E-990-N postcard: what it is and how to file it

Last updated 2026-07-24

What is the e-990-N postcard?

The e-990-N, usually just called the 990-N or the "e-Postcard," is the shortest annual filing the IRS offers tax-exempt organizations. It is not a paper postcard anymore (it used to require postcard-length info back when the idea started), it is an online form you submit through the IRS website. It asks eight basic questions: your organization's legal name, any other names it uses, mailing address, EIN, tax year, confirmation that gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less, and a statement that the organization hasn't terminated. That's it. No financial statements, no program descriptions, no balance sheet. The IRS created the 990-N under the Pension Protection Act of 2006, which for the first time required small tax-exempt organizations that previously filed nothing at all to file something annually ^[1]. Before that law, a small booster club or PTO with a few thousand dollars in the bank could genuinely file nothing and stay under the radar. Congress decided the IRS needed a way to track which small orgs were still alive, so the e-Postcard was born starting with tax years ending in 2007. If you're a new treasurer and someone hands you a shoebox of receipts and says "we're a 501(c)(3), I think," the 990-N is probably the filing your group has been doing, or should have been doing, every single year. It takes about 10 minutes once you have your EIN and a rough idea of last year's income.

What is Form 990, and how is the 990-N different?

990-N (e-Postcard)	Smallest orgs	Normally $50,000 or less
990-EZ	Small/mid orgs	Gross receipts under $200,000 AND total assets under $500,000
990	Larger orgs	Gross receipts $200,000 or more OR total assets $500,000 or more
990-PF	Private foundations	All private foundations, regardless of size	So when someone asks "what is the 990 tax form" they usually mean the whole family of forms, and the real question is which one applies to your group. A booster club that raised $18,000 last year files the 990-N. The same club after a banner year of concessions and a big raffle that puts it over $200,000 in gross receipts has to step up to the full Form 990 or the 990-EZ. You calculate this every year based on that year's actual receipts, so it can change.

Form 990 is the general name for the IRS's annual information return series for tax-exempt organizations. It's the tax-exempt sector's version of a tax return, except it usually results in no tax owed, it just reports on activities and finances so the IRS and the public can see what the organization is doing with its money. There isn't one single Form 990. There are four versions depending on size, and the 990-N is the smallest of them. Here's the breakdown the IRS uses to sort organizations into the right version ^[2]: | Form | Who files it | Gross receipts threshold |

Who has to file the 990-N (e-Postcard)?

You qualify for the 990-N if your organization is tax-exempt (or applying to be) and your gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less. The IRS defines "normally" using an averaging test tied to how long you've existed, more than last year's number in isolation ^[3]: - If you're in your first tax year, you qualify if you received $75,000 or less.

• If you've existed 1 to 3 years, you qualify if the average of your first 2 (or 3) years is $60,000 or less.
• If you've existed 3 years or more, you qualify if the average of the immediately preceding 3 tax years, including the year you're filing for, is $50,000 or less. That averaging rule matters for booster clubs and PTOs, whose income swings year to year (a big capital campaign or a one-time equipment drive can spike a single year). One unusually good fundraising year doesn't automatically bump you out of 990-N eligibility if your three-year average still lands at or under $50,000. A few organizations cannot use the 990-N regardless of size: private foundations always file the 990-PF, and section 527 political organizations file their own forms. Churches and certain church-affiliated organizations are generally not required to file any 990 series form at all, though they can file voluntarily ^[4].

How do I file Form 990-N online?

You file directly through the IRS's own portal. As of the 2016 processing year, the IRS moved the e-Postcard system from a third-party Urban Institute site to IRS.gov itself, so make sure you're on the actual government page and not a paid third-party "filing service" charging you money for a form that costs nothing ^[3]. Here's the practical rundown: 1. Go to the IRS's Form 990-N (e-Postcard) page and follow the link to the filing system. 2. Register or log in (first-time filers create an account). 3. Have your EIN, tax year, legal name and any "doing business as" names, mailing address, and website (if any) ready. 4. Confirm gross receipts are $50,000 or less using the averaging test above. 5. Confirm the organization is not terminated or in the process of terminating. 6. Submit. You'll get instant confirmation of acceptance or rejection. That's genuinely the whole process. There's no fee. If your filing gets rejected, the IRS system tells you why right away, usually a mismatched EIN or name, so you can fix it and resubmit the same day. If you're the treasurer walking into a fresh mess, this is a good moment to get organized once and stop scrambling every spring. A State-Personalized Treasurer Kit ($99 one-time) bundles your state's specific filing calendar, raffle rules, and recordkeeping templates so you're not rebuilding this from scratch every year.

When is the 990-N due?

The 990-N is due by the 15th day of the 5th month after your organization's tax year ends. For a calendar-year organization (tax year ending December 31), that's May 15 ^[5]. If your fiscal year ends June 30, your 990-N is due November 15. Unlike income tax returns, there's technically no penalty for filing the 990-N late in a given year, and the IRS doesn't offer an extension for it because there's nothing to extend, you either qualify for the simplest form or you don't. But don't take that as permission to blow off the deadline. The real danger isn't a late fee. It's what happens if you miss it repeatedly, which is covered next. Mark the date on whatever calendar your board actually looks at, more than the treasurer's own planner. Booster club and PTO boards turn over fast, and a filing habit that lived only in one person's head disappears the moment that person moves on.

What happens if we miss the 990-N deadline?

Nothing happens after missing it once. The trouble starts after three years in a row. Under the Pension Protection Act of 2006, an organization that fails to file its required 990-series return (including the 990-N) for three consecutive years automatically loses its tax-exempt status, by operation of law, with no additional notice or appeal required before it happens ^[1]. The IRS calls this "auto-revocation." It isn't a decision someone reviews and signs off on. The statute just triggers it. The practical effect for a booster club or PTO: your donations are no longer tax-deductible to donors, you may owe federal income tax on money you used to consider exempt, and many state charity offices and grant-making foundations check IRS status before working with you. Auto-revocation shows up publicly on the IRS's Tax Exempt Organization Search tool, so parents, sponsors, and school districts can see it too. The fix exists, and thousands of small orgs use it every year: you can apply for reinstatement, and the IRS has a streamlined retroactive reinstatement process for organizations that were eligible to file the 990-N or 990-EZ for the years they missed, described in Revenue Procedure 2014-11 ^[6]. It generally involves filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ with a specific reinstatement request and a statement explaining the failure, along with the user fee for that application. It's real paperwork and it costs real money in filing fees, so the cheapest path is simply never missing three years in the first place.

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

A treasurer is the person on a nonprofit's board or leadership team responsible for the organization's money: tracking it, reporting on it, and making sure the group meets its financial and legal obligations. In a booster club, PTO, or youth sports league, that's rarely a full-time job, but it carries real responsibility, especially because these organizations often handle meaningful cash (concession stand proceeds, raffle tickets, membership dues) with volunteer-level bookkeeping. So what does a club treasurer do, day to day and year to year? The core duties look like this: - Keep the books: record income and expenses, reconcile the bank statement monthly, keep receipts.

• Handle cash controls: count concession and event cash with two people present, deposit promptly, avoid one person having sole access to funds.
• Report to the board: give a financial update at every meeting, present a budget, flag anything unusual.
• Handle annual filings: this is where the 990-N or other 990-series form comes in, plus any state charitable solicitation renewal.
• Maintain records for handoff: bank access, past filings, and financial history need to survive a change in leadership, not vanish with the outgoing treasurer's inbox. What does a treasurer do in a club that isn't registered as a formal nonprofit yet? The same basic bookkeeping applies, but there's added urgency to sort out the EIN and tax-exempt status question, because banks increasingly require it to open or keep an account, and because operating with unclear status makes it hard to answer parents' and donors' questions honestly.

What do treasurers do specifically around Form 990 filings?

The treasurer is almost always the person who actually files the 990-N, or at minimum tracks that someone did. That means knowing three things cold: your organization's EIN, your fiscal year end, and your rolling three-year average gross receipts (to confirm you still qualify for the 990-N rather than needing the fuller 990-EZ or 990). In practice this looks like a short annual checklist: 1. Confirm your EIN and legal name match IRS records exactly (mismatches are the most common rejection reason). 2. Total gross receipts for the year and check the averaging test. 3. File the 990-N at IRS.gov by the 15th day of the 5th month after year-end, or prepare the 990-EZ if you've grown past the threshold. 4. Save the confirmation screen or email. The IRS system doesn't mail you anything, so this confirmation is your only proof of filing. 5. Note next year's due date immediately, don't rely on memory. A lot of small-nonprofit treasurers also get pulled into questions about whether their group actually needs its own EIN and exemption, or whether it can operate under a school's or a national organization's umbrella instead. That's a real fork in the road worth sorting out early, because filing a 990-N under the wrong EIN, or not realizing your booster club was never actually granted its own 501(c)(3) status, creates a much bigger mess than a late postcard.

Do PTOs and booster clubs actually have to file anything with the IRS?

If your PTO or booster club has its own EIN and holds (or is applying for) federal tax-exempt status, yes, almost certainly. The $50,000 threshold catches nearly every small booster club, and "we're too small to file anything" is the single most common and most costly misunderstanding new treasurers inherit. The confusion usually comes from the pre-2006 world, when small tax-exempt organizations really did file nothing. The Pension Protection Act closed that gap specifically because the IRS had no way to know which small exempt organizations were still active ^[1]. So if your group predates 2007 and "has never filed anything," that's not evidence you're exempt from filing. It's a strong signal you might already be sitting on missed years, possibly already auto-revoked. The fastest way to check your actual status is the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool, which lets you look up your organization by name or EIN and see filing history and revocation status directly from IRS records . Do this in your first week as treasurer, before you do anything else. It takes five minutes and tells you exactly where you stand.

What if our booster club isn't sure it has 501(c)(3) status at all?

This happens constantly, and it's worth untangling early rather than assuming. Some booster clubs were formally granted their own 501(c)(3) exemption years ago by a founding board that's long since moved on. Others operate informally under a school district's tax ID, or under a national umbrella organization (a state PTA, for example), and never had their own separate exemption. Others assumed they were exempt because they're "a nonprofit" without ever filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ to actually get IRS recognition. The IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool is the fastest way to check: search your organization's exact legal name and see if it shows up with an EIN, exemption date, and current status (active, or auto-revoked). If nothing comes up, either you're operating under someone else's umbrella (in which case confirm that with whoever holds the EIN) or you were never formally recognized and need to talk through the Form 1023 or 1023-EZ application process, which is genuinely a bigger project than a 990-N and worth budgeting real time for. Don't guess on this one. Confirm with the IRS and, if your state requires charitable registration for fundraising, with your state charity office or attorney general's office as well, since state rules on registration vary and change independently of federal exempt status.

Frequently asked questions

What is Form 990?

Form 990 is the IRS's annual information return for tax-exempt organizations. It comes in four versions based on size: the 990-N e-Postcard for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less, the 990-EZ, the full Form 990, and the 990-PF for private foundations. It reports finances and activities to the IRS and the public, though it usually results in no tax owed.

What is the 990-N e-Postcard exactly?

It's the shortest IRS filing for tax-exempt organizations: eight questions, filed free online at IRS.gov, taking most groups under 10 minutes. It requires your EIN, legal name, mailing address, tax year, confirmation your gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less, and confirmation you haven't terminated. There's no financial statement attached.

What is a 990 tax form used for?

It's used by the IRS to confirm a tax-exempt organization is still active and operating within its exempt purpose, and to give the public visibility into a nonprofit's finances. It isn't a tax bill in most cases; it's an information return. Which version you file (990-N, 990-EZ, 990, or 990-PF) depends on your gross receipts and assets that year.

What does a treasurer do?

A treasurer manages an organization's money: bookkeeping, bank reconciliations, cash-handling controls at events, budget reporting to the board, and annual compliance filings like the 990-N. In a small nonprofit, the treasurer is often the only person who fully understands the organization's financial and filing history, which makes clean recordkeeping and handoff documentation especially important.

What does a club treasurer do differently from a corporate treasurer?

A club or booster treasurer typically handles more physical cash (concessions, raffle tickets, dues) with fewer controls and less staff than a corporate treasurer, but carries similar filing duties: annual 990-series returns, state charitable registration if applicable, and clean books for board oversight. The job is smaller in dollar volume but not smaller in required diligence.

Who is required to file the 990-N?

Tax-exempt organizations (or those applying for exemption) with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less, using the IRS's rolling averaging test based on 1, 2, or 3-plus years of existence. Private foundations must file the 990-PF instead regardless of size, and churches are generally not required to file any 990-series form, per IRS guidance on annual exempt organization returns.

How much does it cost to file the 990-N?

Nothing. The IRS charges no fee to file the 990-N e-Postcard. If a website asks you to pay to file it, you're likely on a third-party service, not the actual IRS system. File directly at IRS.gov to avoid unnecessary fees.

What happens if a nonprofit misses three years of 990 filings?

The IRS automatically revokes tax-exempt status after three consecutive years of missed 990-series filings (including the 990-N), under the Pension Protection Act of 2006. There's no warning notice required before this happens; it's an automatic legal consequence. Reinstatement requires a formal application, sometimes using a streamlined process under Revenue Procedure 2014-11.

Can we recover our tax-exempt status after auto-revocation?

Yes, generally, through IRS reinstatement procedures. Small organizations that were eligible for the 990-N or 990-EZ can often use a streamlined retroactive reinstatement process described in Revenue Procedure 2014-11, filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ along with the required fee and an explanation. There's no guarantee of approval; confirm current requirements directly with the IRS.

Is the 990-N the same as Form 990-EZ?

No. The 990-N is an eight-question online form for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less. The 990-EZ is a longer form with financial schedules, required once gross receipts reach $200,000 or more, or total assets reach $500,000 or more, whichever threshold your organization crosses first.

When is the 990-N due each year?

By the 15th day of the 5th month after your organization's tax year ends. For a calendar-year group, that's May 15. For a fiscal year ending June 30, it's November 15. There's no extension available specifically for the 990-N.

How do I check if our booster club already lost its tax-exempt status?

Search your organization's exact legal name or EIN on the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool at IRS.gov. It shows current exemption status, filing history, and whether the organization appears on the auto-revocation list. Do this early if you're taking over as treasurer and aren't sure of the group's filing history.

Does our state also require a separate filing besides the IRS 990-N?

Possibly. Many states require charitable organizations that solicit donations or raffle proceeds to register separately with a state charity office or attorney general, on top of federal IRS filings. Requirements and thresholds vary widely and change over time, so confirm directly with your state charity registration office.

Sources

1. IRS, "Automatic Revocation of Exemption": Three consecutive years of not filing required 990-series returns triggers automatic revocation of tax-exempt status, per the Pension Protection Act of 2006
2. IRS, "Annual Filing and Forms": Thresholds distinguishing which 990-series form (990-N, 990-EZ, 990, 990-PF) an organization must file
3. IRS, "Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations, Form 990-N (e-Postcard)": Definition of the 990-N e-Postcard, the gross receipts averaging test for eligibility, and filing mechanics
4. IRS, "Annual Exempt Organization Return: Who Must File": Churches and certain church-affiliated organizations are generally not required to file an annual 990-series return
5. IRS, Revenue Procedure 2014-11: Streamlined retroactive reinstatement process for small organizations that lost exemption through automatic revocation
6. IRS, "Tax Exempt Organization Search": Public tool to check an organization's current exemption status, filing history, and auto-revocation status