start a new nonprofit

New Nonprofit, Tax-Exempt Start-Up Information

We would love to help you set up your new tax-exempt, nonprofit organization. We are here to help you - we don't expect you to have all these questions prepared initially. We know you probably have questions about board members, bylaws, mission statements, and more! Please send us what you can so we know how far along you are in the planning process. If you only have some of the information now, please 'send' the form anyway and we can help you with the rest soon.

General Information - Nonprofits
This information is for setting up your entity as a state nonprofit corporation.
Name*
First Name Last Name
Contact Phone*
Email*
Website of your organization, if you have one.
Name of Nonprofit
This will be the formal, legal name of the nonprofit corporation. We will need to check on the name availability in the state of incorporation.
Address
Street Address City State ZIP Code

Your nonprofit may not have an actual business address yet. That's okay. Many nonprofits use a P.O. Box for their mail initially. And many highly successful nonprofits never have a formal office. A home address or P.O. Box will work. **Note that the registered agent's address, however, has to be a physical address. See below.**
Registered Agent
Each nonprofit must have a registered agent in that state. A registered agent may also be called a "Statutory Agent," "Resident Agent," "Clerk," or "Agent for Service of Process," depending on the state in which you are forming your business. The agent must either be (1) an adult individual living in the state of formation with a valid street address (no P.O. boxes), or (2) a company, such as our law firm, authorized to serve as an agent. The registered agent is designated to accept service of process on behalf of your company.
Name
First Name Last Name
Address
Street Address City State ZIP Code
Members
Membership refers to a legal term related to the management of a nonprofit. Typically, most small nonprofit organizations are managed by a board of directors and DO NOT have members. This does not refer to membership in a fundraising sense - which any nonprofit can have (i.e., members or "friends of" a museum in which members receive certain benefits).
Will your organization have members?
- Yes
- No
Board of Directors
As you may know, most nonprofits are managed by a board of directors. The IRS prefers that the directors are not related by family or business (some exceptions). And there are some restrictions against board members being paid. We will discuss your board structure. **To learn more about directors, you may like to read our article: What Do Directors Do? https://cullinanelaw.com/nonprofit-law-basics-what-are-the-duties-of-nonprofit-directors/
Name of Director #1
First Name Last Name
Name of Director #2
First Name Last Name
Name of Director #3
First Name Last Name
If more than three initial directors, please enter their names here.
Please provide a brief (3-5 sentence) bio on each director, and why they are serving on the board. What makes them uniquely qualified to serve in this role? How were they selected?
We can get these bios later, if needed.
Executive Director/Key Staff
The key employee of the organization is often called the executive director.
If you have an Executive Director or key staff person, please provide his/her name, brief bio, and salary (if it is above $50,000 we need to inform the IRS).
Officers
Have you already selected officers for your nonprofit? Most states require a President and Secretary, so we've included those here. Officers are generally members of the board of directors. The highest ranking staff person is often called the Executive Director. **IF OFFICERS HAVEN'T BEEN SELECTED YET, WE CAN GET THIS INFORMATION LATER.**
President's Name
First Name Last Name
The President will often have signing authority for the nonprofit. He or she will chair meetings. There can be a combination of officers, as well.
Secretary's Name
First Name Last Name
Manages the records for the nonprofit and keeps minutes of official meetings.
Other Officer - Name, if any other officer other than President and Secretary
First Name Last Name
This officer could be a Treasurer or Vice President. However, these are not required in many states. Treasurer manages the financial and tax affairs of the nonprofit. Vice President fills in for President.
Tax-Exempt Status
Tax-exempt status means an organization does not pay corporate income tax on income generated from charitable activities. It also means that donations to the organization may be tax-deductible to the donor. These groups are often called 501(c)(3)s, because that refers to the tax category. You may like to read more in our article here http://www.cullinanelaw.com/nonprofit-law-101-nonprofit-vs-tax-exempt/.
Mission/Purpose. In a sentence or two, please describe the specific purpose for which your nonprofit will be formed.
Describe the organization’s reason for existing and describe the overall purpose of the organization. It should include things like who it will serve and what it will accomplish. This may be the organization's mission statement. You can learn more about drafting a mission statements here. http://www.cullinanelaw.com/what-is-a-mission-statement/ **WE CAN WORK ON THIS TOGETHER, IF YOU DON'T HAVE A MISSION STATEMENT YET.**
What activities will you undertake?
What are the goals of the organization and what activities will it undertake? There may be more than one activity. For each activity, please be as specific as you can. It may help to answer the following questions for each activity. (1) What does the activity entail? (2) What are you trying to do? (3) How will you do it? (4) Where is the activity conducted? (5) When compared will all of the nonprofit's activities, what percent of time will be spent on each activity? (6) Who may participate in the activity? (7) How are the participants selected? (8) Is the activity advertised to the public? ANY other details you can send us will be great. **IF YOU DON'T HAVE THIS YET - THAT'S OKAY. WE'LL HELP YOU WITH IT. If you have this information written elsewhere, please feel free send us a copy if that is easier.**
Financial Information
What is the organization’s fiscal year?
For most nonprofits, the fiscal year is the same as the calendar year: Jan. 1 - Dec. 31.
How will your organization be supported financially? Do you have a plan for fundraising? What are your anticipated funding sources?
Federal Tax I.D. Information ("EIN")
Nonprofit corporations are required to have a federal tax identification number (also known as an EIN). An EIN is needed whether or not theorganization has employees. It is needed to open a bank account, it will be used on all federal tax returns and receipts, and for other matters. To obtain an Employer Identification Number (Tax I.D. Number or “EIN”), we need the name, address, phone number, and social security number of a person affiliated with the organization.
Would you like us to obtain the EIN for you?
- Yes.
- No.
Contact Name
First Name Last Name
Title within organization
Social Security Number
We can obtain this information from you at a later time. Give us a call.
Questions for Us
We look forward to talking with you about your project. While we have many items to go over when we visit, please list any questions or topics you'd like us to cover.
Contact Name HIDDEN TO PRESERVE DATA
Once field is deleted, previously submitted data from this field will also be removed. REMOVE ONLY WHEN PREVIOUSLY SUBMITTED DATA IS NO LONGER RELEVANT

New Nonprofit, Tax-Exempt Start-Up Information for Clients

New Nonprofit, Tax-Exempt Start-Up Information

General Information - Nonprofits

Registered Agent

Members

Board of Directors

Executive Director/Key Staff

Officers

Tax-Exempt Status

Financial Information

Federal Tax I.D. Information ("EIN")

Questions for Us

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