Form 5578 (Rev. 8-2013)
Page 2
General Instructions
Section references are to the Internal Revenue
Code unless otherwise noted.
Note. This form is open to public
inspection.
Future Developments
For the latest information about
developments related to Form 5578 and its
instructions, such as legislation enacted
after they were published, go to
www.irs.gov/form5578.
Purpose of Form
Form 5578 may be used by organizations
that operate tax-exempt private schools to
provide the Internal Revenue Service with
the annual certification of racial
nondiscrimination required by Rev. Proc.
75-50 (the relevant part of which is
reproduced in these instructions).
Who Must File
Every organization that claims exemption
from federal income tax under section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and
that operates, supervises, or controls a
private school(s) must file a certification of
racial nondiscrimination. If an organization
is required to file Form 990, Return of
Organization Exempt From Income Tax, or
Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of
Organization Exempt From Income Tax,
either as a separate return or as part of a
group return, the certification must be
made on Schedule E (Form 990 or
990-EZ), Schools, rather than on this form.
An authorized official of a central
organization may file one form to certify for
the school activities of subordinate
organizations that would otherwise be
required to file on an individual basis, but
only if the central organization has enough
control over the schools listed on the form
to ensure that the schools maintain a
racially nondiscriminatory policy as to
students.
Definitions
A racially nondiscriminatory policy as to
students means that the school admits the
students of any race to all the rights,
privileges, programs, and activities
generally accorded or made available to
students at that school and that the school
does not discriminate on the basis of race
in the administration of its educational
policies, admissions policies, scholarship
and loan programs, and athletic and other
school-administered programs.
The IRS considers discrimination on the
basis of race to include discrimination on
the basis of color or national or ethnic
origin.
A school is an educational organization
that normally maintains a regular faculty
and curriculum and normally has a
regularly enrolled body of pupils or
students in attendance at the place where
its educational activities are regularly
carried on. The term includes primary,
secondary, preparatory, or high schools
and colleges and universities, whether
operated as a separate legal entity or as
an activity of a church or other
organization described in section 501(c)(3).
The term also includes preschools and any
other organization that is a school as
defined in section 170(b)(1)(A)(ii).
A central organization is an organization
that has one or more subordinates under
its general supervision or control. A
subordinate is a chapter, local, post, or
other unit of a central organization. A
central organization may also be a
subordinate, as in the case of a state
organization that has subordinate units and
is itself affiliated with a national
organization.
The group exemption number (GEN) is a
four-digit number issued to a central
organization by the IRS. It identifies a
central organization that has received a
ruling from the IRS recognizing on a group
basis the exemption from federal income
tax of the central organization and its
covered subordinates.
When To File
Under Rev. Proc. 75-50, a certification of
racial nondiscrimination must be filed
annually by the 15th day of the 5th month
following the end of the organization’s
calendar year or fiscal period.
Where To File
Mail Form 5578 to the Department of the
Treasury, Internal Revenue Service Center,
Ogden, UT 84201-0027.
Certification Requirement
Section 4.06 of Rev. Proc. 75-50 requires
an individual authorized to take official
action on behalf of a school that claims to
be racially nondiscriminatory as to
students to certify annually, under
penalties of perjury, that to the best of his
or her knowledge and belief the school has
satisfied the applicable requirements of
sections 4.01 through 4.05 of the Revenue
Procedure, reproduced below:
Rev. Proc. 75-50
Section 4.01, Organizational
Requirements. A school must include a
statement in its charter, bylaws, or other
governing instrument, or in a resolution of
its governing body, that it has a racially
nondiscriminatory policy as to students
and therefore does not discriminate against
applicants and students on the basis of
race, color, and national or ethnic origin.
Section 4.02, Statement of Policy. Every
school must include a statement of its
racially nondiscriminatory policy as to
students in all its brochures and
catalogues dealing with student
admissions, programs, and scholarships. A
statement substantially similar to the
Notice described in paragraph (a) of
subsection 1 of section 4.03, infra, will be
acceptable for this purpose. Further, every
school must include a reference to its
racially nondiscriminatory policy in other
written advertising that it uses as a means
of informing prospective students of its
programs. The following references will be
acceptable:
The (name) school admits students of
any race, color, and national or ethnic
origin.
Section 4.03, Publicity. The school must
make its racially nondiscriminatory policy
known to all segments of the general
community served by the school.
1. The school must use one of the
following two methods to satisfy this
requirement:
(a) The school may publish a notice of
its racially nondiscriminatory policy in a
newspaper of general circulation that
serves all racial segments of the
community. This publication must be
repeated at least once annually during the
period of the school’s solicitation for
students or, in the absence of a solicitation
program, during the school’s registration
period. Where more than one community is
served by a school, the school may publish
its notice in those newspapers that are
reasonably likely to be read by all racial
segments of the communities that it
serves. The notice must appear in a
section of the newspaper likely to be read
by prospective students and their families
and it must occupy at least three column
inches. It must be captioned in at least 12
point boldface type as a notice of
nondiscriminatory policy as to students,
and its text must be printed in at least 8
point type. The following notice will be
acceptable:
Notice Of Nondiscriminatory
Policy As To Students
The (name) school admits students of any
race, color, national and ethnic origin to all
the rights, privileges, programs, and
activities generally accorded or made
available to students at the school. It does
not discriminate on the basis of race, color,
national and ethnic origin in administration
of its educational policies, admissions
policies, scholarship and loan programs,
and athletic and other school-administered
programs.
