Attorney - How to Form a Nonprofit Corporation in California

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17th Edition

Attorney Anthony Mancuso

ISSN: 2327-218X (print)

ISSN: 2327-2171 (online)

ISBN: 978-1-4133-2405-1 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-1-4133-2406-8 (epub ebook)

This book covers only United States law, unless it specifically states otherwise.

Copyright 20002017 by Anthony Mancuso. All rights reserved. The NOLO trademark is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Printed in the U.S.A.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without prior written permission. Reproduction prohibitions do not apply to the forms contained in this product when reproduced for personal use. Quantity sales: For information on bulk purchases or corporate premium sales, please contact the Special Sales Department. For academic sales or textbook adoptions, ask for Academic Sales. Call 800-955-4775 or write to Nolo, 950 Parker Street, Berkeley, California 94710.

Please note

We believe accurate, plain-English legal information should help you solve many of your own legal problems. But this text is not a substitute for personalized advice from a knowledgeable lawyer. If you want the help of a trained professionaland well always point out situations in which we think thats a good ideaconsult an attorney licensed to practice in your state.

The author extends a special thanks to my editor, Diana Fitzpatrick, and to all the hardworking people at Nolo.

Anthony Mancuso is a corporations and limited liability company expert. A graduate of Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco, Tony is an active member of the California State Bar, writes books and software in the fields of corporate and LLC law, and has studied advanced business taxation at Golden Gate University in San Francisco. He also has been a consultant for Silicon Valley EDA (Electronic Design Automation) and other technology companies. He is currently employed at Google in Mountain View, California.

Tony is the author of many Nolo books on forming and operating corporations (profit and nonprofit) and limited liability companies. Among his current books are Incorporate Your Business; How to Form a Nonprofit Corporation; The Corporate Records Handbook; Form Your Own Limited Liability Company; and LLC or Corporation? His books and software have shown over 500,000 businesses and organizations how to form and operate a corporation or an LLC. Tony is a licensed helicopter pilot and has performed for years as a guitarist.

Forming a nonprofit corporation may sound like a daunting task that you should hand over to a lawyer as quickly as you canafter all, arent there a lot of paperwork and filings, and complicated IRS nonprofit tax laws to learn? There is paperwork, and you will need to deal with the IRS, but the truth is, you can do it yourself. Forming a nonprofit corporation in California is actually a fairly straightforward process. And, with the help of our line-by-line instructions, you can also obtain tax-exempt status from the IRS for your newly formed nonprofit corporation. Thousands of people have gone through the entire process of incorporating a nonprofit and obtaining 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status with this book to guide them.

Along the way, there may be decisions you need to make where you should seek professional advice. Well let you know when you need outside help. And even if you do decide to hire a lawyer to handle some of the work for you, the information in this book will help you be an informed clientand get the most for your money.

This book explains, in plain English, how to incorporate your nonprofit in California and obtain 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status from the IRS. We show you how to:

prepare and file nonprofit corporation articles and bylaws

apply for and obtain 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status from the IRS

satisfy IRS conflict-of-interest and excess-benefit guidelines

qualify as a 501(c)(3) public charity

prepare minutes for your first board meeting, and

take care of postincorporation filings and tasks.

There are legal and tax technicalities that nonprofits must deal with in exchange for the substantial benefits they receive as nonprofits. We give you the information and tools you need both to form your tax-exempt nonprofit and understand the practical and ongoing issues related to running a nonprofit.

We know that any legal process can be challenging. We hope this book, with its step-by-step approach to incorporation and obtaining tax-exempt status from the IRS, will help you through the legal hoops and over the hurdles of incorporating your nonprofit in California and obtaining tax-exempt status from the IRS. Congratulations on taking your first steps toward success in your new nonprofit endeavor!

Get Forms, Updates and More Online

You can download forms in this book at:

www.nolo.com/back-of-book/NON.html

If there are important changes to the information in this book, we will post updates there.