How to Start Your Own Nonprofit or Charity Organization
75(DISCLAIMER: I am not a lawyer or tax professional, and this Hub is not intended to substitute for professional advice. Hopefully it will serve as a guide to finding good professional sources.)
Thank You!
This is in response to a request from ParadigmShift.
Our old world is in desperate need of help. Thank you for taking on a piece of it!
charity
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How to Form a Nonprofit Corporation (book w/ CD-Rom)
Price: $47.49
List Price: $49.99 |
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Starting & Building a Nonprofit: A Practical Guide
Price: $18.75
List Price: $29.99 |
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Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits (J-B US non-Franchise Leadership)
Price: $16.94
List Price: $29.95 |
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Effective Fundraising for Nonprofits: Real-World Strategies That Work
Price: $15.67
List Price: $24.99 |
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How to Manage an Effective Nonprofit Organization: From Writing and Managing Grants to Fundraising, Board Development, and Strategic Planning
Price: $10.32
List Price: $15.99 |
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Managing the Nonprofit Organization
Price: $9.79
List Price: $16.99 |
Getting Started
The following information pertains mostly to the U.S., with a side trip to Canada. I hope this response fills the requester's needs -- and those of others who are Up to Do Good. At the very least, I hope it provides a good start.
I was once involved in creating a political action committee (PAC) in the U.S. The steps involved are similar to those for charities. Here are the very first:
- Identify a need.
- Create a method of filling that need.
- Gather several like-minded people together to build the organization and do the work (this same group might also perform Steps 1 and 2, above). Make sure you're all on the same page and committed to doing the work.
Once that's done, you'll need to appoint a treasurer to handle the monies and -- vitally important if not fun -- to file required tax forms.
In order to achieve and maintain tax-exempt status -- and you'll still be required to file tax forms even if you don't need to pay taxes -- you'll need to incorporate both federally and with your state or province.
In the U.S., an incorporated public charity is called a 501(c)(3). This curious name stands for the section of Internal Revenue Service code covering public charities. There are 28 types of 501(c) tax-exempt organizations. The information in this Hub pertains only to 501(c)(3).
We found our own PAC-forming process to be a bit involved, but definitely doable for common mortals.
Here is a detailed link on U.S. requirements and process, including links to requirements for the 15 most populous states:
If your state is not listed among the 15 most populous states, visit your state's Secretary of State website. You should find a business section that includes information on requirements for nonprofit organizations.
Provides info on starting and incorporating nonprofits in Canada, with links to all provinces, and much more.
Helps teens start their own organizations.
Hope this helps, and best of success to your new organization!
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Comments
It sounds worse than it is. Best of success!
I'm working on starting a non-profit program as well. A great resource is DoSomething.org, for people 25 and under to find the resources they need for such a venture.
hey i grew up being told that "charity began in the home"
looks interesting ;=0
Glassvisage -- Many thanks for the link! Have just added it to the Hub, above.
Stacie L. -- Charity definitely begins at home. Then all those homes get together and ... Seriously, though, the process is nowhere near as bad as it looks. The first step is to have a specific mission and a set of goals laid out before starting on the bureau-stuff.
Hey, thanks this ius helpful, I am a bit to young others would say but I think its a perfect age.
The hard part is getting people to join you in your efforts. Even like-minded people are burnt-out on getting involved. People are busy and tuning out the big picture more and more.
Plan on it taking up to two years to get it approved if the reviewer at the IRS wants to prolong his career and make themselves look busy. It may be easier to start a new religion and gain tax exempt status that way. Post 9/11 it has been much harder do to the fact that some charities were involved with funding terrorists. All the info you need should be on irs.gov
If you are seeking cash donations, you will want to become, or hire, a good accountant, perhaps also a tax attorney. Figure that in to your business plan, as well as costs related to overhead such as computer hardware, IT, office rental & furniture, telephony (fax, phone, internet ISP costs) stationary, printers, payroll taxes and services, advertising and marketing costs, data storage (file cabinets for your IRS forms, data backup disks) travel expenses, utility bills and of course insurance, in case you get sued for (name it and put it here____) or if one of your emplyees gets hurt on the job, you don't want to loose your house or get your income garnered for the next ten years. Charities are businesses, they just have a 501 designation.
That wa sveri informative and to the point. Thanks for writing it.
Thanks for the link on Canada -- just what I am looking for...
ParadigmShift... says:
18 months ago
Thank you so much for your response. The links you provided were informitive, although somewhat daunting. I had no idea the amount of work involved in creating a non-profit organization! But this goal is set in stone, though the plans are set in sand. The time is always right to do what is right. Thanks again