All About Form 990-EZ Filing

The IRS Form 990-EZ is meant for mid-size nonprofits who have between $50,000 and $250,000 in gross receipts. In this guide, we will cover helpful tips for how to fill out the Form 990-EZ, as it is a long form, where the questions are not always clear!

The 990 Form is an annual filing requirement for US-based tax-exempt nonprofits. It’s a form that reports to the IRS on the nonprofit’s activities from the past year. It is due once a year, on the fifteenth day of the fifth month after the nonprofit’s tax year-end. 

Keep reading for a step-by-step overview of how to file Form 990-EZ with Crowded – which will be your org’s easiest filing yet! The first step in the filing process is determining if you are eligible to file…

Filing Form 990-EZ with Crowded

1. Ensure Your Nonprofit has Tax-exempt Status 

Our system will auto-check your nonprofit’s tax-exempt status using publicly available data or data you have shared with us. If it cannot find your org’s tax-exempt status, take a look at the IRS database to see if your nonprofit has had its status revoked. This could have happened if your organization did not file a 990 Form for three consecutive years. If you do determine that your nonprofit has lost its tax-exempt status, take a look at our informative blog to help get your organization’s reinstatement application going!

If your organization’s tax-exempt status is intact, you’re ready to file the annual Form 990!

2. Choose Filing Year

Through Crowded’s platform, you can file the Form 990 from any year in the past 3 years. If your nonprofit has any missing filings from the past 3 years, ensure to file ASAP to maintain your org’s tax-exempt status! 

If you’re unsure which year to file for, keep reading. 

Your org should file for the year in which your org’s tax period started. . 

For example:

Use the 2024 Form 990 to report on the organization’s fiscal year that began in 2024 and ended 12 months later. 

An org whose fiscal year is June 1- May 31 can file the 2024 Form 990 starting on May 31st, 2025 until November 15th, 2025 (the 990 Form is due 5 months and 15 days after the fiscal year end).

3. Is Form 990-EZ right for my organization?

The answer is yes if one or more of the following statements are true for your org:

• Annual gross receipts less than $200,000
• Total assets at year-end are less than $500,000. 

If you are a private foundation, even if you fit the above criteria, you are required to file the Form 990-PF.

If your organization falls into one of the below categories, your org may be exempt from filing the Form 990! 

• A church, an interchurch organization of local units of a church, a convention or association of churches
• An integrated auxiliary of a church
• A church-affiliated organization that is exclusively engaged in managing funds or maintaining retirement programs
• A school below college level affiliated with a church or operated by a religious order
• Church-affiliated mission societies if more than half of their activities are conducted in, or are directed at persons in, foreign countries
• An exclusively religious activity of any religious order
• A state institution, the income of which is excluded from gross income under section 115,
• A corporation described in Section 501(c)(1) that is organized under an Act of Congress, an instrumentality of the United States and is exempt from federal income taxes
• A stock bonus, pension or profit-sharing trust that qualifies under Section 401(required to file Form 5500, Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan)
• A religious or apostolic organization described in Section 501(d) (required to file Form 1065, U.S. Return of Partnership Income)
• A governmental unit or an affiliate of a governmental unit that meets the requirements of Revenue Procedure 95-48 PDF, 1995-2 C.B. 418
• A private foundation described in Section 501(c)(3) and exempt under Section 501(a) (required to file Form 990-PF, Return of Private Foundation)
• A political organization that is a state or local committee of a political party, a political committee of a state or local candidate, a caucus or association of state or local officials, or required to report under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 as a political committee
• An exempt organization (other than a private foundation) that normally has annual gross receipts of $50,000 or less and therefore is eligible to file an annual electronic notice Form 990-N instead of an annual information return)*
• A foreign organization, or an organization located in a U.S. possession, that normally has annual gross receipts from sources within the United States of $50,000 or less and therefore is eligible to file an annual electronic notice (Form 990-N instead of an annual information return)

Filing the Form 990-EZ

Now let’s begin, step-by step, going through each field of the Form 990-EZ.

Question A: Understanding Tax Years for Form 990-EZ

Calendar Year vs. Fiscal Year

A calendar year is the 12-month period from January 1 and ends on December 31. This is the most common way for organizations to track their financial activity. For example, if your organization uses a calendar year, your 2024 Form 990-EZ would cover all financial activity from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024.

A fiscal year is any 12-month period that ends on the last day of any month except December. Organizations choose fiscal years that better align with their operational cycles. For example, a school might use July 1 – June 30 to match the academic year.

Short Period Returns

A “short period” is any tax period that is less than 12 months. Organizations typically file short-period returns in these situations:

When first starting operations

Example: A nonprofit that incorporates in March would file their first return covering March through December (10 months)

When changing their tax year

Example: Switching from a calendar year to a fiscal year ending June 30 would require a short-period return covering January 1 through June 30

When ceasing operations

Example: If an organization dissolves in August, they would file a final short period return covering January through August

Important: Organizations must mark the “Initial return,” “Final return,” or “Change in accounting period” box on Form 990-EZ when filing a short-period return.

Question B:

Name Change

Submit proof of your organization’s legal name change. Depending on your organization’s type, the requirements are different. See the table here:

Amended Returns

Filling out Schedule O is required for all amended returns. Here’s how to ensure the amendment is done successfully:

• Explain each change being made, including the part and line number and why.
• Attach both the original and corrected information when submitting. 

Question C: Legal Organization Name 

Use the organization name written as recorded in the IRS database (access it here) or on your EIN letter, CP 575, or Form 990 from previous years. If you have changed your organization’s legal name, you must inform the IRS of the new name and provide certain supporting documentation, and receive confirmation before filing your 990-N. If you haven’t received an affirmation letter reflecting your name change by the time your return is due, you will have to file a paper return (Form 990 or 990-EZ) for the year in which you changed your name and report the change of name on the paper return.

Doing-Business-As (DBA) Name 

List any other names your organization is known by or that refer to the org as a whole (and not to its programs and activities). If this is not applicable, leave this section blank

Question D: EIN

​​Every tax-exempt organization has an EIN (a form of Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN). It is a unique 9-digit identifying number issued to you organization by the IRS. You may be able to  find your org’s EIN in some of the following places:

• The IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool – access it here
• The automated notice issued by the IRS when you applied for your EIN (CP 575 EIN Confirmation Letter). 
• Contact your bank or agency for your EIN, if it was used to open a bank account or apply for any type of license.
• Find your org’s previously filed informational tax form (Form 990). 
• Ask the IRS to search for your EIN by calling the Business & Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933. 
• If you are a chapter within a larger national organization, check with your national office to see if they have an existing EIN for your chapter.

Please note:

• The EIN is not your tax-exempt status number. 
• DO NOT use the EIN of a parent or other organization.

Chapter of an Organization?

A chapter of an organization with a group exemption filing a Form 990-EZ should use its own EIN, not the central organization’s or group return.

Multiple EINs?

If your organization has more than one EIN, and you’re unsure which to use, get in touch with this branch of the IRS by mail: 

Department of the Treasury 

Internal Revenue Service Center 

Ogden, UT 84201-0027 

Let them know which EINs your organization has, with the name and addresses assigned to each, and the address of the main office of your organization. The IRS will let your organization know which EIN to use for the 990 Form.

Question F: Group Exemption Number

A group exemption is a ruling from the IRS that allows a central organization to extend its tax-exempt status to subordinate chapters under its control.

If your organization is part of a group-exempt organization, it would have a group exemption number assigned by the IRS. 

 If your organization does not have this number, we suggest you contact the central organization for this information 

Question G: Accounting Methods 

Cash Method

Nonprofits that record the income when the money is received and the expenses when paid. For example:

• If someone writes your nonprofit a check in December 2024 but you don’t deposit it until January 2025, you still count it as 2024 income
• If you buy office supplies in December 2024 but don’t pay the bill until January 2025, you count it as a 2025 expense

Accrual Method

Nonprofits that record income and expenses when earned or incurred, regardless of when money changes hands. For example:

• If someone pledges a donation in December 2024 but pays in January 2025, it is recorded as 2024 income
• If you receive an office supply bill in December 2024 but pay it in January 2025, it is recorded as a 2024 expense

Other Method

The “Other” category typically refers to a modified version of either cash or accrual accounting. Organizations might use this if they:

• Combine elements of both cash and accrual methods
• Use specialized accounting methods required by state law
• Have unique circumstances that require a different approach

If you select “Other,” you’ll need to attach a statement explaining your accounting method to your Form 990-EZ.

Question H: Schedule B

To check or to not check this box?

If your organization is a 501c(3) do not check this box if:

• Your organization didn’t meet the 331/3% support test of the regulations and received during the tax year contributions of $5,000 or more (in money, property, securities) from any one contributor. 

If an organization that uses the accrual method of accounting reports a pledge of noncash property on Part VIII, line 1, it must include the value of that contribution in calculating whether the contributor meets the General Rule even if the organization didn’t receive the property during the tax year. or

• Organization meets the 331/3% support test of the regulations under sections 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi), that checks the box on Schedule A, Part II, line 13, 16a, or 16b, and that received from any one contributor, during the tax year, contributions of the greater of $5,000 (in money or property) or 2% of the amount on Form 990-EZ, Part I, line 1.

If your organization is a 501(c)(7), (8), or (10) do not check this box if your organization received, during the tax year:

• contributions of any amount for use exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, literary, educational purposes, or the prevention of cruelty to children or animals; 
• contributions of $5,000 or more not exclusively for such purposes from any one contributor.

Other organizations should not check this box if, during the tax year, they received contributions of $5,000 or more from any one contributor. 

To calculate if your organization received a contribution of $5,000 or more from a single contributor during the year, add all direct and indirect gifts, grants, or contributions of $1,000 or more in cash or property that a contributor made to the organization during the year to see if it equals $5,000.

 Do not include smaller gifts, grants, or contributions in your calculation.

Question I: Website

If you don’t have a dedicated website for your nonprofit, leave this field blank.

Question L: Gross Receipts

Typically organizations who have been around for more than 3 years with gross receipts greater than $50,000 and less than $200,000 and total assets of less than $500,000 at the end of the tax year should be filing Form 990-EZ.