Instructions for Form 4506-A, Request for Public Inspection or Copy of Exempt or Political Organization IRS Form

• Legal Form Number: 4506-A
• Year: 2026
• Issuer: Treasury Department
• Section: Treasury Department

Instructions for Form 4506-A

(Revised November 2021)

Request for a Copy of Exempt or Political Organization IRS Form

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless

otherwise noted.

Future Developments

For the latest information about developments related to Form

4506-A and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after this

form and instructions were published, go to www.irs.gov/

form4506ab.

What's New

Forms 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax,

990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt From Income

Tax, 990-PF Return of Private Foundation or Section 4947(a)(1)

Trust treated as a Private Foundation, and 990-T, Exempt

Organization Business Income Tax Return received in 2017 or

later are available in bulk download free of charge on Tax Exempt

Organization Search (TEOS), www.irs.gov/teos.

To request copies of exemption applications and letters, you must

submit Form 4506-B, Request for a Copy of Exempt Organization

IRS Application or Letter.

General Instructions

Purpose Of Form

Use Form 4506-A to request under Section 6104:

● A copy of an exempt or political organization’s return, report, or

notice.

You do not have to complete Form 4506-A to get copies of the

following forms:

● Forms 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF and 990-T received in 2017 or

later, use Tax Exempt Organization Search (TEOS),

www.irs.gov/teos. You can use TEOS for individual copies and

for bulk data downloads. Note: Before you complete a Form

4506-A please check Tax Exempt Organization Search (TEOS)

at www.irs.gov/teos for the form you are requesting. If return is

not available submit a Form 4506-A.

● 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

IRS.gov. The website address for both forms is www.irs.gov/

polorgs.

● You may request images of Form 990-N (e-Postcard), for Tax-

Exempt Organizations Not Required to File Form 990 or 990-

EZ, filings at Tax Exempt Organization Search (TEOS),

www.irs.gov/teos.

● The machine readable data for the efiled Forms 990, 990-EZ

and 990-PF are available for download at Tax Exempt

Organization Search Bulk Data Downloads, www.irs.gov/

charities-non-profits/tax-exempt-organization-search-bulk-data-

downloads.

● If you want to determine if charitable contributions are

deductible, use Tax Exempt Organization Search, www.irs.gov/

teos.

Note. Exempt or political organizations must make their returns,

reports, and notices 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.

TIP To see an organization’s current activities or financial data,

you can use www.guidestar.org.

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CAUTION

An organization, or its officers, may request a copy of the

organization's own return on Form 4506-A. 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.

Digital Data Request

The IRS can provide copies of exempt organization returns on

USB for returns received in years 2015 through 2016. 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. If

you are ordering a partial set on USB, indicate the state(s), and

month(s) you are ordering. Sample USB requests are not

available for individual states. USB and sample USB requests are

not available for individual exempt organizations. Complete

information, including the cost, is available on the IRS website.

Search Copies of Scanned EO Returns Available at www.irs.gov/

copies.

Format

Raw. The USB 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, or notice at an IRS office free of

charge.

If you want a photocopy of a return, report, or notice see the

chart below.

Note. The IRS will send you a bill for the photocopy cost. If your

cost is over $250, we will ask for payment in advance.

IF you are. . . THEN the charge for paper copies

is . . .

A commercial user, $ .20 per page.

An educational institution, media,

non-commercial scientific institution,

or all other requesters,

First 100 pages free, $ .20 per page

thereafter.

USB requests and sample USB requests must be prepaid.

Please include your payment with your request. Search Copies of

Scanned EO Returns Available at www.irs.gov/copies, available

for the cost of USB and sample USB. A check or money order for

the fee should be payable to “United States Treasury.”

Reminder: Fees for USB are updated in January of each year.

See www.irs.gov to determine the required fee.

Catalog Number 51552X