Page 164 - Washington Nonprofit Handbook 2018 Edition

The IRS has an online search tool at https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-
profits/tax-exempt-organization-search that allows users to search for certain
information about an exempt organization’s federal tax status. It allows users to
check whether an organization:

• Is eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions

• Has filed a Form 990-N (e-Postcard) annual electronic notice

• Has had its tax-exempt status automatically revoked because it has
not filed its required Form 990-series return for three consecutive
years

The list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable
contributions is updated monthly.

Contributors and grantors may rely on either the Tax Exempt Organization
Search or the Exempt Organizations Business Master File Extract (EO BMF). Both
are updated monthly, although not necessarily on the same day. To assist with
searches, the IRS publishes the date the information was posted. More information
is found in Search Tips and Revenue Procedure 2011-33, Updated Reliance Rules
for Practitioners.

If an organization has not received an IRS ruling confirming its tax-exempt
status, the deductibility of contributions to the organization depends on when the
donee was organized. If it was organized before October 10, 1969, the donor may
establish that the organization satisfies the requirements of section 170(c) of the
Code, a showing that can call for detailed analysis of the organization’s charter,
bylaws, and activities. See S. Rep. No. 552, 91st Cong., 2d Sess., reprinted in 1969-3
C.B. 459. If the donee was organized after October 9, 1969:

• The organization is not a 501(c)(3) organization unless it gives notice to
the IRS of its application for recognition of exempt status (see section
508(a)(1) of the Code);

• If notice is not given within 27 months after incorporation, exempt
status is not recognized for any period before the notice is given (see
section 508(a)(2) of the Code); and

• No deduction is allowed for gifts or bequests made while the
organization is not exempt (see section 508(d)(2)(B) of the Code).

WASHINGTON NONPROFIT HANDBOOK -153- 2018