The exemption stays safe
Every federal and California deadline is held by us, not by whoever is treasurer this year.
Business
Keep the exemption, and keep the board informed
Fund accounting, restricted-grant tracking, Form 990 and the California filings that quietly decide whether an exemption survives.
A nonprofit loses its exemption more often through paperwork than through wrongdoing. Three consecutive years without a Form 990 revokes it automatically. A missed RRF-1 puts the organisation on the Attorney General's delinquent list, which funders check. Neither happens because anyone did anything wrong — they happen because the treasurer changed and nobody carried the calendar across.
We hold that calendar. We also do the accounting underneath it — fund and grant tracking that shows a funder exactly how restricted money was spent, and board-ready statements that a volunteer treasurer can actually present.
Scope
What’s included
Fund accounting
Unrestricted, temporarily restricted and permanently restricted, tracked separately and reported separately.
Grant and donor tracking
Spend against each grant, ready for the report the funder will ask for.
Form 990, 990-EZ or 990-N
The right form for your size, prepared as the public document it is — funders read it.
California RRF-1 and Form 199
The state filings that keep the charitable trust registration and state exemption current.
Board financial package
Statement of activities and financial position, written for people who are not accountants.
Exemption application support
Form 1023 or 1023-EZ for new organisations, and reinstatement where exemption was auto-revoked.
Outcome
Why it matters
Funders get what they ask for
Restricted-fund reporting already exists when a grant report falls due.
A board that can govern
Statements written to be understood, so the board can ask real questions.
Process
How it works
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Compliance check
We confirm current exemption status, past 990s and RRF-1s, and flag anything overdue.
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Structure the books
Chart of accounts rebuilt around funds, programmes and functional expense categories.
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Monthly and quarterly
Books closed monthly; a board package prepared for each meeting.
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Annual filings
990 and state returns prepared, reviewed with the board, and filed.
Suited to
Who this is for
- Churches, faith organisations and community groups
- Foundations and grant-making organisations
- Nonprofits whose exemption was auto-revoked for missed 990s
- New organisations applying for 501(c)(3) status
- Boards whose volunteer treasurer has stepped down
FAQ
Questions
Usually, yes. The IRS has a reinstatement process, and for organisations revoked for missing three years of 990s there are streamlined routes that can restore exemption retroactively to the revocation date if applied for in time. The application has to explain what went wrong and what has changed, so the first step is getting the missing returns prepared.
Almost always. Organisations under the gross-receipts threshold file the 990-N, which is short — but three consecutive years of not filing it revokes the exemption just as surely as missing a full 990. California has its own separate requirements on top, including the RRF-1 for registered charities.
Often needed alongside this
Other services
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Financial Statements: Compilation & Review
There is a difference between a report printed from QuickBooks and a financial statement prepared to professional standards. Lenders know it.
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Bookkeeping & Catch-Up
We rebuild the periods in order, reconcile them properly, and then move you onto a monthly rhythm so it never happens again.
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Registered Agent & State Filings
The routine filings nobody puts in a calendar — Statement of Information, agent for service of process, city licence, DBA — held and filed by us so the entity stays current.
Let’s find out what you should actually be paying.
Thirty minutes with an Enrolled Agent, at no charge. Bring last year’s return and we will tell you plainly what we would do differently — and what it would cost.