Stop paying for Form 990-N

Form 990-N is the annual notice the smallest tax-exempt organizations file instead of a full return. It asks for the EIN, the tax year, the legal name and mailing address, any other names, the principal officer, the website if there is one, confirmation that gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less, and whether the organization has terminated. It doesn't ask for financial statements or schedules, and there is no PDF.

The IRS charges nothing when you file it through their own e-Postcard system.

As of October 2026, other 990-N filing services list fees from about $10 to more than $50 a filing on their pricing pages.

The notice is due every year, so the fee is too. It falls on the smallest organizations, whose receipts are normally $50,000 or less.

Source: IRS: how to file Form 990-N

Form 990-N is free at Fast File Exempt, permanently. We don't ask for a payment card, there is no trial that turns into a charge, and you don't have to buy another return from us to use it.

We charge for Forms 990-PF, 990 and 990-EZ, and those fees are on our pricing page, so you can see them before you start. If your organization only ever needs the e-Postcard, you will never pay us anything.

There are two reasons.

First, it is less work for you. To file directly with the IRS, you sign in through their identity system with a Login.gov or ID.me account. With us, you enter the notice, an officer signs, and we send it to the IRS. Routine IRS maintenance can delay when it goes out or when the acknowledgement comes back. During the IRS's annual shutdown, new filings and changes wait until their system reopens. We email you the IRS acknowledgement when it arrives.

Second, we'd like you to stay. A charity filing the e-Postcard this year may need a Form 990-EZ in a few years and a Form 990 after that, and we charge for those returns. We want to earn that business by being useful while your organization is small, without charging you now for something the IRS gives away.

Many organizations never outgrow the e-Postcard, and they can keep filing it with us for free.

A free e-Postcard only helps if it is what your organization is required to file. It is for organizations whose gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less, and "normally" is measured over several years, not by one year's income. Private foundations file Form 990-PF whatever their size, and some other organizations must file a full return even with small receipts.

Source: IRS Form 990-N (e-Postcard) page

See also: Who can file Form 990-N

Check what you signed up for and whether it renews automatically. You can file it free with us, or directly with the IRS, which is also free.

Form 990-N is generally due on the 15th day of the 5th month after your tax year ends, and you can't get an extension for it. There is no monetary penalty for a late e-Postcard, but an organization that misses a required return or notice three years in a row automatically loses its tax-exempt status.

Source: IRS: annual return due date · IRS Form 990-N (e-Postcard) page

See also: Late filing penalties