How to Fill Out and File California Form CT-TR-1: Deadlines and Penalties

California Form CT-TR-1, the Annual Treasurer’s Report, is a one-page filing that small registered charities submit to the Attorney General’s Registry of Charities and Fundraisers each year. If your organization’s total revenue is under $50,000 and you don’t file IRS Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-PF, this is your annual state report. It has to be mailed together with Form RRF-1 and the renewal fee, and it’s due four months and fifteen days after your fiscal year ends.¹

Who Has to File CT-TR-1

Charitable corporations, unincorporated associations, and trustees registered with the California Attorney General file annual reports under Government Code section 12586. The CT-TR-1 is the simplified version, meant for registered charities with less than $50,000 in total revenue for the fiscal year.¹

One exception matters at the outset: if your organization files IRS Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-PF, you send a copy of that federal return to the Registry instead of CT-TR-1, even if your revenue is under $50,000.² Some organizations are exempt from Registry reporting entirely, including religious congregations, hospitals, and schools that meet specific statutory criteria.

What to Have Ready

The form is short, but the numbers on it come from books that need to be reconciled first. Pull these together before you start:

State Charity Registration Number, from your original registration confirmation.
Corporation or Organization Number issued by the California Secretary of State, if you incorporated.
Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN).
Exact beginning and ending dates of the fiscal year you’re reporting.
General ledger, bank statements, and any investment or property records for the year, with ending balances for every asset and liability and a full breakdown of revenue and expenses.

Round every dollar figure to the nearest whole dollar.¹ If your books don’t reconcile internally, the Registry may return the filing as incomplete.

Filling Out the Form

Download the current CT-TR-1 PDF from the California Attorney General’s website. Three sections do the work: identification, a balance sheet, and a revenue statement.

Identification

Enter your organization’s full legal name exactly as it appears on your registration, the street address, city, state, and ZIP, plus the three ID numbers above. Add the fiscal year’s beginning and ending dates. A name or registration number that doesn’t match Registry records is one of the easier ways to stall your filing.

Balance Sheet

The balance sheet shows where the organization stood financially at fiscal year-end. It has three parts:¹

Assets: Cash, Savings, Investments, Land/Buildings, and Other Assets. Cash reflects the ending balance across all your bank accounts. Add them for Total Assets.
Liabilities: Accounts Payable, Salary Payable, and Other Liabilities. Add them for Total Liabilities.
Fund Balance: Total Assets minus Total Liabilities. That single figure is the organization’s net worth at year-end.

Revenue Statement

The revenue statement covers the whole fiscal year rather than the year-end snapshot.

Revenue line items: Cash Contributions, Noncash Contributions, Program Revenue, Investments, Special Events, and Other Revenue. Add them for Total Revenue. This is the number that determines whether you qualify to use CT-TR-1 at all. It has to be under $50,000.

Expense line items: Compensation of Officers/Directors, Compensation of Staff, Fundraising Expenses, Rent, Utilities, Supplies/Postage, Insurance, and Other Expenses. Add them, then subtract Total Expenses from Total Revenue for Net Revenue.

Signature

One authorized agent signs, under penalty of perjury, that the report is true, correct, and complete. Print the signer’s name, title, and the date next to the signature.¹ This is usually the president, treasurer, or executive director, or whoever the organization has authorized to sign official filings.

Filing With Form RRF-1

You can’t submit CT-TR-1 by itself. It goes in the same envelope as Form RRF-1, the Annual Registration Renewal Fee Report, which every registered charity files regardless of size.³ RRF-1 collects basic organizational information and the annual renewal fee.

For organizations with less than $50,000 in total revenue, the RRF-1 fee is $25.⁴ Make the check or money order payable to the California Department of Justice. CT-TR-1 itself has no separate fee, but leaving out the RRF-1 or its fee leaves the filing incomplete.

Where to Send It and When It’s Due

Mail the completed CT-TR-1, Form RRF-1, and payment to:

Registry of Charities and Fundraisers
P.O. Box 903447
Sacramento, CA 94203-4470¹

The deadline is four months and fifteen days after fiscal year-end. For a calendar-year organization, that’s May 15.¹ For a fiscal year ending June 30, it’s November 15. The postmark date is what counts, so mailing on the due date still meets the deadline.

The Registry has been developing an Online Filing Service, and as of 2026 it is expanding to cover all existing registrants and submission types, though charities registered before October 2025 may not yet have access.⁵ Until your organization has electronic access, mail is the only option. Keep a signed copy of both forms and proof of mailing.

If You Miss the Deadline

A late filing sets off a sequence. Registry status moves from current to Delinquent, then Suspended, then Revoked if the organization never responds.⁶

Late fees begin at $25 per month or partial month, starting on the 31st day after the Registry mails its first delinquency notice.⁷ They cannot be waived. Fees keep accruing until every requirement in the Registry’s Notice of Intent to Suspend or Revoke is satisfied.⁶ Losing good standing can also affect bank accounts, insurance coverage, and grants.

If registration is revoked, reinstatement requires a formal petition to the Registrar with all overdue filings and fees, proof of good standing with the IRS, the Franchise Tax Board, and the Secretary of State, an explanation of the lapse, and a showing that it won’t happen again.⁶ Reinstatement is not guaranteed.

CT-TR-1 Doesn’t Cover Your Federal Filing

Filing CT-TR-1 with California is separate from your federal obligation. Most small tax-exempt organizations with gross receipts normally at or below $50,000 also have to file IRS Form 990-N, the e-Postcard, each year.⁸ The 990-N is filed electronically and asks only for your EIN, tax year, legal name, mailing address, principal officer, and confirmation that gross receipts remain within the threshold.

Missing the 990-N for three consecutive years automatically revokes federal tax-exempt status.⁹ Getting exemption back means reapplying through Form 1023 or 1023-EZ and paying the user fee.¹⁰ A federal revocation also drops the organization out of state compliance, because the Registry requires IRS good standing for reinstatement.

1
Office of the Attorney General – California Department of Justice. CT-TR-1 Instructions – Annual Treasurer’s Report
2
California Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Annual Registration Renewal
3
California Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Forms
4
Office of the Attorney General – California Department of Justice. RRF-1 Annual Registration Renewal Fee Report and Instructions
5
California Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Charities
6
California Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Delinquency
7
California Legislative Information. California Government Code 12586.1
8
Internal Revenue Service. Form 990-N (e-Postcard)
9
Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation of Exemption for Non-Filing – Frequently Asked Questions
10
Internal Revenue Service. Automatic Revocation – How to Have Your Tax-Exempt Status Reinstated