Form 1120-POL U.S. Income Tax Return for Certain Political Organizatio

1120-POL

Form
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

U.S. Income Tax Return for Certain Political Organizations

For calendar year 2012 or other tax year beginning
Check the box if this is a section 501(c) organization .

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2012
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Employer identification number

Name of organization

Check if:

, 2012, and ending
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OMB No. 1545-0129

Final return
Candidates for U.S. Congress Only

Number, street, and room or suite no. (If a P.O. box, see instructions.)

Name change

If this is a principal campaign committee, and it is the
ONLY political committee, check here .
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If this is a principal campaign committee, but is NOT
the only political committee, check here and attach a
copy of designation (see instructions.)
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Address change

Deductions

Income

Amended return

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a
b

Tax

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Dividends (attach statement) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gross rents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gross royalties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Capital gain net income (attach Schedule D (Form 1120)) . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Net gain or (loss) from Form 4797, Part II, line 17 (attach Form 4797) . . . . . . . . .
Other income and nonexempt function expenditures (see instructions) . . . . . . . . .
Total income. Add lines 1 through 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Salaries and wages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Repairs and maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Taxes and licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Depreciation (attach Form 4562) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Other deductions (attach statement) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Total deductions. Add lines 9 through 15
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Taxable income before specific deduction of $100 (see instructions). Section 501(c) organizations show:
Amount of net investment income . . . . . . . . . . . . . ▶
Aggregate amount expended for an exempt function (attach statement) . ▶
Specific deduction of $100 (not allowed for newsletter funds defined under section 527(g)) . .
Taxable income. Subtract line 18 from line 17c. (If line 19 is zero or less, see the instructions.)
Income tax. (see instructions) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tax credits. (Attach the applicable credit forms.) (see instructions) . . . . . . . . .
Total tax. Subtract line 21 from line 20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Payments: a Tax deposited with Form 7004 . . . . . . . .
23a
b Credit for tax paid on undistributed capital gains (attach Form 2439)
23b
c Credit for federal tax on fuels (attach Form 4136) . . .
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d Total payments. Add lines 23a through 23c . . . . . . . . . . .
Tax due. Subtract line 23d from line 22. See instructions for depository method of payment .
Overpayment. Subtract line 22 from line 23d
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Additional
Information

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23d
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At any time during the 2012 calendar year, did the organization have an interest in or a signature or
other authority over a financial account (such as a bank account, securities account, or other financial
account) in a foreign country? (see instructions) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
If “Yes,” enter the name of the foreign country ▶
During the tax year, did the organization receive a distribution from, or was it the grantor of, or transferor
to, a foreign trust? If “Yes,” the organization may have to file Form 3520 . . . . . . . . . .
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Enter the amount of tax-exempt interest received or accrued during the tax year . . . ▶
Date organization formed ▶
The books are in care of ▶
b Enter name of candidate ▶
d

The books are located at ▶

Yes

No

Yes

No

$

Telephone No. ▶

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined this return, including accompanying schedules and statements, and to the best of my knowledge and belief, it is true,
correct, and complete. Declaration of preparer (other than taxpayer) is based on all information of which preparer has any knowledge.

Paid
Preparer
Use Only

Signature of officer
Print/Type preparer’s name

Firm’s name

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Firm's address

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Date
Preparer's signature

For Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see instructions.

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Sign
Here

City or town, state, and ZIP code

May the IRS discuss this return with
the preparer shown below (see
instructions)?
Yes
No

Title
Date

PTIN
Check
if
self-employed
Firm's EIN ▶
Phone no.

Cat. No. 11523K

Form 1120-POL (2012)

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Form 1120-POL (2012)

Section references are to the Internal
Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.
Future developments. The IRS has
created a page on IRS.gov for
information about Form 1120-POL and
its instructions, at www.irs.gov/
form1120pol. Information about any
future developments affecting Form
1120-POL (such as legislation enacted
after we release it) will be posted on that
page.

General Instructions
Purpose of Form
Political organizations and certain
exempt organizations file Form 1120POL to report their political organization
taxable income and income tax liability
under section 527.

Phone Help
If you have questions and/or need help
completing Form 1120-POL, please call
1-877-829-5500. This toll-free telephone
service is available Monday through
Friday.

Who Must File
A political organization, whether or not it
is tax-exempt, must file Form 1120-POL
if it has any political organization taxable
income.
An exempt organization that is not a
political organization must file Form
1120-POL if it is treated as having
political organization taxable income
under section 527(f)(1).

Political Organizations
A political organization is a party,
committee, association, fund (including a
separate segregated fund described in
section 527(f)(3) set up by a section
501(c) organization), or other
organization, organized and operated
primarily for the purpose of accepting
contributions or making expenditures, or
both, to influence the selection,
nomination, election, or appointment of
any individual to any public office or
office in a political organization, or the
election of Presidential or Vice
Presidential electors. Political
organizations include a:
1. Principal campaign committee, if it
is the political committee designated by
a candidate for U.S. Congress as his or
her principal campaign committee for
purposes of section 302(e) of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 and
section 527(h).
If a candidate for U.S. Congress elects
to make a designation under section
527(h), he or she must designate the
principal campaign committee by
attaching a copy of the Statement of
Candidacy to Form 1120-POL. This can

be either the Federal Election
Commission’s Form 2 or an equivalent
statement filed with the Federal Election
Commission. The designation may also
be made by attaching a signed
statement with all of the following
information.
• The candidate’s name and address,
• The candidate’s identifying number,
• The candidate’s party affiliation and
office sought,
• The district and state in which the
office is sought, and
• The name and address of the principal
campaign committee.
Note. If the candidate for U.S. Congress
has a designation in effect from an
earlier year, attach a copy of the earlier
year’s designation to this year’s Form
1120-POL and check the appropriate
box on the form. See Regulations
section 1.527-9. If a candidate for U.S.
Congress has only one political
campaign committee, no designation is
required. However, be sure to check the
appropriate box on Form 1120-POL.
2. Newsletter fund, if it is a fund
established and maintained by an
individual who holds, has been elected
to, or is a candidate (as defined in
section 527(g)(3)) for nomination or
election to any federal, state, or local
elective public office. The fund must be
maintained exclusively for the
preparation and circulation of the
individual’s newsletter.
3. Separate segregated fund, if it is
maintained by a section 501(c)
organization (exempt from tax under
section 501(a)). For more information,
see section 527(f)(3) and Regulations
section 1.527-6(f).

Taxable Income
Political organization taxable income
(line 19) is the excess of (a) gross
income for the tax year (excluding
exempt function income (defined later))
over (b) deductions directly connected
with the earning of gross income
(excluding exempt function income).
Taxable income is figured with the
following adjustments.
1. A specific deduction of $100 is
allowed (but not for newsletter funds),
2. The net operating loss deduction is
not allowed, and
3. The dividends-received deduction
and other special deductions for
corporations are not allowed. See
section 527(c)(2)(C).
Effect of failure to file Form 8871.
Unless excepted (see Other Reports and
Returns That May Be Required), every
political organization, in order to be
considered a tax-exempt organization,
must file Form 8871, Political Organization

Notice of Section 527 Status. An
organization that is required to file Form
8871, but fails to file it when due, must
include in taxable income for the period
before Form 8871 is filed, its exempt
function income (including contributions
received, membership dues, and political
fundraising receipts), minus any
deductions directly connected with the
production of that income. The
organization may not deduct its exempt
function expenditures because section
162(e) denies a deduction for political
campaign expenditures.

Exempt Function and Exempt
Function Income
The exempt function of a political
organization includes all activities that
are related to and support the process of
influencing or attempting to influence the
selection, nomination, election, or
appointment of any individual to any
federal, state, or local public office, or
office of a political organization, or the
election of Presidential or Vice
Presidential electors, whether or not the
individuals or electors are selected,
nominated, elected, or appointed. The
term “exempt function” also means the
making of expenditures relating to the
individual’s office, once selected,
nominated, elected, or appointed, but
only if the expenditures would be
deductible by an individual under
section 162(a).
Exempt function income is the total of
all amounts received from the following
sources (to the extent that they are
separately segregated only for use for an
exempt function):
• Contributions of money and property;
• Membership dues, fees, or
assessments paid by a member of a
political party;
• Proceeds from a political fundraising or
entertainment event, or from the sale of
political campaign materials, if those
amounts are not received in the active
conduct of a trade or business; and
• Proceeds from the conduct of a bingo
game, as described in section 513(f)(2).

Specified Taxable Income
Newsletter fund. Taxable income of a
newsletter fund is figured in the same
manner as taxable income of a political
organization except that the specific
deduction of $100 is not allowed.
Exempt organization that is not a
political organization. Taxable income
for an exempt organization described in
section 501(c) that is not a political
organization is the smaller of:

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Form 1120-POL (2012)

1. The net investment income of the
organization for the tax year, or
2. The amount spent for an exempt
function during the tax year either
directly or indirectly through another
organization.
Net investment income, for this
purpose, is the excess of:
1. The gross amount of interest,
dividends, rents, and royalties, plus the
excess, if any, of gains from the sale or
exchange of assets, over the losses from
the sale or exchange of assets, over
2. The deductions directly connected
with the production of this income.
Taxable income is figured with the
adjustments shown in 1, 2, and 3 under
Taxable Income, earlier.

Who Must Sign
The return must be signed and dated by:
• The president, vice president,
treasurer, assistant treasurer, chief
accounting officer, or
• Any other officer (such as tax officer)
authorized to sign.
Receivers, trustees, and assignees
must also sign and date any return filed
on behalf of an organization.
If an employee of the organization
completes Form 1120-POL, the Paid
Preparer Use Only area should remain
blank. In addition, anyone who prepares
Form 1120-POL but does not charge the
organization should not complete that
section. Generally, anyone who is paid to
prepare the return must sign it and fill in
the Paid Preparer Use Only area.
The paid preparer must complete the
required preparer information and:
• Sign the return in the space provided
for the preparer’s signature.
• Give a copy of the return to the
taxpayer.
Note. A paid preparer may sign original
or amended returns by rubber stamp,
mechanical device, or computer
software program. Also, facsimile
signatures are authorized.

Paid Preparer Authorization
If the organization wants to allow the IRS
to discuss its 2012 tax return with the
paid preparer who signed it, check the
“Yes” box in the signature area of the
return. This authorization applies only to
the individual whose signature appears
in the Paid Preparer Use Only section of
the return. It does not apply to the firm, if
any, shown in that section.
If the “Yes” box is checked, the
organization is authorizing the IRS to call
the paid preparer to answer any
questions that may arise during the
processing of its return. The organization
is also authorizing the paid preparer to:

• Give the IRS any information that is
missing from its return,
• Call the IRS for information about the
processing of its return or the status of
any refund or payment(s), and
• Respond to certain IRS notices that the
organization may have shared with the
preparer about math errors, offsets, and
return preparation. The notices will not
be sent to the preparer.
The organization is not authorizing the
paid preparer to receive any refund
check, bind the organization to anything
(including any additional tax liability), or
otherwise represent it before the IRS. If
the organization wants to expand the
paid preparer’s authorization, see Pub.
947, Practice Before the IRS and Power
of Attorney.
However, the authorization will
automatically end no later than the due
date (excluding extensions) for filing the
2013 tax return. If you want to revoke the
authorization before it ends, see Pub.
947.

When and Where To File
In general, an organization must file
Form 1120-POL by the 15th day of the
3rd month after the end of the tax year.
If the due date falls on a Saturday,
Sunday, or legal holiday, the
organization may file on the next
business day.
File Form 1120-POL with the:
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service Center
Ogden, UT 84201
If the organization’s principal business,
office or agency is located in a foreign
country or a U.S. possession, the
address for mailing their return should
be:
Internal Revenue Service Center
P.O. Box 409101
Ogden, UT 84409
Private delivery services. In addition to
the United States mail, the organization
can use certain private delivery services
designated by the IRS to meet the
“timely mailing as timely filing/payment”
rule for tax returns and payments. These
private delivery services include only the
following.
• DHL Express (DHL): DHL Same Day
Service;
• Federal Express (FedEx): FedEx
Priority Overnight, FedEx Standard
Overnight, FedEx 2Day, FedEx
International Priority, and FedEx
International First; and
• United Parcel Service (UPS): UPS Next
Day Air, UPS Next Day Air Saver, UPS
2nd Day Air, UPS 2nd Day Air A.M., UPS
Worldwide Express Plus, and UPS
Worldwide Express.

The private delivery service can tell
you how to get written proof of the
mailing date.
Overnight deliveries should be mailed
to:
Internal Revenue Service
1973 Rulon White Blvd.
Ogden, UT 84404
Extension. File Form 7004, Application
for Automatic Extension of Time To File
Certain Business Income Tax,
Information, and Other Returns, to
request a 6-month extension of time to
file.

Other Reports and Returns
That May Be Required
An organization that files Form 1120POL may also be required to file the
following forms.
1. Form 8871, Political Organization
Notice of Section 527 Status.
Generally, to be tax-exempt, a
political organization must file this form
within 24 hours of the date it is
established and within 30 days of any
material change in the organization.
However, do not file this form if the
organization is:
• An organization that reasonably
expects its annual gross receipts to
always be less than $25,000,
• A political committee required to report
under the Federal Election Campaign Act
of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.),
• A political committee of a state or
local candidate,
• A state or local committee of a
political party, or
• A tax-exempt organization described
in section 501(c) that is treated as
having political organization taxable
income under section 527(f)(1).
2. Form 8872, Political Organization
Report of Contributions and
Expenditures (periodic reports are
required during the calendar year).
Generally, a political organization that
files Form 8871 and accepts a
contribution or makes an expenditure for
an exempt function during the calendar
year must file this form. However, this
form is not required to be filed by an
organization excepted from filing Form
8871 (see above), or a qualified state or
local political organization (QSLPO) (see
the Instructions for Form 8871 and Rev.
Rul. 2003-49, 2003-20 I.R.B. 903, for the
definition of a QSLPO).
3. Form 990, Return of Organization
Exempt From Income Tax, or
Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of
Organization Exempt From Income Tax.
An exempt political organization must
also file one of these forms if its annual
gross receipts are $25,000 or more
($100,000 or more for a QSLPO).

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Form 1120-POL (2012)

The following political organizations
are not required to file Form 990.
• Any political organization excepted
from the requirement to file Form 8871,
and
• Any caucus or association of state or
local officials.
See the instructions for Form 990 or
Form 990-EZ.

Accounting Methods
Figure taxable income using the method
of accounting regularly used in keeping
the organization’s books and records.
Generally, permissible methods include:
• Cash,
• Accrual, or
• Any other method authorized by the
Internal Revenue Code.
In all cases, the method used must
clearly show taxable income.
Change in accounting method.
Generally, the organization may only
change the method of accounting used
to report taxable income (for income as
a whole or for any material item) by
getting consent on Form 3115,
Application for Change in Accounting
Method. For more information, see Pub.
538, Accounting Periods and Methods.

Accounting Period
The organization must figure its taxable
income on the basis of a tax year. The
tax year is the annual accounting period
the organization uses to keep its records
and report its income and expenses if
that period is a calendar year or a fiscal
year. However, an organization that does
not keep books or does not have an
annual accounting period must use the
calendar year as its tax year. A new
organization must adopt its tax year by
the due date (not including extensions)
of its first income tax return.
Change of tax year. After the
organization has adopted a tax year, it
must get the consent of the IRS to
change its tax year by filing Form 1128,
Application To Adopt, Change, or Retain
a Tax Year. See Regulations section
1.442-1 and Pub. 538.

Rounding Off to Whole
Dollars
The organization may round off cents to
whole dollars on the return and
accompanying schedules. If the
organization does round to whole
dollars, it must round all amounts. To
round, drop amounts under 50 cents
and increase amounts from 50 to 99
cents to the next dollar. For example,
$1.39 becomes $1 and $2.50 becomes
$3.

If two or more amounts must be
added to figure the amount to enter on a
line, include cents when adding the
amounts and round off only the total.

Federal Tax Deposits Must
be Made by Electronic
Funds Transfer
You must use electronic funds transfer
to make all federal deposits (such as
deposits of estimated tax, employment
tax, and excise tax). Forms 8109 and
8109-B, Federal Tax Deposit Coupon,
are no longer in use. Generally,
electronic fund transfers are made using
the Electronic Federal Tax Payment
System (EFTPS). If you do not want to
use EFTPS, you can arrange for your tax
professional, financial institution, payroll
service, or other trusted third party to
make deposits on your behalf. Also you
may arrange for your financial institution
to initiate a same day wire payment on
your behalf. EFTPS is a free service
provided by the Department of Treasury.
Services provided by your tax
professional, financial institution, payroll
services, or other third party may have a
fee. To get more information about
EFTPS or to enroll in EFTPS, visit
www.eftps.gov or call 1-800-555-4477.
Additional information about EFTPS is
available in Publication 966, Electronic
Federal Tax Payment System A Guide To
Getting Started.
Deposits on business days only. If a
deposit is required to be made on a day
that is not a business day, the deposit is
considered timely if it is made by the
close of the next business day. A
business day is any day other than
Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. For
example, if a deposit is required to be
made on a Friday and Friday is a legal
holiday, the deposit will be considered
timely if it is made by the following
Monday (if that Monday is a business
day). The term "legal holiday" means any
legal holiday in the District of Columbia.
If the organization owes tax
when it files Form 1120-POL,
do not include the payment
CAUTION
with the tax return. Instead,
use EFTPS.

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Interest and Penalties
Interest
Interest is charged on taxes paid late
even if an extension of time to file is
granted. Interest is also charged on
penalties imposed for failure to file,
negligence, fraud, gross valuation
overstatements, and substantial
understatement of tax from the due date
(including extensions) to the date of
payment. The interest charge is figured
at a rate determined under section 6621.

Penalties
Penalties may be imposed if the
organization is required to file Form
1120-POL and it fails to file the form by
the due date. The following penalties
may apply if the organization does not
file its tax return by the due date,
including extensions.
Late filing of return. The organization
may be charged a penalty of 5% of the
unpaid tax for each month or part of a
month the return is late, up to a
maximum of 25% of the unpaid tax. The
minimum penalty for a return that is
more than 60 days late is the smaller of
the tax due or $135. If you receive a
notice about a penalty after you file this
return, reply to the notice with an
explanation and we will determine if you
meet reasonable-cause criteria. Do not
include an explanation when you file
your return.
Late payment of tax. An organization
that does not pay the tax when due
generally may have to pay a penalty of
1/2 of 1% of the unpaid tax for each
month or part of a month the tax is not
paid, up to a maximum of 25% of the
unpaid tax. If you receive a notice about
a penalty after you file this return, reply
to the notice with an explanation and we
will determine if you meet reasonablecause criteria. Do not include an
explanation when you file your return.
Other penalties. Other penalties can be
imposed for negligence, substantial
understatement of tax, and fraud. See
sections 6662 and 6663.

Assembling the Return
Attach Form 4136, Credit for Federal
Tax Paid on Fuels, after page 1 of Form
1120-POL. Attach schedules in
alphabetical order and other forms in
numerical order after Form 4136.
Complete every applicable entry
space on Form 1120-POL. Do not write
“See attached” instead of completing
the entry spaces. If you need more
space on the forms or schedules, attach
separate sheets using the same size and
format as on the printed forms. Show the
totals on the printed forms. Attach these
separate sheets after all the schedules
and forms. Be sure to put the
organization’s name and EIN on each
sheet.

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Form 1120-POL (2012)

Specific Instructions
Period covered. File the 2012 return for
calendar year 2012 and fiscal years that
begin in 2012 and end in 2013. For a
fiscal year, fill in the tax year space at
the top of the form.
Note. The 2012 Form 1120-POL may
also be used if:
• The organization has a tax year of less
than 12 months that begins and ends in
2013, and
• The 2013 Form 1120-POL is not
available at the time the organization is
required to file its return. The
organization must show its 2013 tax year
on the 2012 Form 1120-POL and take
into account any tax law changes that
are effective for tax years beginning after
December 31, 2012.
Address. Include the suite, room, or
other unit number after the street
address. If the Post Office does not
deliver mail to the street address and the
organization has a P.O. box, show the
box number instead of the street
address.
Final return, name change, address
change, amended return. If the
organization ceases to exist, check the
“Final return” box.
If the organization has changed its
name since it last filed a return, check
the “Name change” box.
If the organization has changed its
address since it last filed a return, check
the “Address change” box.
Note. If a change in address occurs
after the return is filed, the organization
should use Form 8822-B, Change of
Address—Business, to notify the IRS of
the new address.
Amended return. If you are filing an
amended Form 1120-POL:
• Check the “Amended return” box,
• Complete the entire return,
• Correct the appropriate lines with the
new information, and
• Refigure the tax liability.
Attach a sheet that explains the
reason for the amendments and
identifies the lines and amounts being
changed on the amended return.
Generally, the amended return must be
filed within 3 years after the date the
original return was due or 3 years after
the date the organization filed it,
whichever is later.
Employer identification number (EIN).
Enter the nine-digit EIN assigned to the
organization. If the organization does not
have an EIN, it must apply for one. An
EIN can be applied for:

• Online by clicking the Employer ID
Numbers (EINs) link at www.irs.gov/
businesses/small. The EIN is issued
immediately once the application
information is validated.
• By telephone at 1-800-829-4933.
The online application process is not
yet available for organizations with
addresses in foreign countries.
If the organization has not received its
EIN by the time the return is due, write
“Applied for” in the space provided for
the EIN. See Pub. 583 for details.
Income and deductions. Campaign
contributions and other exempt function
income are generally not includible in
income; likewise, campaign expenditures
and other exempt function expenditures
are not deductible. To be deductible in
computing political organization taxable
income, expenses must be directly
connected with the production of
political organization taxable income. In
those cases where expenses are
attributable to the production of both
exempt function income and political
organization taxable income, the
expenses should be allocated on a
reasonable and consistent basis. Only
the portion allocable to the production of
political organization taxable income
may be deducted. No deduction is
allowed for general administrative or
indirect expenses.
Line 7. Other income and nonexempt
function expenditures. Enter the
income from other sources, such as:
• Exempt function income that was not
properly segregated for exempt
functions.
• Income received in the ordinary course
of a trade or business.
• Ordinary income from the trade or
business activities of a partnership
(from Schedule K-1 (Form 1065), Part III,
box 1).
• Exempt function income (minus any
deductions directly connected with the
production of that income) taxable under
section 527(i)(4) for failure to timely file
Form 8871. Include amounts whether or
not segregated for use for an exempt
function.
Also include on this line:
• Expenditures that were made from
exempt function income that were not
for an exempt function and resulted in
direct or indirect financial benefit to the
political organization (see Regulations
section 1.527-5 for examples) and
• Illegal expenditures.
Attach a schedule listing all income
and expenditures included on line 7.
Line 17. Taxable income before
specific deduction of $100. Political
organizations, newsletter funds, and

separate segregated funds compute
their tax by subtracting line 16 from line
8 and enter the result on line 17(c).
Exempt organizations (section
501(c)) that are not political
organizations. Complete lines 17a and
17b if the organization made exempt
function expenditures that were not from
a separate segregated fund. Enter on
line 17c the smaller of line 17a or 17b.
See Exempt organization that is not a
political organization, earlier, for an
explanation of the amounts to enter on
these lines.
Line 19. Taxable income. If the taxable
income on line 19 is zero or less, the
Form 1120-POL is not required to be
filed, but it may be filed to start the
statute of limitations period.
Line 20. Income tax. The rate of tax
imposed depends on whether the
political organization is a principal
campaign committee as defined in
section 527(h). The tax rate is lower for a
principal campaign committee.
Political organization not a principal
campaign committee. An organization
that is not a principal campaign
committee computes its tax by
multiplying line 19 by 35% and enters
the result on line 20.
Principal campaign committee
(section 527(h)). A political organization
that is a principal campaign committee
of a candidate for U.S. Congress
computes its tax in the same manner as
provided in section 11(b) for
corporations. Compute the tax as
follows:
1.

Enter taxable income (line
19, Form 1120-POL) . .

2.

Enter line 1 or $50,000,
whichever is less . .

3.

Subtract line 2 from line 1

4.

Enter line 3 or $25,000,
whichever is less . .

5.

Subtract line 4 from line 3

6.

Enter line 5 or $9,925,000,
whichever is less . . .

7.

Subtract line 6 from line 5

8.

Multiply line 2 by 15% .

.

9.

Multiply line 4 by 25% .

.

10.

Multiply line 6 by 34% .

.

11.

Multiply line 7 by 35% .

.

12.

If line 1 is greater than
$100,000, enter the smaller
of: 5% of taxable income in
excess of $100,000, or
$11,750
. . . . .

13.

If line 1 is greater than $15
million, enter the smaller of:
3% of taxable income in
excess of $15 million or
$100,000 . . . . .

14.

Add lines 8 through 13.
Enter here and on line 20,
Form 1120-POL . . .

.

.

Page 6

Form 1120-POL (2012)

Note. Estimated tax and alternative
minimum tax do not apply to political
organizations.
Line 21. Tax credits. The organization
may qualify for the following credits:
• Foreign tax credit. See Form 1118,
Foreign Tax Credit—Corporations.
• Qualified electric vehicle credit. See
Form 8834, Qualified Plug-in Electric and
Electric Vehicle Credit, and section 30.
• General business credit (excluding
the small employer health insurance
premium credit, and the work
opportunity credit). See Form 3800,
General Business Credit.
Enter the total amount of qualified
credits on line 21 and attach the
applicable credit forms.
Line 22. Total tax. If the political
organization must recapture any of the
qualified electric vehicle credit, include
the amount of the recapture in the total
for line 22. On the dotted line next to the
entry space, write “QEV recapture” and
the amount. See Regulations section
1.30-1 for details on how to figure the
recapture.

Additional Information
Question 1
Foreign financial accounts. Check the
“Yes” box if either 1 or 2 below applies
to the organization. Otherwise, check the
“No” box.
1. At any time during the 2012
calendar year the organization had an
interest in or signature or other authority
over a bank, securities, or other financial
account in a foreign country;
• The combined value of the accounts
was more than $10,000 at any time
during the calendar year; and
• The account was not with a U.S.
military banking facility operated by a
U.S. financial institution.

2. The organization owns more than
50% of the stock in any corporation that
would answer “Yes” to item 1 above.
See Form TD F 90-22.1, Report of
Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, to
find out if the organization is considered
to have an interest in or signature or
other authority over a financial account
in a foreign country.
If “Yes” is checked for this question,
file Form TD F 90-22.1 by June 30, 2013,
with the Department of the Treasury at
the address shown on the form. Do not
attach it to Form 1120-POL.
If the due date falls on a Saturday,
Sunday, or legal holiday, the
organization must file on the next
business day.
You can get Form TD F 90-22.1 by
calling 1-800-TAX-FORM
(1-800-829-3676) or you can download it
from IRS.gov.
Also, if “Yes” is checked for this
question, enter the name of the foreign
country or countries. Attach a separate
sheet if more space is needed.

Question 2
If you checked “Yes” to Question 2, the
organization may be required to file Form
3520, Annual Return To Report
Transactions With Foreign Trusts and
Receipt of Certain Foreign Gifts. For
details, see Form 3520.
Note. An owner of a foreign trust must
ensure that the trust files an annual
information return on Form 3520-A,
Annual Information Return of Foreign
Trust With a U.S. Owner. For details, see
the Instructions for Form 3520-A.

Question 3
In the space provided, show any taxexempt interest income received or
accrued. Include any exempt-interest
dividends received as a shareholder in a
mutual fund or other regulated
investment company.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We
ask for the information on this form to
carry out the Internal Revenue laws of
the United States. You are required to
give us the information. We need it to
ensure that you are complying with these
laws and to allow us to figure and collect
the right amount of tax.
You are not required to provide the
information requested on a form that is
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unless the form displays a valid OMB
control number. Books or records
relating to a form or its instructions must
be retained as long as their contents
may become material in the
administration of any Internal Revenue
law. Generally, tax returns and return
information are confidential, as required
by section 6103.
The time needed to complete and file
this form will vary depending on
individual circumstances. The estimated
average time is:
Recordkeeping . . . 17 hr., 13 min.
Learning about the
law or the form . . . . 5 hr., 15 min.
Preparing the form. . 12 hr., 17 min.
Copying, assembling,
and sending the form
to the IRS . . . . . . 1 hr., 52 min.
If you have comments concerning the
accuracy of these time estimates or
suggestions for making this form
simpler, we would be happy to hear
from you. You can write to:
Internal Revenue Service
Tax Products Coordinating Committee
SE:W:CAR:MP:T:M:S
1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6526
Washington, DC 20224
Do not send the tax form to this
address. See When and Where To File
on page 3.