Your return was accepted
Reviewed
When the IRS accepts:
- We email you: “Accepted by the IRS: [year] Form [form] for [organization]” (for an extension: “Extension accepted by the IRS”).
- The return shows Accepted in your account, with the date and time of the IRS acknowledgement (US Eastern).
Download your copies
Open the return in your account to download:
- Form 990-N summary, Form 990-EZ or Form 8868 (PDF)
- California Form 199 (PDF), if you added it
- Form RRF-1, pre-filled, and for 990-N filers Form CT-TR-1, pre-filled, for California organizations to file with the Attorney General; see Form RRF-1 and CT-TR-1
Keep the PDF and the acceptance email with the organization’s records.
What comes next
- California: Form 199 goes to the FTB within an hour of IRS acceptance.
- After an 8868: file the 990-EZ by the extended due date.
- Next year: the next return is due the 15th day of the 5th month after your next year end; see When is my return due?.
Questions
When will the IRS show it on its website?
The IRS publishes e-Postcards and e-filed returns on its Tax Exempt Organization Search on its own schedule, often weeks or months later. Your acceptance email and the status in 990.tax are the proof of filing in the meantime.
Is an accepted 8868 the same as filing?
No. An accepted 8868 extends the deadline. You still file the Form 990-EZ by the extended date.