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

Ember study · IRS data, 2021 to 2025

Texas nonprofits that lost tax-exempt status

Updated October 2026

Texas's rate is the 12th-highest of the 50 states and DC. From 2021 to 2025, 37.2 of every 1,000 organizations required to file lost tax-exempt status each year, against 34.4 nationally. By count, only California had more organizations lose status: 23,873 in Texas over five years, about 4,775 a year.

  • 37.2 per 1,000lost status each year, 2021 to 2025, the 12th-highest rate of the 50 states and DC. National rate: 34.4.
  • 23,873organizations lost status from 2021 to 2025, about 4,775 a year. Second-most of the 50 states and DC.
  • 4,845lost status in 2025, or 37.7 per 1,000 required to file.
  • 128,452Texas organizations must file an annual return, and 64.5% 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.

Texas against the country

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

0102030405060Georgia (highest state)48.6Texas37.2All 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 Texas 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.

Texas in the South

Of the 16 Southern states and DC, Texas has the eighth-highest rate. The table lists them from the highest rate down; rank 1 is the highest of the 50 states and DC and rank 51 the lowest.

StatePer 1,000 a yearRank of 51
Georgia48.61
Louisiana44.83
Florida42.95
Arkansas40.77
North Carolina39.98
Maryland38.89
Oklahoma38.610
Texas (this page)37.212
Mississippi36.513
Alabama36.514
Kentucky34.719
Virginia34.520
Tennessee33.725
West Virginia33.626
South Carolina33.427
District of Columbia31.929
Delaware26.643

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Every state

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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 Texas lost tax-exempt status?

From 2021 to 2025, 23,873 Texas organizations lost federal tax-exempt status for missed filings, about 4,775 a year. In 2025, 4,845 lost it. Source: IRS Automatic Revocation of Exemption List and Business Master File, September 2026; Ember analysis.

How does Texas compare with other states?

Texas has the 12th-highest rate of the 50 states and DC: 37.2 of every 1,000 organizations required to file lost tax-exempt status each year from 2021 to 2025, against 34.4 nationally. In the South, it ranks eighth of 17. Source: IRS Automatic Revocation of Exemption List and Business Master File, September 2026; Ember analysis.

How can I check whether a Texas 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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