Miscellaneous Rules(p19)

If your exempt organization changes its legal structure, such as from a trust to a corporation, you must file a new exemption application to establish that the new legal entity qualifies for exemption. If your organization becomes inactive for a period of time but does not cease being an entity under the laws of the state in which it was formed, its exemption will not be terminated. However, unless you are covered by one of the filing exceptions, you will have to continue to file an annual information return during the period of inactivity. If your organization has been liquidated, dissolved, terminated, or substantially contracted, you should file your annual return of information by the 15th day of the 5th month after the change and follow the applicable instructions to the form.

If your organization amends its articles of organization or its internal regulations (bylaws), then follow the instructions to Form 990, Form 990-EZ, or Form 990-PF for reporting these changes. Regardless of whether your organization files an annual information return, you may also report these changes to the EO Determinations office; however, such reporting does not relieve your organization from reporting the changes on its annual information return. For information about informing the IRS of a termination or merger, see Pub. 4779, Facts about Terminating or Merging Your Exempt Organization.

The procedures that an organization must follow to change its accounting period differ for an individual organization and for a central organization that seeks a group change for its subordinate organizations.

If an organization is not required to file an annual information return, but files a Form 990-T, it can change its annual accounting period by timely filing the Form 990-T. If neither an information return nor a Form 990-T is required to be filed, an organization must notify the IRS by letter that it has changed its fiscal period.

If an organization changed its annual accounting period at any time within the previous 10 years and within that time it had a filing requirement, the organization must file a Form 1128, Application to Adopt, Change, or Retain a Tax Year, with its timely filed annual information return or Form 990-T, as appropriate, whether or not the filing of the information return or Form 990-T would have otherwise been required for that year.

A central organization can obtain approval for a group change in an annual accounting period for its subordinate organizations on a group basis only by filing Form 1128 with the Service Center where it files its annual information return. For more information, see Revenue Procedure 76-10, as modified by Revenue Procedure 79-3 or any later updates.

Form 1128 must be filed by the 15th day of the 5th month following the close of the short period.