Filed when an exempt organisation has unrelated business taxable income - and it is a tax return, not an information return.
The IRS is retiring FIRE. It accepts information returns until 3 p.m. ET on 19 November 2026, and from 1 January 2027 IRIS is the only electronic channel - including for prior-year returns and corrections. New Transmitter Control Codes are no longer issued through FIRE, so a TCC application now has to go through IRIS.
IRS noticeForm 990-T reports unrelated business taxable income. It is the one form in this series that produces an actual tax liability: an exempt organisation is exempt on its mission-related income, not on income from a trade or business unrelated to that mission. Advertising revenue, some rental arrangements and certain investment income can all fall inside it. 990-T is filed IN ADDITION to the organisation's regular 990, 990-EZ or 990-PF, not instead of it, which is a distinction organisations discovering unrelated income for the first time frequently get wrong.
Filing threshold: $1,000 or more of gross income from an unrelated trade or business
Paper Filing
15th day of the 5th month after the tax year ends for most organisations
Electronic Filing
15th day of the 5th month after the tax year ends for most organisations
Recipient Copy
Not applicable - no recipient copy
Failure-to-file and failure-to-pay penalties apply, as this is a tax return with a liability
2024 penalty tiers: $60/form (≤30 days late) → $130/form (31 days-Aug 1) → $310/form (after Aug 1) → $630/form (intentional disregard). Small business caps may apply.
| Box | Description |
|---|---|
| Part I | Total unrelated business taxable income |
| Part II | Tax computation |
| Part III | Tax and payments |
| Schedule A | One per unrelated trade or business - they are computed separately |
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No. 990-T is filed in addition to the regular annual return, never instead of it.
No. Each unrelated trade or business is computed separately on its own Schedule A, so a loss in one cannot offset income in another.
Not by itself. The income is taxed rather than disqualifying, though scale and prominence relative to the exempt purpose can raise separate questions.
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