In Notice 2012-4, the IRS extended the filing deadline for Form 990 until March 30, 2012, for many tax-exempt organizations with a filing due date during the first two months of the new year. Organizations affected by the extension normally would have a filing deadline of Jan. 17 or Feb.
Tax-exempt organizations
IRS Clarifies Corporate Governance Questions for Tax-Exempt Organizations
The IRS believes that strong corporate governance leads to increased compliance for tax-exempt organizations. In 2008, the IRS released a redesigned Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, which requires more comprehensive and in-depth information regarding the organization’s governance, structure, policies and disclosure practices. These changes were formalized
Witnesses Tell Congressional Subcommittee Small Business Health Tax Credit Is Too Complicated
A tax credit enacted to encourage small businesses and tax-exempt organizations to provide health insurance coverage for employees is too complicated and is not meeting its goal, witnesses told a congressional panel Tuesday. The credit, passed as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L. 111-148, in 2010,
Tax-Exempt Hospitals and New Reporting Requirements
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PPACA) imposes reporting requirements under new IRC § 501(r) for charitable hospitals regarding the fulfillment of their charitable purpose as tax-exempt organizations. Specifically, if they have not already done so, these hospitals must complete a community health needs assessment and draft
Final Regs Implement Form 990 Changes
The IRS issued final regulations on Sept. 7, 2011, (TD 9549) implementing extensive revisions made in 2008 to Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax. The final regulations provide new threshold amounts for reporting compensation, require that compensation be reported on a calendar-year basis and modify the rules
Final Regs Implement Form 990 Changes
The IRS issued final regulations Wednesday (TD 9549) implementing extensive revisions made in 2008 to Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax. The final regulations provide new threshold amounts for reporting compensation, require that compensation be reported on a calendar-year basis and modify the rules requiring information reporting
Deduction for Cat Expenses Get Second Life
The Tax Court permitted a deduction for a taxpayer’s unreimbursed volunteer expenses incurred while caring for foster cats in her home, since they were incurred “incident to the rendition of services” to a qualified organization. The court also held the recordkeeping requirements for cash contributions under $250 should apply to
Common Reporting Errors on Form 990
The redesigned Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, has been the subject of much discussion since the IRS released it in 2007. As the exempt sector and practitioners have been adjusting to the new filing requirements, areas of confusion have been identified. Earlier this year, an IRS
IRS Issues First Guidance on Nonprofit CO-OP Health Insurers
The IRS issued its first guidance on the requirements for new qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers under IRC § 501(c)(29) and has requested comments on specific issues (Notice 2011-23). The notice clarifies that the IRS is not yet accepting applications for recognition of tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(29) and will
IRS Delays 990 Filing Deadline for Tax-Exempt Hospitals
The IRS on Wednesday announced that certain tax-exempt hospitals will be granted an automatic three-month extension to file their 2010 Forms 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Announcement 2011-20). The automatic extension applies to Forms 990 with a due date before Aug. 15, 2011; the IRS is also
Burnt Offering Rejected
The Tax Court denied a deduction for a house donated to a fire department for burning in a training exercise, saying its value was decreased by restrictions on its disposition to less than the benefit to the owner from its demolition. Theodore Rolfs and his wife, Julia Gallagher, purchased lakefront
Partnership Interests Aren’t Simple Gifts for Charities
Partnership interests (including interests in limited liability entities treated as a partnership) represent a potentially valuable gift to charities and private foundations, but with greater potential complications than gifts of stock. CPAs can alert principals to the following issues. —By Dennis Walsh, CPA, (nonprofitcpa365@gmail.com) a Jamestown, N.C.-based consultant to
IRS Allows More Small Exempt Organizations to File E-Postcard
The IRS has raised the gross receipts threshold for Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, from $25,000 to $50,000, allowing more tax-exempt organizations to avoid filing a full Form 990 or 990-EZ (Revenue Procedure 2011-15). Tax-exempt organizations are generally required to file either a Form 990 or
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IRS PROPOSES PTIN FEES The IRS proposed (REG-139343-08, issued July 23, 2010) to begin charging all authorized tax preparers a $50 user fee to obtain or renew annually a preparer tax identification number (PTIN). The fee would be on top of a fee charged by a third-party vendor that will
IRS Issues Final Regulations on Tax Shelter Excise Taxes
The IRS and Treasury Department issued final regulations under IRC § 4965 for excise taxes on tax-exempt entities that enter into prohibited tax shelter transactions and on their managers who approve such transactions or have reason to know that they are prohibited tax shelter transactions. Certain tax-exempt entities such as
Best Practices for Exempt Organizations and Form 990
Tax-exempt organizations required to file federal Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, which was expanded and revised beginning in 2008 tax years, now have some experience with the new requirements. They may have experienced much anxiety as they and their CPAs learned that the new Form 990
IRS Provides Relief for Small Tax-Exempt Nonfilers
The IRS announced that is providing relief for small tax-exempt organizations that are supposed to automatically lose their tax-exempt status because they failed to file Forms 990-EZ or 990-N for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. Under a special one-time program, the IRS is giving those organizations until Oct. 15
Closing Up Shop: How to Successfully Shut Down a Private Foundation
The precipitous drop in wealth in the United States during the 2008–2009 financial meltdown accelerated a trend of many private foundations’ considering closing their doors. Foundations gave 8.4% less in grants in 2009 from the year before, as the value of their assets fell by 17.2%. Between 2007 and 2008,
QSub Bank’s Tax-Exempt Bond Expense Deductible
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that a bank organized as a qualified S corporation subsidiary (QSub) could deduct in full its interest paid to acquire tax-exempt bonds, reversing the Tax Court. As a general rule, expenses related to producing tax-exempt income, including interest, are nondeductible. Therefore, IRC §
Automatic Revocation of Tax-Exempt Status to Start Monday
Monday, May 17, is the deadline for calendar-year tax-exempt organizations to file a Form 990 for 2009. It also marks the third filing deadline under the mandatory filing requirement instituted by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PL 109-280). Under the terms of that mandatory filing requirement, tax-exempt organizations that
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FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE
Flip out with the latest Tech Q&A
The September Technology Q&A column shows how to create dynamic to-do lists with Excel's checkboxes and also how to set up multifactor authentication texts that don't rely on phones. Flip through both items and view a video walkthrough in our digital format.