Home / Resources / Nonprofits that lost tax-exempt status, by state / Puerto Rico

Ember study · IRS data, 2021 to 2025

Puerto Rico nonprofits that lost tax-exempt status

Updated October 2026

Each year from 2021 to 2025, 49.5 of every 1,000 Puerto Rico organizations that have to file lost tax-exempt status for missed filings. Across the 50 states and DC, it was 34.4. Its own rate is higher than any state's, and in 2025 alone 122 organizations there lost status, 57.6 per 1,000.

  • 49.5 per 1,000lost status each year, 2021 to 2025. The rate for the 50 states and DC: 34.4. Not ranked: Puerto Rico is a territory.
  • 525organizations lost status from 2021 to 2025, about 105 a year.
  • 122lost status in 2025, or 57.6 per 1,000 required to file.
  • 2,120Puerto Rico organizations must file an annual return, and 51.4% of them file the Form 990-N e‑Postcard.

Source: IRS Automatic Revocation of Exemption List (revocations posted through September 29, 2026) and IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File (September 8, 2026); Ember analysis.

Before the numbers: many organizations on the list had already wound down and never told the IRS, and revocation is how the IRS clears them off its books. A name on the list doesn't mean anyone did something wrong.

Puerto Rico against the country

Organizations that lost tax-exempt status for every 1,000 required to file, each year from 2021 to 2025.

0102030405060Puerto Rico49.5Georgia (highest state)48.6All 50 states and DC34.4Iowa (lowest state)19.6
Source: IRS Automatic Revocation of Exemption List (revocations posted through September 29, 2026) and IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File (September 8, 2026); Ember analysis.

What a nonprofit in Puerto Rico can do

  • Look yourself up. Type your organization's name or EIN into the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. It tells you if you're on the revocation list, and whether you've been reinstated since. Or use Ember's free tax-exempt status check.
  • Know your form and your date. If your gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less, you can usually file the Form 990-N e-Postcard online. For a year that ends December 31, it's due May 15. The Form 990 finder tells you which return is yours, and the Form 990 deadline guide has the day it's due.
  • File late rather than not at all. A late return still counts if it reaches the IRS before the third missed due date.
  • Already lost it? There's a way back, and every route starts with a new exemption application. Our reinstatement guide walks through each route, step by step. Our post on automatic revocation explains what losing status means day to day.

Want a reminder before every deadline? Ember Compliance tracks them for you, free if your budget is under $50K a year.

How Puerto Rico compares

Its rate is above every state's, Georgia's 48.6 included. But Puerto Rico isn't ranked with the states. It's a territory, and with only 2,120 organizations required to file, its rate rests on smaller numbers than any state's.

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Every state

Pick a region to narrow the list.

How we counted

We counted every revocation on the IRS Automatic Revocation of Exemption List that took effect from 2021 through 2025 and placed each in the state on its IRS record. For the rate, we divided by the number of organizations in each state that must file an annual return, from the IRS Business Master File for September 2026. Churches and others that don't have to file can't lose status this way, so they're left out. The full study has the method and what the data can't tell you.

This page reports public IRS data. It is general information, not legal or tax advice. To check a particular organization, use the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search.

Sources: IRS, Automatic Revocation of Exemption List (revocations posted through September 29, 2026; downloaded October 7, 2026); IRS, Exempt Organizations Business Master File extract (posted September 8, 2026; downloaded October 7, 2026); IRS, Form 990-N (e-Postcard) and Annual exempt organization return: due date (read October 9, 2026). Counts, rates and rankings are Ember's analysis of the IRS files (the full study); the chart and the CSV are free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with a link to the study.

Common questions

How many nonprofits in Puerto Rico lost tax-exempt status?

From 2021 to 2025, 525 Puerto Rico organizations lost federal tax-exempt status for missed filings, about 105 a year. In 2025, 122 lost it. Source: IRS Automatic Revocation of Exemption List and Business Master File, September 2026; Ember analysis.

How does Puerto Rico compare with the states?

Its rate, 49.5 per 1,000 organizations required to file per year from 2021 to 2025, is higher than any state's (Georgia's is the highest at 48.6; the national rate is 34.4). Puerto Rico isn't ranked: it's a territory, and only 2,120 organizations there must file. Source: IRS Automatic Revocation of Exemption List and Business Master File, September 2026; Ember analysis.

How can I check whether a Puerto Rico nonprofit lost its tax-exempt status?

Search for it by name or EIN in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. It shows whether the organization is on the automatic revocation list, and whether it has been reinstated.

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