Not-for-profits required to file with the California Attorney General’s Office can now register to submit their RRF-1 online. Avoid the issues we have seen with paper filing, where the copy of an organization’s 990 or audited financial statements somehow goes missing when the filing is processed.
The attorney general’s office has been mailing out postcards with registration codes so that organizations can set up accounts online. If an organization has misplaced that postcard (typically sent 45 days after its last year-end), the organization can go to:
https://oag.ca.gov/charities/contacts/online-renewals.
This link will allow the organization to request the Registration Code needed to set up a User ID and Password. The attorney general’s office has responded to these requests within 24 hours, sometimes immediately.
Once registered, the organization will be able to complete an online version of the RRF-1 using the PDF version, which will be provided with its completed tax return. The fee payment can be made online either by ACH or credit card (ACH has no fee; credit card is 2.3%). The organization will receive confirmations that filings and payments are submitted, something that is not provided with paper filings.
KEEP THE REGISTRATION CODE FOR THE FUTURE – the not-for-profit will need to enter it each time it submits an online payment for the filing.
NOTE: Charities with a “Delinquent” status cannot register or submit online filings until the status is restored to “Current.”
For more information or questions about this article or to find out how Windes can assist, please contact our Nonprofit Team at nonprofit@windes.com.
This article was written by Windes Nonprofit Tax Director Eleanor Livingston.
Eleanor Livingston, CPA, MST
Nonprofit Tax Director
elivingston@windes.com