- Serving Taxpayers Since 1993
- File In Person or Fully Virtual
- Year-Round Help, Not Just Tax Season
- Nonprofit & Church Specialists
- Flexible Refund & Payment Options
Plenty of Katy charities frame their IRS letter and assume the tax side is finished. In Texas it isn’t. Franchise tax and sales tax exemption come from the Texas Comptroller, and only after you apply. Property tax exemption comes from the county appraisal district. We help nonprofits and churches in Katy file each piece in order, so you stop paying state taxes you may not owe.
When You Need Texas Nonprofit Tax Exemption
The time to apply is soon after your IRS determination letter arrives. Signs you skipped it: stores still charge you sales tax on supplies, a franchise tax notice came from the Comptroller, or a vendor asked for an exemption certificate you don’t have. The Comptroller is direct about it. Until an entity is granted franchise tax exemption, it must file franchise tax reports and pay any tax due.
Churches need this step too. Texas does not exempt a congregation on its own. The Comptroller’s page for religious organizations says a qualifying group must apply, and that it does not need a federal exemption to qualify.
Our Texas Nonprofit Tax Exemption Process
For a 501(c)(3), the form is AP-204, the Texas Application for Exemption for federal and all other groups. The Comptroller’s page on 501(c)(3) exemptions says these groups are exempt from franchise tax and sales tax. You send a copy of your IRS letter with any addenda. The name on that letter must match the legal name on your Certificate of Formation, and if the letter is more than four years old you need a current verification letter from the IRS. We check those details before anything goes in.
Churches that meet regularly for worship at a set place use a different form, AP-209. Once you are approved, we help you use the exemption the right way. You give vendors a Texas exemption certificate when you buy, and you keep track of what you sell, since the exemption covers purchases, not sales.
Texas Nonprofit Tax Exemption Cost in Katy
Our fee depends on what you need. A group with a fresh IRS letter and a matching legal name takes little time. An old letter, a name change since formation, or several years of franchise tax notices to sort out adds work. Property tax questions depend on how many parcels you own and which district handles them. You get our fee before we start.
Property Tax and the Appraisal District
Property tax runs on a separate track. The Comptroller’s property tax exemptions page says applications go to the appraisal district in the county where the property sits, and the general deadline is before May 1. The chief appraiser makes the call. Katy covers parts of Fort Bend, Harris and Waller counties, so a church on one side of the county line deals with the Fort Bend Central Appraisal District while a ministry a few miles east deals with Harris County’s. We explain what the district will ask for and help you gather the records. The decision, and any appeal, stays with the district.
Why Choose Us for Texas Nonprofit Tax Exemption
Most offices stop at the IRS. We keep going, because state filings are where many Texas groups slip. We have prepared taxes since 1993, and nonprofit work is central to our office. One team can carry you from the IRS letter to the Comptroller approval and your yearly 990, so a lapse in one does not quietly undo the other. Visit us on Kingsland Boulevard or work with us online.
This filing is part of everything we handle for Texas ministries and charities.
Common Questions
Does our Texas exemption last forever?
Not if it rests on federal status. The Comptroller says losing your federal exemption automatically ends a state exemption based on it. Filing your yearly 990 on time protects both.
Can we hold fundraisers without collecting sales tax?
Sometimes. Qualifying nonprofits and churches can hold two one-day tax-free sales or auctions each calendar year. Outside those days, taxable items you sell generally need sales tax collected, and you may need a sales tax permit.
Our church rents space in a school. Do we need a property tax exemption?
Not for space you rent. Property tax exemption applies to property the church owns. If you buy land later, apply with the appraisal district in that county.