To confirm a nonprofit’s tax-exempt status, use the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool at apps.irs.gov/app/eos. You can search by the organization’s name or its nine-digit Employer Identification Number, and the results will show its current status, its classification, and links to its publicly filed returns.1Internal Revenue Service. Tax Exempt Organization Search Run the check before you donate. A nonprofit’s exemption can be revoked without any public announcement, and a contribution to an organization that no longer qualifies is not deductible.
Why the Check Is Worth Thirty Seconds
Charitable contributions are only deductible when they go to organizations the IRS recognizes as qualified under Section 170(c) of the Internal Revenue Code.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 170 – Charitable, Etc., Contributions and Gifts If you claim a deduction for a gift to an organization that doesn’t qualify, the IRS will disallow it and you’ll owe back taxes plus interest. Accuracy-related penalties of 20% or 40% of the underpayment can apply when donated property is overvalued.3Internal Revenue Service. Publication 526, Charitable Contributions
Status can disappear quietly. Any exempt organization that fails to file its required annual return or notice for three consecutive years loses its exemption automatically under Section 6033(j).4Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption The organization’s website won’t tell you. The database will.
How to Run the Search
Go to apps.irs.gov/app/eos. The tool offers six databases, and for most donors the “Search All” option is the right starting point. The other databases let you query specific slices: the Pub 78 Data (organizations currently eligible to receive deductible contributions), the Auto-Revocation List, Determination Letters, Form 990-N filings by small organizations, and copies of filed Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, and 990-T.1Internal Revenue Service. Tax Exempt Organization Search
The cleanest search uses the EIN. It’s a nine-digit federal tax ID unique to each organization, so one search returns exactly one match. You can usually find it on the nonprofit’s website, on fundraising mail, or on any receipt you’ve received from them. If you don’t see it, ask.
Name searches are less reliable. TEOS lists organizations under their legal name or a “doing business as” name on file with the IRS, but the Pub 78 dataset only includes the official legal name.5Internal Revenue Service. Search for Tax Exempt Organizations A charity you know as “City Harvest Fund” may be registered under something else entirely. A few practical habits help: put a distinctive portion of the name in quotation marks, drop generic words like “the” or “foundation,” and use the state filter when a common name returns too many hits. When nothing matches, ask the organization for its EIN and search again.
One scope note. The database covers all organizations recognized as exempt under Section 501(c), not only charities. That includes 501(c)(3) public charities and private foundations, 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations, 501(c)(6) trade associations, and more.6Internal Revenue Service. Exemption Requirements – 501(c)(3) Organizations Only organizations in the Pub 78 data can receive deductible contributions, so appearing in TEOS is not the same as being deductible.
Reading the Result
A successful search shows the organization’s current status:
- Active: The organization currently holds valid tax-exempt status and is meeting its filing requirements.
- Revoked: The organization has lost its exemption, most commonly for failing to file for three consecutive years. Contributions made after the effective revocation date are not deductible.7Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption for Nonfiling – Deductibility of Contributions to Organizations on Nonfiler Revocation List
- Terminated: The organization voluntarily dissolved or merged with another entity.
Revocation takes effect on the original filing due date of the third consecutive missed return.4Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption Donors can still deduct contributions made before the organization appeared on the Auto-Revocation List, but nothing given after that point qualifies.
Deductibility Codes
For organizations in the Pub 78 data, the results include a deductibility code that tells you how much of your contribution you can deduct based on the organization type:8Internal Revenue Service. Tax Exempt Organization Search – Deductibility Status Codes
- PC (Public Charity): Deductible up to 60% of your adjusted gross income for cash gifts, or 50% for non-cash contributions.
- POF (Private Operating Foundation): Same limits as a public charity.
- PF (Private Foundation): Deductible up to 30% of your adjusted gross income.
For a large gift, the classification can change your tax planning. Spreading a contribution across tax years, or choosing between cash and appreciated property, works differently depending on which category the recipient falls into.
When an Organization Isn’t There but Is Still Legitimate
Some organizations never appear in TEOS and their absence is not a problem.
Churches and similar religious organizations are automatically considered exempt under Section 501(c)(3) without applying. They are not required to file Form 990, and because they have no filing obligation, they can’t be auto-revoked. Contributions to churches that meet the 501(c)(3) requirements remain deductible even without an IRS determination letter on file.9Internal Revenue Service. Churches, Integrated Auxiliaries and Conventions or Associations of Churches
Small organizations with annual gross receipts normally at $50,000 or less satisfy their filing requirement with the electronic Form 990-N (e-Postcard), which carries only basic identification information.10Internal Revenue Service. Annual Electronic Notice (Form 990-N) for Small Organizations FAQs – Who Must File They may show up in the 990-N database inside TEOS without detailed financials.
Group Exemptions
Some nonprofits hold their status through a group exemption. A national or regional parent obtains a group exemption ruling, and its local chapters sit under that umbrella. The subordinate organizations may not appear individually in TEOS. To verify, contact the central organization that holds the group ruling and ask for written confirmation that the local affiliate is covered.11Internal Revenue Service. EO Operational Requirements – Obtaining Copies of Exemption Determination Letter From IRS
Fiscal Sponsorships
New projects and startup nonprofits sometimes receive donations through an established 501(c)(3) acting as their fiscal sponsor. The sponsor holds the exempt status; the project itself does not. Before donating, verify the sponsor in TEOS and confirm that the sponsor, not the project, issues the donation receipt. If the project issues its own receipts, that’s a red flag. Your deduction depends entirely on the sponsor’s qualification.
If You Can’t Find the Organization
Ask for a copy of its IRS determination letter, the official document recognizing exempt status. Determination letters issued from January 2014 onward are available directly through TEOS, but older letters have to be requested from the IRS using Form 4506-B.11Internal Revenue Service. EO Operational Requirements – Obtaining Copies of Exemption Determination Letter From IRS You can also request an “affirmation letter” through the same form; it serves the same purpose for grantors and contributors as the original determination letter.
For a small organization relying on the $50,000 gross receipts threshold, a written statement from the organization confirming its status and revenue level provides reasonable documentation for your records. It isn’t ironclad protection against a disallowed deduction, but it demonstrates good-faith effort if the IRS ever questions the contribution.
Confirming Status Isn’t Enough on Its Own
For any single contribution of $250 or more, the IRS requires a written acknowledgment from the receiving organization before you can claim the deduction. The acknowledgment must include the organization’s name, the cash amount or a description of non-cash property donated, and a statement about whether the organization provided any goods or services in return.12Internal Revenue Service. Charitable Contributions – Written Acknowledgments
Even with a confirmed-eligible organization and a generous gift, the deduction fails without this document. The burden is on you, not the charity, to obtain and keep it. Request it when you donate, not at tax time.
State Charity Registration
Federal tax-exempt status and state fundraising authorization are separate. Roughly 40 states require charitable organizations to register before soliciting donations from residents, and a nonprofit can hold valid IRS 501(c)(3) status while being unregistered or noncompliant in a state where it’s actively fundraising.
Most state charity registrations are maintained by the attorney general’s office or the secretary of state, and many offer searchable online databases. Checking the state registry adds a second layer. It won’t tell you anything about federal tax status, but it can confirm whether the organization is legally authorized to solicit in your state and whether it has filed the required state-level disclosures. That’s especially worth doing for groups that cold-call or send unsolicited mail, where the odds of encountering an unregistered or fraudulent entity are higher.