New Draft Form 1023-EZ.

Those of us who have submitted applications for approval of exempt organizations know how frustrating the long wait for approval can be.

The Treasury has produced a new, vastly simplified version of the Form 1023 "Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code," called Form 1023-EZ, "Streamlined Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code." Proposed Form 1023-EZ arrives in the midst of a staggering backlog of exemption applications currently pending at the IRS. Practitioners report that it is now common for new organizations to wait two years or more before receiving a ruling on their exempt status. In the face of this backlog, the proposed Form 1023-EZ would radically change the process of applying for Code Sec. 501(c)(3) status to something resembling self-certification (with more emphasis supposedly placed on enforcement through audits).