IRS Form 1023 Nonprofit Application Worksheet

We love microschooling, and it makes all the hard work of building and running a microschool more fun. That said, some of the important tasks in launching a microschool are more fun than others. For those who choose to apply to be nonprofit organizations recognized by the Internal Revenue Service, nobody ever called preparing the Form 1023 application the most fun part of the process. This long application can seem complicated, full of legalese, and intimidating. You can find it here online.

Hiring an attorney familiar with this process to help navigate can be helpful. It can also be expensive. Many find it is often not necessary to incur this cost.  

The National Microschooling Center created the this worksheet to help take the scare and mystery out of completing IRS Form 1023. By working through the required information on this worksheet,  you will have assembled most of what you will need to file the complete form. And if you still decide you'd like to hire an attorney or other expert to help you with this filing, this completed worksheet will save them time, and hopefully save you money, to take this process across the finish line.

The IRS may well ask clarifying questions during the process to approval. Once your application has been approved, be mindful that there will be other required IRS filings, like the annual Form 990 tax return. 

If you anticipate your organization receiving less than $50,000 in annual revenue, you may well be eligible to instead use the expedited, streamlined IRS Form 1023-EZ, generally a much easier filing.

The Form 1023 and its required information comprise important organizational documents that will guide the shaping and management of your organization. So you should take its development seriously and thoughtfully. The National Microschooling Center team is happy to answer your questions about governance decisions and other important policies that support a thriving organization -- and a thriving microschool.

You can download the worksheet here.