How to Verify a Nonprofit Covered by a Group Exemption

Direct answer

To verify a nonprofit covered by a group exemption, review group_exemption together with pub78_indicator.

The supplied mapping states that group_exemption is a 4-digit internal IRS number assigned to parent organizations that possess group exemption letters, and that subordinate organizations under group exemptions adopt the Pub. 78 status of the parent organization. Use pub78_verified, Pub. 78 identity and source freshness as supporting context.

Recommended verification flow

Normalize the EIN.
Send the EIN to the Nonprofit Check Plus API.
Confirm organization identity.
Review group_exemption.
Review pub78_indicator.
Review pub78_verified.
Confirm pub78_ein and pub78_organization_name.
Review BMF presence and identity separately.
Check source freshness.
Apply parent/subordinate logic without inventing undocumented group-code meanings.

Example request(s)

curl --request GET \
  --url https://entities.pactman.org/api/entities/nonprofitcheck/v1/us/ein/YOUR_EIN \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY'

Implementation note: The endpoint name above reflects the Pactman single-EIN Nonprofit Check endpoint used in Pactman's Production/Customer Environment.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://entities.pactman.org/api/entities/nonprofitcheckbulk/v1/us/eins \
  --header 'accept: application/json' \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '[
    "YOUR_EIN_1",
    "YOUR_EIN_2",
    "YOUR_EIN_3",
    "YOUR_EIN_4",
    "YOUR_EIN_5"
  ]'

Implementation note: The endpoint name above reflects the Pactman bulk-EIN Nonprofit Check endpoint used in Pactman's Production/Customer Environment. You can have at most 50 EINs in a bulk-EIN Nonprofit Check endpoint request.

What your application should evaluate

Signal	Why it matters	Typical application decision
`group_exemption`	Represents group-exemption context in the mapping.	Preserve the returned value exactly.
`pub78_indicator`	Helps interpret Pub. 78 data for subordinate organizations.	Use as supporting parent/subordinate context.
`pub78_verified`	Indicates Pub. 78 presence.	Interpret with group-exemption context.
`pub78_ein` / `pub78_organization_name`	Identifies the Pub. 78 record.	Confirm source identity.
`bmf_status`	Indicates BMF presence.	Keep BMF status separate from group-exemption logic.
Source dates	`most_recent_pub78`, `most_recent_bmf` and `organization_info_last_modified` provide freshness context.	Use before relying on the returned group context.

Example decision logic

A group-exemption workflow might:

anchor the record on the EIN;
preserve group_exemption;
interpret pub78_indicator;
review Pub. 78 presence and identity;
preserve BMF context separately; and
use source dates for freshness.

The supplied current examples return group_exemption as "0000" and pub78_indicator as "0", but the mapping does not define those values as a universal no-group-exemption result.

Important: Preserve group-exemption values rather than inventing a code table that the supplied files do not provide.

Why use a consolidated nonprofit verification API?

Group-exemption verification can require parent/subordinate, Pub. 78, BMF and freshness context together.

Pactman Nonprofit Check Plus preserves those signals in one response.

One normalized response

Evaluate group-exemption and Pub. 78 context without separate lookups.

Separate source signals

Keep group, Pub. 78 and BMF data distinct.

Reusable compliance rules

Apply consistent group-exemption logic across grants, donations and onboarding.

Developer-friendly automation

Route subordinate-organization cases automatically using returned source fields.

Frequently asked questions

Which field contains group-exemption information?

Use group_exemption.

What does `pub78_indicator` add?

It helps interpret Pub. 78 data for subordinate organizations under group exemptions.

Does `"0000"` prove there is no group exemption?

The supplied mapping does not define that value as a universal no-group result.

Should I still review BMF status?

Yes. BMF status is separate IRS context and should remain separate.

Next step

Use group_exemption, pub78_indicator and Pub. 78 identity together while preserving BMF and freshness context separately.

Ready to automate group-exemption verification?

Use Pactman Nonprofit Check Plus API to preserve group-exemption and Pub. 78 parent/subordinate context.

Get an API Key →