PDF document
- 1 -
                      Userid: CPM                    Schema:       Leadpct: 100% Pt. size: 9.5        Draft       Ok to Print
                                                     instrx
AH XSL/XML            Fileid: … ns/I8872/202010/A/XML/Cycle04/source                             (Init. & Date) _______

Page 1 of 4                                                                                          13:24 - 8-Oct-2020

The type and rule above prints on all proofs including departmental reproduction proofs. MUST be removed before printing.

                                                                                                Department of the Treasury
                                                                                                Internal Revenue Service
Instructions for Form 8872

(Rev. October 2020)
Political Organization
Report of Contributions and Expenditures

Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless         The organization is subject to state law that requires it to 
otherwise noted.                                                   report information that is similar to that required on Form 
                                                                   8872.
Future Developments                                                The organization files the required reports with the state.
For the latest information about developments related to           The state makes such reports public and the organization 
Form 8872 and its instructions, such as legislation after they     makes them open to public inspection in the same manner 
were published, go to IRS.gov/Form8872.                            that organizations must make Form 8872 available for public 
                                                                   inspection.
What’s New
                                                                     For additional information, including the prohibition of 
Required electronic filing of Form 8872. The Taxpayer              involvement in the organization of a federal candidate or 
First Act amends Internal Revenue Code (IRC) section 527(j)        office holder, see section 527(e)(5).
to require Form 8872, Political Organization Report of 
Contributions and Expenditures, to be filed electronically.        When To File
The electronic filing requirement is effective for periods         Due dates for Form 8872 vary depending on whether the 
beginning after December 31, 2019. The IRS will not accept         form is due for a reporting period that occurs during an 
Form 8872 reports filed on paper for periods beginning after       even-numbered or odd-numbered year.
December 31, 2019. See Where and How To File, later.
                                                                   Note.  If any due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal 
General Instructions                                               holiday, the organization may file on the next business day.

        This form and all attachments are subject to public        Even-Numbered Years
  !     inspection. Do not enter social security numbers on        The organization may opt to file its reports on either a 
CAUTION this form or any attachments.                              quarterly or monthly basis, but it must file on the same basis 
                                                                   for the entire calendar year.
Purpose of Form                                                    Quarterly reports.  File the first report for the first quarter of 
Unless an exception applies (see Who Must File below), a           the calendar year in which the organization accepts a 
tax-exempt section 527 political organization must file Form       contribution or makes an expenditure. Quarterly reports are 
8872 to report certain contributions received and                  due by the 15th day after the last day of each calendar 
expenditures made. Generally, an organization that is              quarter, except the year-end report, which is due by January 
required to file Form 8872 must also file Form 8871, Political     31 of the following year. In addition, the organization may 
Organization Notice of Section 527 Status, within 24 hours of      have to file a pre-election report, a post-general election 
the organization's formation or within 30 days of any material     report, or both, as explained below.
change to the information reported on Form 8871.
                                                                   Monthly reports. File the first report for the first month of 
Note. The organization isn't required to report contributions      the calendar year in which the organization accepts a 
accepted or expenditures made after July 1, 2000, if they          contribution or makes an expenditure. Reports are due by the 
were received or made under a contract entered into before         20th day after the end of the month. This report must reflect 
July 2, 2000.                                                      all reportable contributions accepted and expenditures made 
                                                                   during the month for which the report is being filed. No 
Who Must File                                                      monthly reports are due for October and November. Instead, 
Every section 527 political organization that accepts a            the organization must file a pre-general election report and a 
contribution or makes an expenditure for an exempt function        post-general election report (see Pre-election report and 
during the calendar year must file Form 8872, except:              Post-general election report). In addition, a year-end report 
A political organization that isn't required to file Form 8871,  must also be filed by January 31 of the following year instead 
A political organization that is subject to tax on its income    of a monthly report for December.
because it didn't file or amend a Form 8871, or                    Pre-election report. This report must be filed before any 
A qualified state or local political organization.               election for which the organization made a contribution or 
  A qualified state or local political organization is a political expenditure. This report must be filed by the:
organization that meets the following requirements.                12th day before the election, or
The organization's exempt functions are solely for the           15th day before the election, if the organization is posting 
purpose of influencing or attempting to influence the              the report by certified or registered mail.
selection, nomination, election, or appointment of any               This report must reflect all reportable contributions 
individual to any state or local political office or office in a   accepted and expenditures made through the 20th day 
state or local political organization.                             before the election.
                                                                   Post-general election report. File by the 30th day after the 
                                                                   general election. This report must reflect all reportable 

Oct 08, 2020                                               Cat. No. 30584F



- 2 -
Page 2 of 4        Fileid: … ns/I8872/202010/A/XML/Cycle04/source                                      13:24 - 8-Oct-2020

The type and rule above prints on all proofs including departmental reproduction proofs. MUST be removed before printing.

contributions accepted and expenditures made through the              your username and password to allow you to submit your 
20th day after the general election.                                  next filing on time.
  “Election” means:
A general, special, primary, or runoff election for a federal       Who Must Sign
office;                                                               Form 8872 must be signed by an official authorized by the 
A convention or caucus of a political party that has                organization to sign this report.
authority to nominate a candidate for federal office;
A primary election held for the selection of delegates to a         Penalty
national nominating convention of a political party; or               A penalty will be imposed if the organization is required to file 
A primary election held for the expression of a preference          Form 8872 and it:
for the nomination of individuals for election to the office of       Fails to file the form by the due date, or
President.                                                            Files the form but fails to report all of the information 
  “General election” means:                                           required or it reports incorrect information.
An election for a federal office held in even-numbered                The penalty is 21% for tax years beginning after 
years on the Tuesday following the first Monday in                    December 31, 2017 (35% for tax years beginning before 
November; or                                                          December 31, 2017) of the total amount of contributions and 
An election held to fill a vacancy in a federal office (that is,    expenditures to which a failure relates.
a special election) that is intended to result in the final 
selection of a single individual to the office at stake in a          Other Required Reports and Returns
general election.                                                     An organization that files Form 8872 may also be required to 
                                                                      file the following forms.
Odd-Numbered Years                                                    Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income 
The organization may opt to file its reports on either a              Tax, or Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization 
semiannual or monthly basis, but it must file on the same             Exempt From Income Tax (or other designated annual 
basis for the entire calendar year.                                   return).
Semiannual reports. File the mid-year report by July 31 for           Form 1120-POL, U.S. Income Tax Return for Certain 
                                                                      Political Organizations (annual return).
the period beginning January 1 through June 30. File the 
year-end report by January 31 of the following year for the           Public Inspection of Form 8872
period beginning July 1 and ending December 31.
                                                                      The IRS will make Form 8872 (including Schedules A and B) 
Monthly reports.  File the first report for the first month of        open to public inspection on the IRS website at IRS.gov/
the calendar year in which the organization accepts a                 polorgs. In addition, the organization must make available for 
contribution or makes an expenditure. Reports are due by the          public inspection a copy of this report during regular business 
20th day after the end of the month, except for the December          hours at the organization's principal office and at each of its 
report, which is due on January 31 of the following year. This        regional or district offices having at least 3 paid employees. A 
report must reflect all reportable contributions accepted and         penalty of $20 per day will be imposed on any person under 
expenditures made during the month for which the report is            a duty to comply with the public inspection requirement for 
being filed.                                                          each day a failure to comply continues. The maximum 
                                                                      penalty imposed on all persons for failures relating to one 
Where and How To File                                                 report is $10,000.
Form 8872 must be filed electronically.
                                                                      Telephone Assistance
  File using the IRS website at IRS.gov/polorgs. A 
                                                                      If you have questions or need help completing Form 8872, 
username and a password are required for electronically 
                                                                      please call 1-877-829-5500. This toll-free telephone service 
filing Form 8872. Organizations that have completed the 
                                                                      is available Monday through Friday.
electronic filing of Form 8871 and submitted a completed, 
signed Form 8453-X, Political Organization Declaration for            Exempt Organizations Update
Electronic Filing of Notice of Section 527 Status, will receive 
a username and a password in the mail. Organizations that             The IRS has established a new, subscription-based email 
have completed the electronic filing of Form 8871, but                service for tax professionals and representatives of 
haven't received their username and password, may request             tax-exempt organizations. Subscribers will receive periodic 
them by writing to the following address.                             updates from the IRS regarding exempt organization’s tax 
                                                                      law and regulations, available services, and other 
  Internal Revenue Service                                            information. To subscribe, visit IRS.gov/eo.
  Attn: Request for Form 8872
  Password Mail Stop 6273
  Ogden, UT 84201                                                     Specific Instructions

                                                                      Line A
  If you have forgotten or misplaced the username and 
password issued to your organization after you filed your             Enter the beginning and ending date for the period to which 
initial Form 8871 and Form 8453-X, please send a letter               this report relates. If the organization filed a prior report for 
requesting a new username and password to the above                   the calendar year, the beginning date must be the first day 
address. You may also fax your request to 801-620-3249. It            following the ending date shown on the prior report.

may take 3–6 weeks for your new username and password to              Line B
arrive, as they will be mailed to the organization. Submit your 
request as soon as possible after you discover the loss of            Check the "Initial report" box if this is the first Form 8872 
                                                                      filed by the organization for this period.

                                                                   -2-



- 3 -
Page 3 of 4  Fileid: … ns/I8872/202010/A/XML/Cycle04/source                                             13:24 - 8-Oct-2020

The type and rule above prints on all proofs including departmental reproduction proofs. MUST be removed before printing.

Check the "Change of address" box if the organization                  The organization must list on Schedule A each contributor 
changed its address since it last filed Form 8871, Form 8872,         from whom it accepted contributions during the calendar year 
Form 990 (or 990-EZ), or Form 1120-POL.                               if:
Check the "Amended report" box if the organization is filing         The aggregate amount of the contributions accepted from 
an amended report.                                                    that person during the calendar year as of the end of this 
Check the "Final report" box if the organization won't be           reporting period was at least $200, and
required to file Form 8872 in the future.                              Any of those contributions were accepted during this 
                                                                      reporting period.
Employer Identification Number (EIN)
Enter the correct EIN in the space provided as shown on the              Treat contributions as accepted if the contributor has 
Form 8871 the organization filed.                                     contracted or is otherwise obligated to make the contribution.
       DO NOT enter social security numbers on Form 8872                 In-kind contributions must be included. These 
                                                                      contributions may be identified by including “(In-kind)” in the 
CAUTION
  !    or on any attachments to this form.                            contributor's name field.
Foreign Address                                                          As an entry on the last page of Schedule A, enter the total 
                                                                      amount of all contributions received from contributors whose 
Enter the information in the following order: city or town, state 
                                                                      aggregate contributions were less than $200 and aren't 
or province, and country. Follow the country's practice for 
                                                                      reported elsewhere. Enter “Aggregate below Threshold” 
entering the postal code, if any. Don't abbreviate the country 
                                                                      instead of the contributor's name. Also enter your 
name.
                                                                      organization's address and the last day of the reporting 
Lines 5a and 5b                                                       period (for example, Jan. 31); and enter “N/A” for employer, 
                                                                      occupation, and date.
Enter the name and address of the person in possession of 
the organization's books and records.                                 Name of Contributor's Employer
Lines 6a and 6b                                                       If the contributor is an individual, enter the name of the 
                                                                      organization or person by whom the contributor is employed 
Enter the name and address of the person whom the public 
                                                                      (and not the name of his or her supervisor). If the individual is 
may contact for more information about the organization.
                                                                      self-employed, enter "Self-employed." If the individual isn't 
Lines 8a through 8h                                                   employed, enter “Not employed.” If the contributor isn't an 
                                                                      individual, enter “N/A.”
Check only one box. See When To File, earlier, for details on 
the types of reports and the periods covered.                         Contributor's Occupation
Line 8f. If the organization is filing on a monthly basis, enter      If the contributor is an individual, enter the principal job title or 
the month for which this report is being filed. During                position of that contributor. If the individual is self-employed, 
even-numbered years, don't check this box to report                   enter the principal job title or position of that contributor. If the 
October, November, or December activity. Instead, file a              individual isn't employed, enter a descriptive title to explain 
pre-general election report, post-general election report, a          the individual's status such as “Retired,” “Student,” 
year-end report; and check the appropriate box on line 8d,            “Homemaker,” or “Unemployed.” If the contributor isn't an 
8g, or 8h.                                                            individual, enter “N/A.”
Line 8g. If the organization is filing a pre-election report, also 
indicate the type of election (primary, general, convention,          Aggregate Year-to-Date Contributions
special, or runoff) on line 8g(1), the date of the election on        Enter the total amount of contributions accepted from the 
line 8g(2), and the state in which the election is held on            contributor during this calendar year as of the end of this 
line 8g(3).                                                           reporting period.

Line 8h. If the organization is filing a post-general election        Amount of Contribution
report, indicate the date of the election on line 8h(1) and the 
                                                                      If a contributor made more than one contribution in a 
state in which the election was held on line 8h(2).
                                                                      reporting period, report each contribution separately. If the 
Line 9                                                                contribution is an in-kind contribution, report the fair market 
                                                                      value of the contribution.
If the organization is required to file Schedule(s) A, enter the 
total of all subtotals shown on those schedules. If the               Non-Disclosed Amounts
organization isn't required to file Schedule A, enter zero.
                                                                      As the last entry on Schedule A, list the aggregate amount of 
Line 10                                                               contributions that are required to be reported on this 
If the organization is required to file Schedule(s) B, enter the      schedule for which the organization doesn't disclose all of the 
total of all subtotals shown on those schedules. If the               information required under section 527(j). Enter “Withheld” as 
organization isn't required to file Schedule B, enter zero.           the contributor's name. Enter the organization's address, the 
                                                                      date of the report, and “N/A” for occupation and employer. 
Schedule A—Itemized Contributions                                     This amount is subject to the penalty for the failure to provide 
Note.  Multiple Schedules A can be filed with any report.             all the information required. See Penalty for details, earlier.

Number each schedule in the box in the top right corner of            Schedule B—Itemized Expenditures
the schedule. Be sure to include both the number of the 
specific page and the total number of Schedules A (for                Note. Multiple Schedules B can be filed with any report. 
example, "Schedule A, page 2 of 5").                                  Number each schedule in the box in the top right corner of 
                                                                      the schedule. Be sure to include both the number of the 

                                                                   -3-



- 4 -
Page 4 of 4     Fileid: … ns/I8872/202010/A/XML/Cycle04/source                                          13:24 - 8-Oct-2020

The type and rule above prints on all proofs including departmental reproduction proofs. MUST be removed before printing.

specific page and the total number of Schedules B (for                 Amount of Each Expenditure Reported for This 
example, "Schedule B, page 2 of 10").                                  Period
  The organization must list on Schedule B each recipient to 
                                                                       Report each separate expenditure made to any person 
whom it made expenditures during the calendar year if:
                                                                       during the calendar year that wasn't reported in a prior 
The aggregate amount of expenditures made to that 
                                                                       reporting period. If the expenditure is an in-kind expenditure, 
person during the calendar year as of the end of this 
                                                                       report the fair market value of the expenditure.
reporting period was at least $500, and
Any of those expenditures were made during this reporting            Purpose
period.
                                                                       Describe the purpose of each separate expenditure.
  Treat expenditures as made if the organization has 
contracted or is otherwise obligated to make the expenditure.          Non-Disclosed Amounts
  In-kind expenditures must be included. These                         As the last entry on Schedule B, list the aggregate amount of 
expenditures may be identified by including “(In-kind)” in the         expenditures that are required to be reported on this 
purpose field.                                                         schedule for which the organization doesn't disclose all of the 
  As an entry on the last page of Schedule B, enter the total          information required under section 527(j). Enter “Withheld” as 
amount of all expenditures paid to recipients whose                    the recipient's name and as the purpose. Enter the 
aggregate receipts were less than $500 and aren't reported             organization's address, the date of the report, and “N/A” for 
elsewhere. Enter “Aggregate below Threshold” instead of the            occupation and employer. This amount is subject to the 
recipient's name. Also enter the organization's address and            penalty for the failure to provide all the information required. 
the last day of the reporting period (for example, Jan. 31);           See Penalty for details, earlier.
and enter “N/A” for employer, occupation, and date.
                                                                       Paperwork Reduction Act Notice.  We ask for the 
        Do not include any independent expenditures. An                information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue 
  !     “independent expenditure” means an expenditure by              laws of the United States. You are required to give us the 
CAUTION a person for a communication expressly advocating 
                                                                       information. We need it to ensure that you are complying with 
the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate that          these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the right 
isn't made with the cooperation or prior consent of, in                amount of tax. You are not required to provide the 
consultation with, or at the request or suggestion of, a               information requested on a form that is subject to the 
candidate or agent or authorized committee of a candidate.             Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid 
                                                                       OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or 
Name of Recipient's Employer                                           its instructions must be retained as long as their contents 
If the recipient is an individual, enter the name of the               may become material in the administration of any Internal 
organization or person by whom the recipient is employed               Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return information 
(and not the name of his or her supervisor). If the individual is      are confidential, as required by section 6103. However, 
self-employed, enter "Self-employed." If the individual isn't          certain returns and return information of tax exempt 
employed, enter “Not employed.” If the recipient isn't an              organizations and trusts are subject to public disclosure and 
individual, enter “N/A.”                                               inspection, as provided by section 6104. The time needed to 
                                                                       complete and file this form will vary depending on individual 
Recipient's Occupation                                                 circumstances. The estimated burden for tax exempt 
If the recipient is an individual, enter the principal job title or    organizations filing this form is approved under OMB control 
position of that recipient. If the individual is self-employed,        number 1545-0047 and is included in the estimates shown in 
enter the principal job title or position of that recipient. If the    the instructions for their information return.
individual isn't employed, enter a descriptive title to explain 
the individual's status such as “Volunteer.” If the recipient 
isn't an individual, enter “N/A.”

                                                                    -4-






PDF file checksum: 1881317565

(Plugin #1/8.13/12.0)