The Self-Declarers Questionnaire for section 501(c)(4), (5), and (6) organizations is an IRS initiative to conduct a voluntary compliance check of organizations that are not recognized by the IRS as tax-exempt, but that are claiming tax exemption under section 501(c)(4), (5) or (6) and have filed Form 990 for the 2010 or 2011 tax year.
The IRS anticipates that responses to the questionnaire will help it learn more about such self-declared 501(c)(4), (5) or (6) organizations and determine whether they are complying with applicable tax-exempt law.
This initiative was anticipated in the IRS Exempt Organizations group’s FY 2013 work plan. Read TaxNewsFlash-Exempt Organizations (January 25, 2013)
Documents
Letter and instructions [PDF 39 KB] (reference copies)
Questionnaire [PDF 341 KB] (reference copy)
Questions and answers
More than 1,300 organizations received letters asking them to complete the online questionnaire. [Note—only organizations that receive the letter from the IRS may complete and submit the questionnaire.]
The IRS stated that completing the questionnaire is optional, but also reported that it may refer unresponsive organizations for examination.
The self-declarers questionnaire raises 36 questions regarding:
- The organization generally (including its date of formation and why the organization did not file an application for exemption)
- Activities and related organizations (including whether the organization engaged in political campaign activities)
- Revenue and expenses (including information about unrelated business income and contributions over $50,000)
- Compensation (including compliance with the rebuttable presumption of reasonableness)
For more information, contact:
Rick Speizman, National Partner-In-Charge, KPMG’s Exempt Organizations Tax Practice (ExoTax)
+1 (202) 533-3084