Do you want to find out more information about the organization asking you for money?
The Internal Revenue Service has launched a new tool on IRS.gov that gives fast and easy access to information about exempt organizations. The new tool is called the Tax Exempt Organization Search (“TEOS”).
You can now find the following information at TEOS:
- TEOS provides images of an organization’s Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF and 990-T filed with the IRS. Initially, only 990 series forms filed in January and February 2018 will be available. New filings will be added monthly.
- TEOS is more friendly, which provides access to the search tool using smartphones or tablets.
- Users can access favorable determination letters. These are issued by the IRS when an organization applied for and met the requirements for tax-exempt status. A limited number of determination letters will be available. Eventually, determination letters issued since January 2014 will also be available.
You can determine whether an organization:
- Is eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
- Has had it tax-exempt status revoked because it failed to file required forms or notices for three consecutive years.
- Has filed a Form 990-N annual electronic notice with the IRS; this applies to small organizations only.
Publicly available data from electronically-filed 990 Forms is still available through Amazon Web Services.
This can be a useful tool to determine whether or not your donation to an organization will be deductible for income tax purposes, and to some extent generally how an organization is using its contributions.