Free Instruction 4506-A (Rev. March 2009) - Federal

Instructions for Form 4506-A
(Rev. March 2009)

Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service

Request for Public Inspection or Copy of Exempt or Political Organization IRS Form
What's New
Formats for requesting forms. Form 4506-A was revised to include all allowable formats (alchemy and raw) available for requesting applicable forms. Copies of Form 990-T and Form 5227. New lines 7 and 8 allow you to request copies of Form 990-T (for 501(c)(3) organizations filed after August 17, 2006) and Form 5227 (for tax years beginning after December 31, 2006) on Form 4506-A. Form 990-N (e-Postcard). You may request images of Form 990-N (e-Postcard) filings. See below. returns. All required Alchemy software is provided. This format is best for users who wish to examine returns visually. Raw. CDs and DVDs contain image files in Tag Image File (TIF) format for returns selected for the month or quarter requested. This format is best for users who intend to process the image files through their data software.

How Much Will It Cost?
You may inspect a return, report, notice, or exemption application at an IRS office free of charge. If you want a photocopy of a return, report, notice, or an exemption application, see the chart below. Note. The IRS will send you a bill for the cost. If your cost is over $250, we will ask for payment in advance.
THEN the charge for paper copies is . . . $ .20 per page First 100 pages free, $ .20 per page thereafter

General Instructions
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code.

Purpose of Form
Use Form 4506-A to request under Internal Revenue Code Section 6104: · A copy of an exempt or political organization's return, report, notice, or exemption application; · An inspection of a return, report, notice, or exemption application at an IRS office. You do not have to complete Form 4506-A to get copies of certain forms. · Form 8871, Political Organization Notice of Section 527 Status, and Form 8872, Political Organization Report of Contributions and Expenditures, are available for inspection and printing from the Internet. The website address for both forms iswww.irs.gov/polorgs. · Exempt or political organizations must make their returns, reports, notices, and exempt applications available for public inspection. You can visit the organization to inspect the material instead of requesting it from the IRS. The organization may be able to mail the copies to you. · You may request images of Form 990-N (e-Postcard) filings at www.irs.gov/app/ePostcard. An organization, or its officers, may request a copy of the organization's own return on Form 4506-A. CAUTION However, they will only receive the copy that is "Open for Public Inspection." The publicly available copy will not include, for example, information that may identify a contributor and documents that were filed with the return, but are not open to public inspection. An organization, or its officers, may request a complete copy of the organization's own return by completing Form 4506, Request for Copy of Tax Return, and paying the applicable fee.
IF you are. . . A commercial user An educational institution, media, non-commercial scientific institution, or all other requesters

Where To File
You may use one of the following methods for filing Form 4506-A. · Mail Form 4506-A to the IRS, · Fax Form 4506-A to the Ogden Service Center, or · File it with the IRS office for your area. Use the following chart to determine where to file Form 4506-A.
IF you want . . . To inspect a return, report, notice, or an exemption application at an IRS office* To inspect a return, report, notice, or an exemption application at the IRS National Headquarters THEN file Form 4506-A with the . . . Internal Revenue Service Attention: Disclosure Officer (Call 1-800-829-1040 for IRS office locations near you.) Commissioner of Internal Revenue Attention: Freedom of Information Reading Room 1111 Constitution Avenue NW Washington, DC 20224

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CD and DVD
The IRS can provide copies of exempt organization returns on CD and/or DVD. Requesters can order the complete set (for example, all Forms 990 and 990-EZ or all Forms 990-PF filed for a year) or a partial set by state or by month. If you are ordering a partial set on CD or DVD, indicate the format (alchemy or raw), state(s), and month(s) you are ordering. Complete information, including the cost, is available on the IRS website at www.irs.gov/charities.

A copy of an exemption application Internal Revenue Service (includes all supporting TE/GE Correspondence Unit documents) P.O. Box 2508, Room 4024 Cincinnati, OH 45201 Fax no. 513-263-3434 A copy of a return, report, or notice Internal Revenue Service RAIVS Unit MS: 6716 Ogden, UT 84201 Fax no. 801-620-7896

*The office handling your request will contact you to schedule an appointment when the item is available for inspection.

Formats
Alchemy. CDs and DVDs contain image files associated in an Alchemy database to simplify visual searching of the tax

How Long Will It Take?
It may take up to 60 calendar days for us to process your request.

Cat. No. 51552X

Specific Instructions
Line 1
Exempt or political organization. Enter the organization's official name under which exempt status was approved, address, and, if known, employer identification number. If you do not enter the official name, we may not be able to locate the requested form.

Line 2
Requester. Enter the requester's name, address, phone number, and the name of a contact person.

Line 3
Category of requester. Check the appropriate category of the requester. You must check a box.

Line 4
Reason for request. To avoid being charged the commercial rate, all requesters except commercial users, must provide a reason for requesting the records and explain how the records will be used. Lines 5-9. For each applicable form, check the box(es) for the item(s) you are requesting. You may request more than one form. For each form requested, check either the copy, inspection, or CD/DVD box and enter the specific tax year(s), as indicated. If ordering a partial set on CD/DVD, indicate the format, state(s), and month(s) requested. Incomplete requests will be rejected. Note. Tax returns are generally available only for 7 years from filing before they are destroyed by law.

Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States. We need the information to gain access to the return or other exempt or political organization IRS form you requested in our files and properly respond to your request. The authority to ask for the information requested on this form is Internal Revenue Code section 6104 and its regulations. You are not required to provide the information requested on this form. However, if you do not furnish the information, we may not be able to fill your request. Providing willfully false or fraudulent information may subject you to criminal penalties. Routine uses include disclosing the information to the Department of Justice for civil or criminal litigation. We may also disclose this information to Federal and state agencies to enforce Federal nontax criminal laws and to federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies to combat terrorism. You are not required to provide the information requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its instructions must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return information are confidential, as required by Internal Revenue Code section 6103. The time needed to complete and file Form 4506-A will vary depending on individual circumstances. The estimated average time is:
Recordkeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Learning about the law or the form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Preparing the form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Copying, assembling, and sending the form to the IRS . . . . . . . . 6 min. 12 min. 21 min. 20 min.

If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these time estimates or suggestions for making Form 4506-A simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. You can write to the Internal Revenue Service, Tax Products Coordinating Committee, SE:W:CAR:MP:T:T:SP, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send Form 4506-A to this address. Instead, see Where To File on page 1.

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