Ohio Nonprofit Compliance

Charitable Trust Act Exemptions:

• Any governmental unit. For purposes of this paragraph, "governmental unit" means a political subdivision, agency, department, county, parish, municipal corporation, instrumentality or other unit of the government of the United States, a state, or a foreign country.
• Organizations which are organized and operated exclusively for religious purposes. These include churches, conventions and associations of churches, or integrated auxiliaries of a church.
• Educational institutions which normally maintain a regular faculty and curriculum and normally have a regular body of pupils or students in attendance at the place where its educational activities are carried on
• Charitable trusts in which all charitable interests are contingent, revocable, or subject to an unlimited power of invasion for purposes other than charitable purposes
• Charitable trusts which are not located in Ohio. For purposes of this paragraph, a charitable trust is located in Ohio and must register if not otherwise exempt if it is incorporated or otherwise organized in Ohio, conducts program services in Ohio or has assets in Ohio. For the purpose of this paragraph, "assets" includes cash, inventory, equipment, real estate, securities, investments, financial accounts and any other property

Charitable Organizations Act Exemptions:

• Any religious agencies and organizations, and charities, agencies, and organizations operated, supervised, or controlled by a religious organization
• Any charitable organization that meets all of the following requirements:
  • It has been in continuous existence in this state for a period of at least two years;
  • It has received from the internal revenue service a determination letter that is currently in effect, stating that the charitable organization is exempt from federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in subsection 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;
  • It has registered with the attorney general as a charitable trust pursuant to section 109.26 of the Revised Code;
  • It has filed an annual report with and paid the required fee to the attorney general pursuant to section 109.31 of the Revised Code.
• Any educational institution, when solicitation of contributions is confined to alumni, faculty, trustees, or the student membership and their families
• Every person other than an individual, when solicitation of contributions for a charitable purpose or on behalf of a charitable organization is confined to its existing membership, present or former employees, or present or former trustees
• Any public primary or secondary school, when solicitation of contributions is confined to alumni, faculty, or the general population of the local school district
• Any booster club that is organized and operated in conjunction with and for the benefit of students of public primary or secondary schools
• Any charitable organization that does not receive gross revenue, excluding grants or awards from the government or an organization that is exempt from federal income taxation under section 501(a) and described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, in excess of $25,000 during its immediately preceding fiscal year, if the organization does not compensate any person primarily to solicit contributions.

Online

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ORC § 1716.03 and OAC 109:1-1-02

• The registration requirement for charities in Ohio is established in two separate sections of law, meaning that charities may be exempt under one act but required to register under the other.
• Charities should file an online request for exemption determination if they believe they are exempt. Exemptions do not expire as long as the organization continues to qualify under the exemption criteria.

Online

$0 for organizations that have not yet solicited in Ohio. Fees range from $0-$200, depending on contributions, for organizations that have previously solicited in Ohio.

1 week

• The CFO / treasurer must sign
• Some Ohio counties and municipalities may require charities that solicit in-person to register prior to fundraising.

Domestic Applicants:

• Check the available exemptions to see if your charity is eligible for exemption from the full registration requirement.
• Look through the list of required attachments and make sure that you have each required document in hand before starting the registration application.

Foreign Applicants:

• Check the available exemptions to see if your charity is eligible for exemption from the full registration requirement.
• Look through the list of required attachments and make sure that you have each required document in hand before starting the registration application.
• If you will foreign qualify in Ohio, obtain a certificate of good standing from your home state to submit during the foreign qualification process. The certificate cannot be more than 90 days old when filing foreign qualification documents.

Domestic Applicants:

1. File entity formation documents with the Ohio Secretary of State.
2. Create a filing account online and complete a charitable registration through the Ohio Attorney General's office.

Foreign Applicants:

1. Determine whether or not your charity will need to foreign qualify based on your activity in Ohio. If not required, skip to number 3.
2. File foreign qualification documents with the Ohio Secretary of State.
3. Create a filing account online and complete a charitable registration through the Ohio Attorney General's office.

• IRS form 990
• Articles of incorporation
• Bylaws
• IRS determination letter
• List of officers and directors

Online

For organizations registering under the Ohio Charitable Trust Act:

• $0 if assets are less than $25,000
• $50 if assets are $25,000 to $100,000
• $100 if assets are $100,000 to $500,000
• $200 if assets are $500,000 or more

For organizations registering under the Ohio Charitable Organizations Act:

• $0 if contributions are less than $5,000
• $50 if contributions are $5,000 to $25,000
• $100 if contributions are $25,000 to $50,000
• $200 if contributions are $50,000 or more

• Annually by the 15th day of the 5th month following the close of your fiscal year. So if your fiscal year ends December 31, then renewal is due by May 15.
• There is no official start to the renewal period, so renewals may be submitted as soon as financials become available for the most recently completed fiscal year.

Due dates are automatically extended for 180 days beyond the original due date.

There is a $200 late fee.

• List of officers and directors

Email to charitableregistration@ohioago.gov

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1-2 business days

Your fiscal year can be changed by emailing charitableregistration@ohioago.gov written notice of the change including when the change occurred and what the new fiscal year end date is. Alternatively, the organization can email a copy of the short year Form 990 that was filed with the IRS. 

Final Annual Report and Asset Disposition

Mail, fax, or email to CharitableRegistration@OhioAGO.gov

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An organization that no longer solicits in Ohio should fill out and return a Solicitation Withdrawal form, which the state provides upon request. Fees and/or final annual reports may be required, depending on when the organization ceased soliciting.