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Form 990-N Rejected? What the Common IRS Reject Codes Mean and How to Fix Them

Reviewed · First published · 6 min read

If the IRS rejected your Form 990-N e-Postcard, don't panic. A rejection is common and usually quick to fix. It does mean one thing: the e-Postcard is not on file yet.

When a provider sends an e-Postcard through the IRS Modernized e-File (MeF) system, the IRS checks it against its records. If a check fails, the IRS sends it back with a code naming the business rule that failed. Here are the four codes we see most often on 990-N filings, and how to fix each one.

First: a rejected e-Postcard is not filed

The IRS charges no penalty for a late 990-N. But its Form 990-N page says an organization that does not file for three consecutive years automatically loses its tax-exempt status. A rejected e-Postcard does not count toward that year, so fix it.

IRS Publication 4163 describes a 10-day Transmission Perfection Period: a corrected return accepted within 10 calendar days of the rejection is treated as received on the date of the first reject.

Don't resend the same e-Postcard unchanged; the IRS will reject it again. Fix what the code points to first.

F990-902-01: EIN not set up as an exempt organization filer

'EIN' of the Filer in the Return Header must be established as an exempt organization filer in the e-File database.

This rule is about the IRS record for your EIN. The IRS doesn't show your EIN as an exempt organization that files an annual return.

Common causes:

  • The wrong EIN. A typo, or the EIN of a parent organization, a booster club's school, or a related group.
  • The IRS never set the organization up. The IRS Form 990-N FAQ says this can happen when an application for exemption is pending, or when the organization never applied.
  • You're not on your parent's group list. The IRS says that if the parent organization leaves you off the list of subordinates it gives the IRS each year, you are not recognized as part of the group exemption and can't file the e-Postcard.
  • The exemption was revoked. In our records, some F990-902-01 rejections come from organizations whose exemption was automatically revoked after three missed years.

How to fix it:

  1. Check the EIN against your IRS letters and fix it if it's wrong.
  2. Check your status with our revocation lookup. If you were revoked, read how revocation and reinstatement work.
  3. If you're in a group, ask the parent organization to confirm you're on its list.
  4. If the EIN is right and you're not revoked, the IRS says an officer should call Customer Account Services at 877-829-5500 (toll-free) and ask that the organization be set up to file Form 990-N. Allow about six weeks for the IRS to update its records before you file again.

Full details: F990-902-01.

F990N-901-01: the tax year doesn't match the IRS record

If Form 990-N, checkbox "Termination" is not checked, then the Tax Period End Date in the Return Header must match data in the e-file database.

The IRS keeps an accounting period for every EIN: the month your year ends. The end date on your e-Postcard has to match it.

Common causes:

  • A school-year group filed as a calendar year, or the other way round. A PTA whose year ends June 30 can't file for a year ending December 31.
  • The organization changed its year end and the IRS was never told.
  • A date was entered wrong.

How to fix it:

  1. Find the year end the IRS has. The IRS When to file FAQ lists places to look, including a prior Form 990 or 990-EZ, your bylaws, your determination letter and Form SS-4. Or search for your organization on 990.tax: its page shows the month your accounting year ends, from IRS records.
  2. File for the period the IRS has on record.
  3. If you really changed your year end, an e-Postcard can't change it. The IRS says an organization may not change its accounting period by filing a Form 990-N for the short tax period. It must file Form 990-EZ or Form 990 for that period, or use Form 1128.

The rule doesn't apply when the Termination box is checked. See tax year and fiscal year.

R0000-901-01: EIN and name control don't match

Each e-filed return carries a name control: up to four characters taken from your organization's name. The IRS checks the EIN and name control together against its records. This rejection means the pair didn't match.

Publication 4163 calls a name control mismatch "one of the most common causes for rejection." Its general rules:

  • The name control is generally the first four characters of the name on the first name line.
  • Drop "The" when it's followed by more than one word.
  • Don't include "dba" (doing business as).

Common causes:

  • A nickname or "doing business as" name was entered first, instead of the legal name the IRS has.
  • The legal name changed and the IRS still has the old one.
  • The EIN is wrong, so the IRS compares your name with a different organization's.

How to fix it:

  1. Enter the legal name exactly as it appears on your IRS letters, and check the EIN.
  2. If your name really changed, tell the IRS first. The IRS says an organization that files Form 990-N reports a name change by letter or fax to Customer Account Services, not by phone. The documents it needs depend on the type of organization.
  3. Send the e-Postcard again under the name the IRS has on record.

On Form 990-EZ, the same check appears as R0000-922-01, which has more detail.

R0000-940-11: the end date isn't valid for the tax year

For a return filed for tax year 2024, the tax period ending date 'TaxPeriodEndDt' in the Return Header must be [ one of the following values ("20241231", "20250131", … "20251130") OR (1-3 days after the beginning of the month) OR (1-6 days before the end of the month) ] …

In plain English: a full-year tax year 2024 e-Postcard must end between December 31, 2024 and November 30, 2025. Initial, final and short-year returns are exceptions.

The usual cause is the wrong tax year. The tax year is the year your accounting year begins. The Form 990-EZ instructions say the 2025 return is for calendar year 2025 and fiscal years that began in 2025. So a year that ended December 31, 2025 is tax year 2025, not 2024. If it's sent as a 2024 e-Postcard, the IRS rejects it under this rule.

The same rule exists for every year with a different suffix: R0000-940-12 for tax year 2025 and R0000-940-13 for tax year 2026.

A note on tax year 2025: 990.tax files tax years 2023 and 2024 today. It can't file tax year 2025 yet. Tax year 2025 e-filing on 990.tax opens once the IRS approves it. You can also file through the IRS's own e-Postcard system; see filing the 990-N with Login.gov or ID.me.

Fixing a rejection on 990.tax

If 990.tax filed your e-Postcard and the IRS rejected it:

  • You get an email saying the IRS rejected your return, and the return shows Needs fixing, with the IRS reason, its rule number and a fix-by date.
  • Refiling is free. If your account offers Review and refile, free, correct the answer it points to and refile. Otherwise email [email protected] with the organization's name and EIN, and the 990.tax team will fix and refile it with you.
  • If the fix is with the IRS, take care of that first, then refile.

Read more in Rejected: fix and refile and Common IRS reject codes, or browse every code in our IRS reject code reference.

File your 990-N with 990.tax

990.tax e-files Form 990-N for tax years 2023 and 2024. Tax year 2023 can only be e-filed until the IRS's late-December changeover. Your accounting year end comes from the IRS record for your EIN, the IRS acknowledgement appears in your account, and there is one price per filing (pricing).

Start your 990-N on 990.tax

990.tax is an IRS-authorized e-file provider. It is not affiliated with the IRS.

This post is general information, not legal or tax advice.

Sources

Did the IRS reject your return?

The rejection names a business rule, such as R0000-922-01 (EIN and name do not match) or F990-902-01. Our reference explains each code in plain English and says how to fix it.

Look up an IRS reject code

File your 990-N, 990-EZ or 8868 online

990.tax is an IRS-authorized e-file provider. Answer plain questions, sign online, and we transmit to the IRS (and the California FTB for Form 199).

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