IRS 990-N search: how to look up any nonprofit's filing

Last updated 2026-07-24

What is the IRS 990-N search and where do I find it?

The IRS 990-N search is really the "Tax Exempt Organization Search" (TEOS), a free tool the IRS hosts at apps.irs.gov/app/eos ^[1]. It is not a separate 990-N-only lookup; it is one search box that covers 990-N e-Postcard filers along with organizations that file the full Form 990 or 990-EZ, plus a list of orgs that have lost their exempt status. You do not need an account. You do not need the organization's permission. Type in a name, an EIN, or a state and city, and the tool returns whatever the IRS has on file. For a small booster club or PTO that files the 990-N, this is usually the only "proof of filing" that exists anywhere, because the 990-N itself is just eight data fields submitted online; there's no PDF copy mailed back to you. If you're the treasurer trying to confirm your own club filed on time, or a parent checking whether the group collecting dues is actually a real 501(c)(3), TEOS is the tool. It's also the same database journalists, watchdog groups, and grant-making foundations use before they cut a check.

How do I actually search for a 990-N filing?

Go to the TEOS page, pick "Form 990-N (e-Postcard)" from the filter list, and search by the organization's legal name or its EIN ^[1]. EIN search is faster and avoids false matches, since a lot of booster clubs share near-identical names ("Central High Band Boosters" exists in a dozen states). If you only have a name, add the state to narrow results. The tool returns the organization's name, EIN, most recent tax year it reported, and whether the e-Postcard was accepted. It won't show you dollar amounts, because the 990-N doesn't ask for financial detail beyond confirming gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less ^[2]. A few practical notes from actually using this thing: search results can lag. The IRS states the exempt organization data is updated monthly ^[1], so if your club filed its 990-N last week, don't panic if it's not showing yet. Give it 4 to 6 weeks before you assume something went wrong.

What is Form 990 (and what is the 990-N version of it)?

990-N (e-Postcard)	Small orgs	Normally $50,000 or less [2]
990-EZ	Mid-size orgs	Generally under $200,000 receipts and under $500,000 in total assets [4]
990 (full)	Larger orgs	Generally $200,000 or more in receipts or $500,000+ in assets [4]
990-PF	Private foundations	All private foundations, regardless of size [3]	Most booster clubs, PTOs, and small youth sports leagues land in the 990-N bucket. The e-Postcard asks for eight things: legal name, EIN, tax year, mailing address, website (if any), name and address of a principal officer, and confirmation that gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less [2]. That's it. No income statement, no balance sheet, filed entirely online through the IRS's system. If your group's finances have grown past that $50,000 threshold, you've likely graduated to 990-EZ or the full form 990, which ask for a lot more detail about revenue sources, program expenses, and board members.

Form 990 is the annual information return that most tax-exempt organizations file with the IRS to report income, expenses, activities, and governance ^[3]. It is not an income tax return in the traditional sense, since exempt organizations generally don't owe federal income tax on program activity, but the IRS still wants an annual accounting of what the organization took in, spent, and who runs it. There are several versions, scaled to organization size: | Form | Who files it | Gross receipts threshold |

What is the 990 tax form used for, exactly?

The 990 tax form exists so the IRS, state charity regulators, donors, and the public can see how a tax-exempt organization is funded and how it spends money ^[3]. Think of it as the nonprofit version of a public financial statement, except it also asks governance questions: does the board review executive compensation, does the org have a conflict-of-interest policy, who are the officers. Donors and grant committees pull 990s (via TEOS or sites that mirror IRS data) to check overhead ratios and whether an organization is actually active. State charity regulators often require a copy of the federal 990 as part of state charitable registration, especially in states that mandate raffle or gaming licenses tied to nonprofit status; confirm with your state charity office whether they cross-check IRS filings. For a volunteer treasurer, the practical answer is simpler: the 990 (in whichever size you file) is the thing that keeps your tax-exempt status alive. Skip it three years running and the IRS automatically revokes exemption, no warning letter required beyond what's already spelled out in the statute ^[5]. More on that below.

What does a treasurer do? (the short version)

A treasurer is the person responsible for tracking every dollar a club takes in and spends, and for making sure required filings, like the 990-N, actually get submitted on time. That's the one-sentence version. The fuller answer: what a treasurer does depends on the size of the group, but the core duties repeat across booster clubs, PTOs, and youth sports leagues everywhere. What treasurers do, concretely: maintain a checking account or two, record every deposit and expense, reconcile the bank statement monthly, prepare a budget or at least a running summary for the board, and file whatever the IRS requires each year (990-N, 990-EZ, or full 990 depending on receipts). Many state also require an annual or biennial charitable registration renewal separate from the IRS filing; confirm with your state charity office what's due and when. A good treasurer also builds a paper trail. Two signers on every check over some threshold you set. Receipts for cash collected at concession stands or car washes. A simple ledger, even a spreadsheet, that a new treasurer could pick up and understand in an afternoon. That last part matters more than people expect, because booster and PTO treasurer turnover is high, often annual, and a lot of groups lose their exemption simply because the outgoing treasurer never told the incoming one that a filing was due.

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

A club treasurer, whether for a booster group, PTO, or rec league, handles the same core job as any treasurer, just at a much smaller scale and usually as an unpaid volunteer with no accounting background. What does a treasurer of a club do that a corporate CFO doesn't? Mostly: everything, alone, with no staff. A corporate treasurer has an accounting department, audit committee, and general counsel behind them. A booster club treasurer has a shoebox of receipts, a shared Google Sheet, and maybe a co-treasurer who helps at concession stands. The stakes are lower in absolute dollars but arguably higher relative to the person's time and knowledge, since a missed 990-N filing three years running triggers automatic revocation under Internal Revenue Code section 6033(j) regardless of how small the organization is ^[5]. What does a treasurer do in a club setting, day to day? Deposit fundraiser cash promptly (don't let it sit in someone's car). Track dues and fees per family if the group collects them. Cut checks for uniforms, equipment, tournament fees. Report a running balance at board or parent meetings. File the annual return. Keep records for at least the IRS's recommended retention period, generally three years from the filing date for most records, longer for employment tax records ^[6].

How do I check if my organization is auto-revoked?

Use the same TEOS tool, but select "Auto-Revocation of Exemption" from the filter list instead of the 990-N filter ^[1]. If your club's EIN shows up on that list, the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status automatically for failing to file the required return (990, 990-EZ, or 990-N) for three consecutive years ^[5]. The rule comes straight from the Pension Protection Act of 2006, which added section 6033(j) to the tax code. The IRS's own guidance states plainly: "the law requires the IRS to revoke the tax-exempt status of any organization that fails to file legally required Form 990-series returns or notices for three consecutive years" ^[5]. There's no appeal for missing the deadline itself. Once revoked, the revocation date is retroactive to the original filing due date of the third missed year. If you're on the list, the fix is filing Form 1023 or 1023-EZ for reinstatement, and depending on how quickly you apply, you may qualify for retroactive reinstatement back to the revocation date under Revenue Procedure 2014-11 ^[7]. That's a separate, more involved process than routine annual filing, and it does involve a user fee (check the current fee on the IRS's Form 1023 instructions page, since fees change) .

What information does the 990-N search NOT show me?

TEOS tells you whether a 990-N was filed and accepted, but the e-Postcard itself carries almost no financial detail, so don't expect to find revenue or expense figures for a 990-N filer ^[2]. If you need dollar amounts, you need an organization that files the 990-EZ or full 990, both of which are also searchable and downloadable through TEOS. TEOS also won't tell you about state-level charity registration status. A club can be fine with the IRS and still be delinquent on a state charitable solicitation registration, which is a separate requirement in most states; confirm with your state charity office or attorney general's charities division for that status. Some states publish their own searchable charity registries alongside or instead of relying on federal 990 data. One more gap: TEOS reflects IRS records, and the IRS says data is refreshed monthly ^[1]. If a group just regained its exemption after auto-revocation, or just filed a late 990-N to catch up, there can be a real lag before the search results update. Don't assume the worst from a stale search result alone; if timing seems off, call the IRS Exempt Organizations customer account line to confirm current status.

What do treasurers do when they inherit a mess?

Incoming treasurers who discover missed filings should start with the search, not the fix. Pull up TEOS, check the organization's EIN, and see exactly what's been filed and what hasn't ^[1]. That single search tells you whether you're dealing with a routine catch-up filing or a full reinstatement after auto-revocation. From there: gather whatever bank records exist for the missed years, even rough ones, since you'll need approximate revenue figures to confirm the 990-N gross receipts threshold still applies. If receipts stayed under $50,000 each year, you can typically catch up by filing the outstanding 990-N e-Postcards directly (there's no penalty for late 990-N filing itself, though missing three years in a row still triggers revocation regardless of when you eventually file) ^{[2] [5]}. If the organization already shows up on the auto-revocation list, the path is different: apply for reinstatement, generally through Form 1023 or 1023-EZ, and consider whether you qualify for retroactive reinstatement under Rev. Proc. 2014-11 by applying within specific windows after revocation ^[7]. This is the point where a lot of volunteer treasurers feel out of their depth, and it's reasonable to loop in a CPA or attorney who handles nonprofit reinstatements, since a $99 kit or a blog post (including this one) isn't a substitute for professional advice on a genuinely tangled filing history.

How does the 990-N search relate to raffle and fundraising rules?

Many states require proof of federal tax-exempt status before issuing a charitable gaming or raffle license, and TEOS is often the fastest way to produce that proof, since it shows your EIN's current exempt status directly from IRS records ^[1]. If your club's exemption lapsed through auto-revocation, most state gaming or charity offices will not issue or renew a raffle license until reinstatement is complete; confirm the specific requirement with your state's charity regulator or gaming control office. This is also why treasurers should check TEOS well before raffle season, not the week before. Discovering an auto-revocation two weeks before your school's biggest fundraiser is a bad time to start a reinstatement application that can take the IRS [several weeks to a few months] to process, depending on current processing volume. If you're building out a raffle license application packet, it helps to keep the 990-N confirmation, your EIN letter, and your state registration documents together in one file rather than hunting for them separately every year.

Where does BoosterLedger's kit fit into this?

None of this requires paying anyone. TEOS is free, the 990-N filing itself is free, and reinstatement guidance is published free on irs.gov. What a lot of new treasurers actually struggle with isn't finding the tools, it's knowing which of the eight or nine annual tasks apply to their specific state and their specific size of organization, and keeping that straight across an annual volunteer turnover cycle. That's the gap the $99 one-time State-Personalized Treasurer Kit is built for: a state-specific checklist and document set covering the IRS filing your group needs (990-N vs 990-EZ), your state's charitable registration and raffle licensing steps, and the handoff documents so next year's treasurer isn't starting from zero. It's a reference package, not a filing service, and it doesn't replace an accountant if your organization's situation is genuinely complicated.

What records should a treasurer keep to make future searches painless?

Keep a simple annual folder (digital or paper) with the confirmation screen or email from each 990-N submission, your EIN assignment letter (Form SS-4 confirmation), your state's charitable registration renewal confirmation, and your board-approved budget or year-end financial summary. The IRS generally recommends keeping records supporting an information return for at least three years from the filing date, and longer, generally at least four years, for employment tax records if you have any paid staff or contractors ^[6]. A screenshot of your organization's TEOS search result, dated, is a cheap and useful add to that folder. It costs nothing and it proves, in writing, exactly what the IRS's public record showed at handoff time, which protects the outgoing treasurer and orients the incoming one. If your group has moved between filing sizes (say, a fundraiser year pushed you briefly into 990-EZ territory), keep a note of which form applied to which year. Future you, or future treasurer, will want that when the IRS's TEOS filter list shows a mix of return types across years.

Frequently asked questions

What is Form 990?

Form 990 is the annual information return the IRS requires from most tax-exempt organizations, reporting revenue, expenses, and governance details. Smaller organizations file simplified versions: the 990-N e-Postcard for groups with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less, and the 990-EZ for mid-size groups, per IRS filing thresholds ^[2][4].

What is the 990-N e-Postcard?

The 990-N is an eight-question online form small tax-exempt organizations file annually instead of a full 990. It asks for the organization's name, EIN, tax year, address, and confirmation that gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less. It's filed entirely through the IRS's electronic system, with no paper option ^[2].

How do I search for a nonprofit's 990-N filing?

Go to the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search (TEOS) at apps.irs.gov/app/eos, select the 990-N filter, and search by organization name or EIN. Results show filing status and tax years reported, updated monthly by the IRS ^[1].

What does a treasurer do?

A treasurer tracks all money a club or nonprofit takes in and spends, reconciles bank accounts, reports finances to the board, and files required tax returns like the 990-N. For volunteer groups, this usually means one person handling deposits, expense checks, budgeting, and annual IRS and state filings largely alone.

What does a club treasurer do that's different from other treasurer roles?

A club treasurer, for a booster club, PTO, or youth sports league, does the same core job as any treasurer but usually as an unpaid volunteer with no staff support. Duties include depositing fundraiser cash, tracking dues, cutting checks, reporting balances at meetings, and filing the group's annual IRS return.

What is a 990 tax form used for?

The 990 tax form lets the IRS, state regulators, donors, and the public see how a tax-exempt organization is funded and how it spends money. It also asks governance questions, like whether the organization has a conflict-of-interest policy, and filing it annually is required to maintain tax-exempt status ^[3].

How do I know if my organization got auto-revoked?

Search the organization's EIN in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search under the 'Auto-Revocation of Exemption' filter. Automatic revocation happens after failing to file a required 990-series return for three consecutive years, per Internal Revenue Code section 6033(j) ^[5].

Is there a fee to file the 990-N?

No. The 990-N e-Postcard is free to file through the IRS's online system. There's no late fee for filing it late in a single year either, though missing it three years running triggers automatic revocation of tax-exempt status ^[2][5].

How often is the IRS 990-N search data updated?

The IRS states that exempt organization data in the Tax Exempt Organization Search is refreshed monthly. If you filed a 990-N recently and don't see it yet, wait 4 to 6 weeks before assuming there's a problem, then contact the IRS directly to confirm ^[1].

Can I look up any nonprofit's 990, or just my own?

Anyone can search any tax-exempt organization's 990-N, 990-EZ, or 990 filing status through the free public IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. No account or permission from the organization is needed; it's a public records tool ^[1].

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

990-N is for organizations with gross receipts normally $50,000 or less, and asks only basic identifying information. 990-EZ generally covers organizations under $200,000 in receipts and under $500,000 in assets. Full Form 990 applies to larger organizations above those thresholds, and requires much more financial and governance detail ^[2][4].

My group lost its tax-exempt status. Does that affect our raffle license?

Likely yes. Many states require proof of current federal tax-exempt status to issue or renew a charitable raffle or gaming license, and an auto-revoked organization usually can't provide that proof until reinstated. Confirm the specific requirement with your state's charity registration office or gaming control division.

What records prove I filed the 990-N if there's no PDF copy?

The 990-N has no downloadable confirmation PDF from the filing itself, so keep the on-screen confirmation or confirmation email from the filing session, plus a dated screenshot of the organization's status in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search as backup proof.

Sources

1. IRS, Tax Exempt Organization Search: TEOS is the free tool for searching 990-N filings, EO status, and auto-revocation list; data updated monthly
2. IRS, Annual Electronic Filing Requirement for Small Exempt Organizations (Form 990-N): 990-N filing requirements, $50,000 gross receipts threshold, eight required data items
3. IRS, Form 990 Series Overview: Form 990 series purpose and which organizations file which version
4. IRS, Instructions for Form 990-EZ: 990-EZ eligibility thresholds for gross receipts and total assets
5. IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption: Three consecutive years of non-filing triggers automatic revocation under IRC 6033(j)
6. IRS, Revenue Procedure 2014-11: Retroactive reinstatement process and streamlined procedures after auto-revocation
7. IRS, Instructions for Form 1023: Form 1023 is used for exemption reinstatement and carries a user fee