What To Do When You Miss The IRS Form 990 Deadline

We’ve talked about everything 990 related for the last week or so and just like that, the May 15th deadline has come and gone. If you filed your organization’s IRS Form 990 by the Form 990 due date 2017, I am sure you have gladly removed anything 990 related from your ever-growing to-do list. Unfortunately, this isn’t the reality for every organization.

We have received several concerned calls from organizations that failed to file their 990 tax form by the IRS Form 990 deadline. They are all asking what they should do since they missed the Form 990 due date 2017 for tax returns.

We will be honest with you, there aren’t many options for you at this point, but we do have some advice on what to do when you miss the IRS Form 990 deadline.

*Take immediate action before your tax-exempt status is revoked*

What To Do When You Miss The IRS Form 990 Deadline

Long story short, the longer you wait to file the worse off your organization will be. The best advice that we can give you is to file IRS Form 990 ASAP!  Your penalties will only grow the longer you wait to file your 990 tax form...seriously. 

Even though you have [technically] missed the deadline, you can avoid the following IRS penalties if you take action soon. 

Late Filing Penalties

Organizations with gross receipts less than $1,020,000 for its tax year will have a penalty of $20/day for each day that the return is late. The maximum penalty for these organizations is $10,000 or 5 percent of the organization's gross receipts, whichever is less.

Organizations with gross receipts more than $1,020,000 for its tax year will have a penalty of $100/day for up to a maximum of $51,000.

Penalties Against Responsible Person(s):

Were you aware that individuals can be fined on behalf of an organization if the organization does not file during the fixed amount of time it has been given to fulfill its filing requirements? 

Yep! 😳 Organizations that fail to file a completed return or provide proper information will be given a short grace period before penalties apply. Your organization will receive a letter from the IRS stating how long this period will be.

If no action is taken after this time expires, the person responsible for complying will be charged a penalty of $10/day, with a per capita of $5,000 for anyone return.

Filing Form 990 After the Deadline

Filing Form 990 is essential for your organization and should be completed in detail. TaxBandits offers a simplified process and provides all of our clients with informative resources to help you file your 990 nonprofit tax return correctly by following Form 990 instructions. 

Information You Must Have To File

General information needed to e-file IRS Form 990 include:

• EIN (Employer Identification Number)
• Tax Period
• GEN (Group Exemption Number)
• You will also need information to fill out any required schedules for your organization

File The Correct 990

If you spend precious time filing the wrong Form 990 for your organization, I will cry for you.

These are the 990 tax forms included in the Form 990 Series; select the Form 990 that meets the financial status of your organization:

Form 990-N
Organizations with gross receipts that are less than or equal to $50,000 file this form electronically.

Form 990
Filed by organizations with gross receipts more than or equal to $200,000 or total assets equal to or greater than $500,000.

Form 990-EZ
The Short Form Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax filed by organizations with gross receipts less than $200,000 and $500,000 in total assets.

Form 990-PF
Filed by Exempt & Taxable Private Foundations as well as Non-Exempt Charitable Trusts which the IRS treat as private foundations. 

Automatic Revocation of Tax-Exempt Status

If your organization does not file a Form 990 for three consecutive years, it will be automatically revoked of its tax-exempt status. If the organization does not get reinstated as per the required procedure, it will be required to file with the IRS as a taxable organization.

Avoid Expensive Late Filing Penalties

IRS penalties are quickly accumulating and the longer you wait, the more expensive they will be. So if I were you, I would create a free account with our sister product, TaxBandits, and start filing today. Their filing process consists of a simplified, step-by-step interview-style process without the complex IRS terminology. At TaxBandits we take pride in providing tax-exempt organizations a safe, secure, and efficient e-filing process that will save you time and money.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact the experienced team of experts located in historic Rock Hill, SC. We are available by phone, live chat, and email in both English and Spanish for your convenience.

Avoid 990 Penalties Today!

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Protect your Organization from IRS Penalties!

The IRS extended deadline for exempt organizations is less than two weeks away - August 15 to be exact! If your nonprofit or charity e-filed an IRS Form 8868 back in May, then you don’t have much time to left to file and avoid penalties! Here are a few ways to prevent penalty fees with your IRS filing.

E-file Right Away
The most sure fire way to defend your exempt organization from late filing fees is to file on time with the IRS. You’ll need to complete and transmit these required forms based on specific criteria:

• IRS Form 990 - Organizations with gross receipts larger than $200,000 and total assets greater than $500,000
• IRS Form 990-EZ - Organizations with gross receipts between $50,000 and $200,000 and total assets less than $500,000

Double Check Information
Not only is it important to e-file on time, but you also need to make sure you’re reporting the correct information. An inaccurate form is the same as an incomplete form to the IRS, which can also lead to penalties. Make sure your basic organization information is current and accurate. And make an effort to fully complete parts I through XII of your tax form.

Also, know which schedules you need to file along with your form and complete them as accurately as possible. With ExpressTaxExempt.com, our internal audit check scans your form entirely for any errors so you can transmit with virtually no mistakes.

Extension to the Rescue
Unexpected situations happen all the time, but sometimes they can leave us in less favorable positions. If you know you can’t e-file on time, save yourself from IRS penalties by filing a tax extension. For the August 15 deadline, you have the option to e-file IRS Form 8868 Part 2 for an additional, non-automatic 3-month extension. Before you get your hopes up, you must follow these two eligibility rules:

1. 1. E-file an approved Form 8868 Part 1 back in May
2. 2. Provide a valid reason why you need additional time

The IRS can reject your explanation and deny your extension request, which is why this form is considered non-automatic. If you never e-filed Part 1 or got approved for it, then you are extremely late and should e-file your tax return as soon as possible.

IRS Penalties
So what are these hefty fees you’ll pay out of pocket? They can easily reach up to thousands of dollars if you’re careless. For each day your return is late, the IRS charges $20 leading up to a maximum charge of $50,000 or 5% of your total gross receipts - and that’s only if your gross receipts are less than $1 million. Larger organizations with over $1 million in gross receipts incur $100 charges per day.

With our interview-style process, ExpressTaxExempt.com guides you step by step with easy “Yes or No” questions and accessible text spaces for explanations and monetary amounts. You can complete as much or as less as you want in one sitting and continue where you left off with our cloud-based capabilities.

Contact our U.S. - based e-filing professionals for assistance with your e-filing experience. We’re available at 704.839.2321, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST. You can also reach us 24/7 with support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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