How to apply for tax exemption as a social welfare organization or other nonprofit

 

Social welfare organizations (501(c)(4) organizations)

To seek recognition of exemption under IRC Section 501(c)(4), the organizations must complete and file Form 1024-A, Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code along with the required user fee, through Pay.gov. You can find the application by searching for “Form 1024-A” on Pay.gov.

Note: IRC Section 506 requires an organization to notify the IRS of its intent to operate as a Section 501(c)(4) organization. Use Form 8976 for this purpose.  Submission of Form 1024-A does not relieve an organization of the requirement to submit Form 8976, Notice of Intent to Operate Under Section 501(c)(4).

Other nonprofit or tax-exempt organizations (501(a))

Most other organizations must complete and file Form 1024, Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(a) or Section 521 of the Internal Revenue Code to seek recognition of exemption.

To be recognized as exempt, an organization must submit a completed application through Pay.gov with the appropriate user fee. Search on Pay.gov for Form 1024 and complete it as instructed.

Additional information

Frequently asked questions about applying for exemption are available. You may also want to view some of our tools designed to help you apply for exemption.