You may have heard of piercing the corporate veil in the context of for-profit corporations but are you aware that nonprofit corporations can also have
As discussed in last week’s Nonprofit Law Jargon Buster, there are some organizations that are, by their very nature, considered public. These include churches, schools, and hospitals. Other types of charitable organizations must pass one of two mathematical tests calculated on a four year rolling average to qualify is public.
FARA defines “foreign principal” broadly to include any, government, political party, association, corporation, or other organization that was either established under a foreign country’s laws or maintains its principal place of business in a foreign country; and any individual outside of the United States. An “agent” is an individual or entity that acts within the United States at the direction of either a foreign principal or a person whose activities are supervised or directed by a foreign principal.
ine to file Form 990 for calendar year taxpayers. the tax return is filed late, the IRS imposes late fees based on the organization’s gross receipts ($20 day per day for organization’s whose gross receipts are less than $1 million and $100 per day for organization’s whose gross receipts are more than $1 million). Failure to file Form 990 for three consecutive years will result in automatic loss of tax exempt status.
Certain countries, regimes, businesses, and individuals are subject to sanctions administered by the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”).
Everyday nonprofits seek to change the world on what often seems to be pennies on the dollar. Nonprofit leaders commonly think of grant money and tax-deductible donations when fundraising, but in many states being a nonprofit allows certain nonprofits to legally conduct gambling activities that would otherwise be criminalized under state law. Inadvertently violating these gambling laws can have steep consequences so if your organization is planning an event that involves some form of gambling, it pays to do it right.
Religion is a charitable purpose, however, a church i entitled to special privileges under the law.
Forty-one states regulate charitable solicitation and require some form of registration before fundraising in the state.
There are 29 different exemptions under Code Section 501, the most popular of which is Section 501(c)(3). If the corporation plans to qualify for tax-exemption under Section 501(c)(3), the articles must limit the corporation’s activities to tax-exempt purposes. Tax exempt purposes include:
religious,
charitable,
scientific,
testing for public safety,
literary,
educational,
to foster national or international amateur sports competition, or
promote the arts, or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals.
Over the years we have worked with organizations in many different states and have had the chance to form some opinions about choice of domicile for nonprofits. Some of the factors that have influenced our thoughts on this matter include states requiring mandatory audits, multiple agencies overseeing nonprofits, unclear statutes governing nonprofit corporations, and aggressive regulation.
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