Table of Contents
Note.
Terms in bold are defined in the Glossary of the Instructions for Form 990.
Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ) is used by an organization that files Form 990 or Form 990-EZ to provide the required information about public charity status and public support.
An organization that answered “Yes” to Form 990, Part IV, line 1, must complete and attach Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ) to Form 990. Any section 501(c)(3) organization (or organization treated as such) that files a Form 990-EZ must complete and attach this schedule to Form 990-EZ. These include:
-
Organizations that are described in section 501(c)(3) and are public charities;
-
Organizations that are described in sections 501(e), 501(f), 501(k), or 501(n); and
-
Nonexempt charitable trusts described in section 4947(a)(1) that are not treated as private foundations.
If an organization is not required to file Form 990 or 990-EZ but chooses to do so, it must file a complete return and provide all of the information requested, including the required schedules.
When completing Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ), the organization must use the same accounting method it checked on Form 990, Part XII, line 1, or Form 990-EZ, line G. The organization must use this accounting method in reporting all amounts on Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ), regardless of the accounting method it used in completing Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ) for prior years.
If the accounting method the organization used in completing the 2011 Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ) was different from the accounting method checked on the 2012 Form 990, Part XII, line 1, or the 2012 Form 990-EZ, line G, the organization should not report in either Part II or Part III the amounts reported in the applicable columns of the 2011 Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ). Instead, the organization should report all amounts in Part II or Part III using the accounting method checked on the 2012 Form 990, Part XII, line 1, or the 2012 Form 990-EZ, line G.
Example 1.
An organization checks “Cash” on Form 990, Part XII, line 1. It should report the amounts in Part II or Part III using the cash method. If the organization filed a 2011 Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ) using the cash method, it should report in the 2008 through 2011 columns on the 2012 Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ) the same amounts that it reported in the 2008 through 2011 columns on the 2011 Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ).
Example 2.
An organization checks “Accrual” on Form 990, Part XII, line 1. The organization reports grants on Form 990, Part VIII, line 1, in accordance with SFAS 116 (ACS 958) (see instructions for Form 990, Part VIII, line 1). The organization receives a grant to be paid in future years. The organization should report the grant's present value on the 2012 Schedule A (Form 990 or Form 990-EZ). The organization should report accruals of present value increments to the unpaid grant on Schedule A (Form 990 or 990-EZ) in future years.
| More Online Instructions |