bank reconciliation, unclear cash counts from concessions, turns the same job into a multi-week reconstruction project. This is where a 990 tax form reference sheet and a documented [990](/articles/treasurer-basics/990) filing history earn their keep at handoff time. If you're setting up a new treasurer binder from scratch, BoosterLedger's $99 one-time State-Personalized Treasurer Kit builds the year-round tracking sheets and filing checklist so the next treasurer isn't starting from zero paper.
Frequently asked questions
What does a treasurer do?
A treasurer tracks all money coming in and going out of an organization, reconciles the bank account monthly, keeps receipts and records, reports to the board regularly, and handles required filings like Form 990. For a volunteer group, the treasurer is usually the only person who sees the full financial picture, which is exactly why a second set of eyes on every check matters.
What is a treasurer?
A treasurer is the officer of an organization responsible for its money: recording transactions, safeguarding funds, and reporting the financial position to the board and, for nonprofits, to the IRS and sometimes a state charity regulator. In a booster club or PTO, it's almost always a volunteer parent role, not a paid position.
What do treasurers do that's different from what a bookkeeper does?
A bookkeeper records transactions; a treasurer is also accountable for the money, the controls around it, and the filings tied to it. In a small nonprofit the same person often does both jobs, but the treasurer title carries fiduciary responsibility to the board even when a bookkeeper or accountant handles the data entry.
What is Form 990?
Form 990 is the IRS's annual information return for tax-exempt organizations. It reports income, expenses, and activities to the IRS and the public. Which version applies (990-N, 990-EZ, or full 990) depends on gross receipts and total assets, per IRS filing thresholds [3][4].
What does a treasurer do in a club?
In a club setting, the treasurer tracks dues and fundraiser income, pays vendor bills, reconciles the account each month, presents a financial report at meetings, and makes sure any required IRS or state filings, like Form 990, get done on time. It's a smaller-scale version of a corporate CFO role, minus the staff.
What does a club treasurer do specifically around tax filings?
A club treasurer gathers the year's bank records and receipts, determines gross receipts to figure out which 990 version applies, files the 990-N directly or hands numbers to an accountant for the 990-EZ or full 990, and brings proof of filing back to the board so there's a record beyond their own files.
What is a 990 tax form?
It's the informal name people use for any version in the Form 990 series (990-N, 990-EZ, 990, or 990-PF) that tax-exempt organizations file annually with the IRS. It's not an income tax return in the traditional sense since most filers owe no tax; it's a disclosure and accountability document.
What is the 990?
"The 990" usually refers to the full-length Form 990, the annual return required for tax-exempt organizations with gross receipts of $200,000 or more or total assets of $500,000 or more [4]. People also use "the 990" loosely to mean whichever version of the form their organization files.
What does a treasurer of a club do at meetings?
At each board or general meeting, a club treasurer typically presents a written financial report: current bank balance, income and expenses since the last meeting, upcoming bills, and any budget variance worth flagging. Minutes should record that the report was given, since that's the paper trail regulators and future treasurers rely on.
Do small booster clubs really have to file anything with the IRS?
Yes. Any organization recognized as tax-exempt, including a small booster club with an EIN, is required to file some version of Form 990 annually unless a narrow exception applies [2]. Even a group with $8,000 in yearly receipts still owes the free 990-N e-Postcard.
What happens after three missed 990 filings?
The IRS automatically revokes the organization's tax-exempt status after three consecutive years of not filing the required 990 return [5]. Reinstatement requires reapplying for exemption (Form 1023 or 1023-EZ), paying a fee, and often back-filing the missed returns, so it's a real project, not a quick fix.
Is Form 990 the same as a state charity registration filing?
No. Form 990 is federal, filed with the IRS. Many states separately require charitable organizations to register and file annually with the Attorney General's office or Secretary of State, sometimes attaching the federal 990 as part of that state filing [7][8]. Confirm requirements with your specific state charity office.
How much does it cost to file each version of Form 990?
The IRS doesn't charge a filing fee for any 990 series return itself. The 990-N is free to file directly through the IRS system. Costs come from hiring help: a bookkeeper or CPA for a 990-EZ or full 990 typically runs from roughly $150 to $1,000+ depending on organization size and complexity; confirm current pricing with a local preparer.
Sources
- IRS, "Form 990 Resources and Tools": Form 990 provides the public with financial information about a nonprofit organization and is often the primary or only source of that information
- IRS, "Annual Exempt Organization Return: Who Must File": which tax-exempt organizations are required to file an annual Form 990-series return
- IRS, "Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations - Form 990-N (e-Postcard)": 990-N eligibility for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less, and the information required to file it
- IRS, "Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax": 990-EZ eligibility thresholds of gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000, with full Form 990 required above those thresholds
- IRS, "Automatic Revocation of Exemption": organizations that fail to file a required 990-series return for three consecutive years automatically lose tax-exempt status, and the reinstatement process that follows
- New York Attorney General Charities Bureau, "CHAR500 Annual Filing": New York requires registered charities to file an annual CHAR500 with the Charities Bureau
- IRS, "Tax Exempt Organization Search": a free tool to check an organization's current tax-exempt status and revocation history