How to Fill Out and Submit PA Form REV-72: Nonprofit Sales Tax Exemption

Pennsylvania Form REV-72 is the application a nonprofit files with the Department of Revenue to receive a sales tax exemption, and you submit it either through the myPATH portal, by email to ra-rvtrotaxspecialty@pa.gov, or by fax to 717-787-3708.¹ Approval exempts your organization from the state’s six percent sales tax on purchases related to its exempt purpose, plus local sales tax in Philadelphia (two percent) and Allegheny County (one percent).

Who Can File

Pennsylvania’s Tax Reform Code limits the exemption to charitable organizations, volunteer fire companies, volunteer firefighters’ relief associations, nonprofit educational institutions, religious organizations buying property or services for religious purposes, and certain scientific institutions and veteran organizations.²

Charities face an extra hurdle: they must qualify as a “purely public charity” under the five-part standard codified at 10 P.S. § 375, which requires a charitable purpose, no private profit motive, substantial free community service, relief of a government burden, and benefit to a broad class of people.³ Your governing documents must also contain a provision prohibiting private inurement of surplus funds on sale or dissolution. If that language is missing, amend your articles or bylaws before you apply, because the Department will look for it.⁴

What to Gather Before You Start

Assembling your supporting package first saves time and keeps the application from bouncing back. You need:

Articles of incorporation if the organization is incorporated, or bylaws if it is not. Either document must contain the anti-inurement provision.⁵
Your most current year-end financial statement, with income and expenses broken down by source and category. A brand-new organization can substitute a proposed budget, but make it detailed enough to show projected income sources and planned spending.⁵
Your IRS determination letter if the IRS has granted federal tax-exempt status.⁵
Your most recently completed IRS Form 990, if you file one.
Your Federal Employer Identification Number.⁴

Download the current REV-72 from the Department of Revenue website rather than reusing an old copy. Older versions may be missing required fields, and the Department can reject outdated forms.⁵

Filling Out the Form

REV-72 has two main sections. Section 1 handles registration and organizational narrative. Section 2 handles financial data.⁴

Section 1: Registration

Start by indicating whether this is a new application or a renewal. Enter the institution’s legal name exactly as recorded with the Department of State, the physical address where the organization conducts its primary activities, and your Federal EIN.⁴

Subsection B asks you to identify your type of organization. Subsection C, Organization Information, is where applications usually succeed or fail. You report all activities the institution has carried on over the past three years and include a detailed description of how beneficiaries are selected.⁴ Vague language like “we help the community” will not pass review. Name specific programs, describe the populations you serve, note how many people benefited, and explain the criteria you use to decide who receives services.

Subsection D covers affiliates. Subsections E and F ask for a list of officers and their compensation. The Department reviews compensation closely to confirm there is no private inurement, so report salaries accurately and completely.

Section 2: Financial Data

This section has four parts: basic financial questions, recipient information, a description of goods or services provided, and fundraising activities. Together they show the Department how money flows through the organization. Break income sources out individually. Lumping everything into a single “donations” line raises questions rather than answering them.

How to Submit

You have three filing channels:

Email the application and all supporting documents to ra-rvtrotaxspecialty@pa.gov.¹
Fax the completed package to 717-787-3708.⁴
File through myPATH. Brand-new organizations can complete the application on the myPATH homepage without logging in. Organizations that already hold an exemption submit renewals through myPATH after logging in, under the “More” tab.¹

After Approval: Using the Exemption

When the Department approves your application, it assigns an exemption number with a 75 prefix (for example, 75000000). That number is what you use to make tax-free purchases. It is not a sales tax license number.

To buy something tax-free, present a completed REV-1220 Pennsylvania Exemption Certificate to the vendor. The REV-1220 identifies your organization, carries your 75-prefix exemption number, and certifies that the purchase qualifies.⁶ A few rules apply:

The vendor must have the completed REV-1220 within 60 days of the sale.
For purchases of $200 or more, complete Form REV-1715 (Exempt Organization Declaration of Sales Tax Exemption) and provide it with the REV-1220.⁶
The vendor keeps the REV-1220 on file for at least four years. The form is not returned to the Department of Revenue.⁶

One boundary worth knowing: the exemption covers purchases related to your exempt purpose. It does not cover purchases used in an unrelated trade or business, and it does not cover materials and equipment transferred to your organization under a construction contract, with limited exceptions for building machinery and for routine maintenance supplies.²

Fundraising Sales Are a Separate Matter

Your 75-prefix number exempts your purchases. It does not exempt you from collecting sales tax when your organization sells to others. An exempt organization selling tangible personal property has the same responsibility as any other vendor, even when selling to members, students, or others associated with the group. Calling the payment a “donation” does not change the obligation.⁷

If you buy inventory to resell at fundraising events, you need a separate Pennsylvania sales tax license number for that purpose. The 75-prefix exemption cannot be used to buy merchandise tax-free for resale. The one exception is an isolated sale, which generally means a sale on three or fewer occasions spanning seven or fewer days in a calendar year. For isolated sales, give the vendor a unit exemption certificate listing the sale dates instead of a sales tax license number.⁷

Renewal and Ongoing Reporting

Most exempt organizations must renew periodically. At renewal, you complete the REV-72 again, selecting the “Renewal Update” option to indicate you currently hold an exemption and want to extend it.⁴ The renewal package needs the same core documents as the initial filing: articles or bylaws, your most current financial statement, the IRS determination letter, and your most recent Form 990 if you file one.

Between cycles, you must notify the Department of Revenue in writing within 10 days if any of these happen:

Your IRS exemption status changes, including revocation or changes in group exemption coverage.
A court in Pennsylvania or any other jurisdiction issues a decision that could affect your tax exemption.
Your exemption is being challenged by the IRS, the Commonwealth, a political subdivision, or a for-profit entity.⁴

Volunteer fire companies and volunteer firefighters’ relief associations are the exception. Their exemption stays in effect permanently unless their activities change so they no longer qualify, at which point they must notify the Department immediately.²

1
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. How Do I Get a Sales Tax Exemption for a Non-Profit Organization
2
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 7204 – Exclusions from Tax
3
Pennsylvania General Assembly. 10 P.S. 371 et seq. – Institutions of Purely Public Charity Act
4
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. REV-72 Application for Sales Tax Exemption
5
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Apply for Non-Profit Sales Tax Exemption
6
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Pennsylvania Tax Exemption Certificate
7
Cornell Law Institute. 61 Pa. Code 32.21 – Charitable, Volunteer Firemens and Religious Organizations, Etc.