Time is running short for nonprofit organizations who haven’t filed tax returns for the past three years to take advantage of a one-time relief program offered by the IRS and file past due tax returns. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 mandated that most tax-exempt organizations must file an annual return or submit an electronic notice with the IRS. It also requires that any tax-exempt organization that fails to file for three consecutive years should automatically lose its federal tax-exempt status. The IRS is allowing nonprofit organizations, which should otherwise have filed returns for 2007, 2008 and 2009, to file the Form 990 income tax return for nonprofits, by October 15, 2010 in order to maintain and preserve their tax-exempt status. Small nonprofit organizations at risk of losing their tax-exempt status due to failure to file may include local sports associations and community support groups, volunteer fire and ambulance associations and their auxiliaries, social clubs, educational societies, veterans groups, church-affiliated groups, groups designed to assist those with special needs and a variety of others.