Form 990 for Churches

What’s the deal with churches and Form 990?

We’re gonna run you through the basics. Try to keep up, there’s a quiz afterward!

Churches and Associations of Churches

Small tax-exempt organizations that have less than or equal to $50,000 gross receipts are required to file a Form 990-N (e-Postcard) every year. You know this already.

But there are exceptions to this rule. For example, churches, their integrated auxiliaries, and conventions or associations of churches aren’t required to file.

Affiliation with the Churches

In order for an exemption to remain, your church has to have the majority control or be the majority financial supporter of its integrated auxiliaries’ governance.

If your church financially invests only 25% into an auxiliary group, that program or group will still have to annually file if they want a tax-exempt status.

It doesn’t matter that program or group is in direct affiliation with your church.

Integrated Auxiliaries

In the IRS Publication 1828, Churches and Religious Organizations (PDF link), you can find information about an integrated auxiliary of a church.

What you’ll want to find is how affiliation can be recognized by the IRS through facts and circumstances other than a church's majority control over the auxiliary's governing body.

Unrelated Business Income

For most organizations, an activity is an unrelated business, and subject to unrelated business income tax, if it meets three requirements: It is a trade or business, it is regularly carried on, and it is not substantially related to furthering the exempt purpose of the organization.

Filing Requirements & Group Returns

If it is required to file an annual return, the organization must file its own separate return but may also file a group return on behalf of some or all of its subordinates.

What is a group exemption? It allows the central or parent organization to confirm that its subordinates are eligible for exemption and to include each subordinate under its cover for tax-exempt purposes.

Ready for the quiz? Well, we’ll let you off easy this time.

If you have any questions, call our e-filing experts at 704.839.2321.

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Multiple Organizations / One Account

Filing taxes for yourself, or for your own organization, can be a daunting task. It can be even more tedious if you have more than one organization to file for, or if you’re a paid preparer and have clients that you are holding you responsible for successfully filing for them. Keeping up with the different sets of tax information is a job itself, but Express990 is here to help you get through the tax season - no matter how many exempt organizations you have to e-file for.

With Express990, you won’t have to create a separate account for each organization or nonprofit you file. Our service allows you to enter multiple organizations under the same account; therefore, you don’t have to fumble with numerous logins or passwords. You can add another organization to your account with the following steps:

Step 1: Log into your Express990 account.

Step 2: Click the “Add Organization” link on your Dashboard screen.

Step 3: Enter your organization’s details.

Step 4: Select the tax form you need to e-file.

You can also switch between your exempt organizations from your Dashboard screen by clicking the drop-down menu near the top left.

There isn’t a more simple way to keep all your organizations in one convenient place. And remember, with the Express990 cloud computing feature, any information regarding your organization details stays within our secured servers; you won’t have to re-enter the same information each year.

Stay organized with all your exempt organizations or nonprofits with Express990. We offer e-filing services for the Form 990-N (e-Postcard), Form 990-EZ, Form 990 (Long), and Extension Form 8868. You can even e-file your e-Postcard “on-the-go” by downloading our FREE Express990 App for iOS and Android tablets, or using our mobile site.


For any assistance with e-filing our available 990 forms, you can contact our live professionals by phone (704-839-2321, Monday through Friday from 9am to 6pm, Eastern Standard Time), by email (support@expresstaxexempt.com), or by live chat (www.expresstaxexempt.com).

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SPAN Enterprises Ranks #1150 in 2015 Inc. 5000

It’s A Celebration!!!
Express990’s parent company, SPAN Enterprises, ranks #1150 in 2015 Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies. Along with its Inc. 5000 ranking, SPAN also ranks #11 in the Charlotte Metro Area and #1 in South Carolina for software in the entire state.

From our Rock Hill headquarters, SPAN has developed, launched, and supported over 20 cloud-based and mobile applications including the successful line of e-filing products - Express990, ExpressExtension, ExpressTaxFilings, ExpressTruckTax, and ExpressIFTA.


By working closely with the IRS, our service fulfills our passion for helping nonprofits by providing a safe, secure, and accurate process that saves you time and money. Because of the continued use and loyalty of our services by you, and our clients, we are the market leader for 990 forms with nearly 5,000 non-profit organizations filing their returns with Express990. Our purpose with Express990 is to make tax filings simple and easy so that you can quickly get back to serving your community with through your nonprofit or exempt organization.

With your feedback and support, Express990 is always updated and improved with our dedicated team working effortlessly to stay up-to-date with the ever-changing industry. Your satisfaction is a priority here at Express990, which is why we choose to have live professionals on stand-by whenever you need extra help. Our USA-based support team understands the importance of being able to communicate well with you, and to provide the most correct information without all the difficult tax-based jargon.

Providing an easy accessible service is what we do, but the close-knit, individual attention that we give to each of you is what makes us who we are. As we continue to operate in Rock Hill, South Carolina, we believe that big ideas can thrive into limitless possibilities, even within small towns. All of our successes are based from the impact made in your life each and every time you use our services.

We, at Express990, would like to thank you all for your support of our services. Keep the celebration of our parent company’s deserved recognition with your continued use of Express990 for all your tax-exempt, e-filing needs. For assistance with e-filing any of our available 990 forms, contact our live support by phone Monday through Friday from 9am to 6pm, Eastern Standard Time, at (704) 839-2321, by email at support@expresstaxexempt.com, or by live chat at the Express990 website.

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E-File with the Express990 App

We live in a world where we’re always on the go. We have to be here or we got to be there. There always seems to be a deadline to meet, people to see, and places to go. Who has the time to slow up productivity to fill out a form… let alone a tax form?

Now, you won’t have to slow up your lifestyle just to file your tax-exempt return. With the Express990 App, e-filing your e-Postcard is quick, easy, and can be done in just five simple steps. And you can e-file for the current 2014 tax year for FREE.

Five Steps to E-filing Success:

• Enter your Organization Details
• Choose a Tax Year
• Confirm Tax Exempt Eligibility
• Run Audit Check
• Transmit to the IRS for FREE

Complete a Form 990-N (e-Postcard) in less than 10 minutes! And, by using the Express990 App, all your information will be available to you at anytime from anywhere with our cloud computing capability. Plus our built-in error check reviews your return for errors before you transmit to the IRS.

Who Needs to File Form 990-N?
Small tax exempt organizations and charities that typically gross $50,000 or less per year must file the required 990-N (e-Postcard) to IRS annually; there are no schedules to complete and Express990 supports the Form 990-N (e-Postcard) for the current tax year and for the two prior tax years.

Remember, the deadline to e-file a Form 990-N (e-Postcard) is the 15th day of 5th month after the end of your organization’s tax year.

Need Some Assistance?
Expert help is available through step-by-step instructions and with live professionals at our office in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Contact us at (704) 839-2321, Monday through Friday from 9am to 6pm Eastern Standard Time; or, email us anytime, 24/7 at support@expresstaxexempt.com.

With everything that we already have going on, tax season can become stressful. Let Express990 ease the headache of filing and keep you on top of your schedule. Download for FREE the Express990 App for the iOS and Android mobile and tablet devices and e-file your Form 990-N (e-Postcard) FREE for the current tax year.

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