Nonprofit organizations with $50,000 or more in gross receipts are required to file a Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax, or Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax.  Returns are due on the 15th day of the 5th month after the end of your organization’s fiscal year.  More details can be found in the IRS’s overview of exempt annual filing requirements. 

The new tax laws continue 2020 CARES Act changes that increase the above-the-line individual tax deduction to $300. In addition, the new rules double the deduction for married couples filing jointly to $600; the 2020 CARES Act did not have a provision that permitted couples to claim an additional amount over individual filers. Donations must be made in cash (rather than stocks or other assets like cars and clothing; credit cards and checks are OK) and go directly to a charity (donor-advised funds and private non-operating foundations do not count).

At the beginning of each fiscal year, the IRS releases guidance on its compliance priorities for tax-exempt and government entities (TE/GE) and explains how those priorities align with the agency’s strategic goals.  This year, the IRS has streamlined its usual annual long letter approach into a short two-page letter and promised to provide quarterly updates on its compliance priorities; an effort to more accurately reflect the fluid nature of IRS operations and shifting compliance priorities throughout the year.