California Nonprofit Compliance

• The United States, any state, territory, or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or to any of their agencies or governmental subdivisions
• A religious corporation sole or other religious corporation or organization that holds property for religious purposes, or to any officer, director, or trustee thereof who holds property for like purposes
• A cemetery corporation regulated under Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 7600) of Division 3 of the Business and Professions Code
• A committee as defined in Section 82013 that is required to and does file any statement pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 84200) of Chapter 4 of Title 9
• A charitable corporation or unincorporated association organized and operated primarily as a religious organization, educational institution, hospital, or a health care service plan licensed pursuant to Section 1349 of the Health and Safety Code
• Educational institutions as defined by Section 10251 of the Corporations Code

California Government Code § 12584

If you believe you are exempt, submit a letter requesting exemption, a copy of the organization's founding document(s), and IRS determination letter for review. Exemptions are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. 

Form CT-1: Initial Registration Form

Initial Registration Guide

Mail

$50

2-3 months

• Your organization must register within 30 days of receiving assets (property, funds, etc) that are held in a trust.
• Any authorized or director may sign. Signature need not be notarized.
• Some California counties and municipalities may require charities that solicit in-person to register prior to fundraising.
• Do not file a Form RRF-1 until the Initial Registration has been completed and approved. 

Domestic Applicants:

• Check the available exemptions to see if your charity is eligible for exemption from the full registration requirement.
• Appoint a registered agent to receive legal documents in California.
• If your charity meets the audit threshold, obtain an audited financial report to submit with your registration application.
• 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.
• Determine if foreign qualification is required for your entity. If so, you must file foreign qualification documents with the California Secretary of State and appoint a registered agent to receive legal documents in California.
• If your charity meets the audit threshold, obtain an audited financial report to submit with your registration application.
• Obtain a certificate of good standing from your home state (to be filed during the foreign qualification process). The certificate cannot be more than 6 months old when filing foreign qualification documents.
• Look through the list of required attachments and make sure that you have each required document in hand before starting the registration application.

Domestic Applicants:

1. File formation documents with the California Secretary of State.
2. File an exemption application with the California Franchise Tax Board to obtain a state tax exemption.
3. Submit a completed Initial Registration Form and all required attachments to the California Attorney General - Registry of Charitable Trusts.

Foreign Applicants:

1. Determine if your organization is required to foreign qualify with the California Secretary of State. 
2. File foreign qualification documents with the California Secretary of State.
3. File an exemption application with the California Franchise Tax Board to obtain a state tax exemption.
4. Submit a completed Initial Registration Form and all required attachments to the California Attorney General - Registry of Charitable Trusts.

• Articles of Incorporation, Articles of Organization, Articles of Association, or Trust Agreement (if incorporated, submit endorsed/certified original Articles of Incorporation and any endorsed amended articles stamped by the state in which domiciled)
• Bylaws
• IRS determination letter
• IRS form 1023
• List of officers and directors
• Fundraising professional contact information and registration numbers (if applicable)

• Form RRF-1: Annual Registration Renewal Report
• Organizations that are not required to file and do not file IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ because they do not meet the revenue requirements must also file Form CT-TR-1: Annual Treasurer's Report.
• Charities that solicit for charitable purposes and collect more than 50% of their annual income and more than $1,000,000 in charitable contributions from donors in California during the previous calendar year, and spend more than 25% of their annual income on non-program activities as defined in the Business and Professions Code §17510.9 must submit Form CT-694: Annual Financial Solicitations Report at the time of the Annual Registration Renewal Report

Mail or online.

The renewal fee is based on the registrant's total revenue for the prior fiscal year:

• $25 for less than $50,000 total revenue
• $50 for between $50,000 and $100,000 total revenue
• $75 for between $100,001 and $250,000 total revenue
• $100 for between $250,001 and $1,000,000 total revenue
• $200 for between $1,000,001 and $5,000,000 total revenue
• $400 for between $5,000,001 and $20,000,000 total revenue
• $800 for between $20,000,001 and $100,000,000 total revenue
• $1,000 for between $100,000,001 and $500,000,000 total revenue
• $1,200 for greater than $500,000,000 total revenue

• Annually by the 15th day of the 5th month following the close of your organization's fiscal year. If your fiscal year closes on December 31, then renewal is due by May 15.
• Renewals can be submitted as early as the day following the charity's fiscal year-end.

Due dates are automatically extended for 6 months beyond the original due date, however, charities should file a copy of their IRS form 8868 when submitting their renewal if an IRS extension was granted.

$25 per month late fees beginning the 31st day after the first delinquency letter was mailed. Additionally, the failure to submit renewal on time can result in loss of tax exemption and assessment of minimum tax of $800, plus interest, and/or fines or filing penalties. The Attorney General will notify the California Franchise Tax Board to disallow your state tax exemption. Directors, trustees, officers, and return preparers are personally liable for these fees and penalties - you cannot use charitable assets to pay them, they must be paid out of pocket!

• Any authorized or director may sign. Signatures do not need not to be notarized.
• Online filing is available only for charities with a "Current" or "Current - Awaiting Reporting" status.

• IRS form 990 (Schedule B is no longer required and should be excluded)
• Audited financials (if applicable)

• Delinquent or suspended organizations do not have to undergo the reinstatement process. To get back into compliance, they must submit all past-due filings and all applicable late fees. The requirements may vary by organization, and the registration number should be used to confirm them. 
  • The timeframe from delinquency to suspension varies based on the organization
• Organizations that have gone from a suspended status to a revoked status must submit a reinstatement petition for consideration. Reinstatement is NOT guaranteed in these cases. The requirements may vary by organization, and the registration number should be used to confirm them. 
  • The timeframe from suspension to revocation varies based on the organization

Mail

Fees vary by organization and the registration number should be used to confirm the fees due

Charities suspected of violating the California Supervision of Trustees and Fundraisers for Charitable Purposes Act are subject to an investigation by the Attorney General. If found to be violating this Act, the Attorney General can issue one or more of the following judgments:

• suspend a registration
• cease and desist orders
• civil penalties of up to $1,000 per act or omission
• civil penalties of up to $10,000 per act or omission with the intent to deceive or defraud

Upon application from the Attorney General, the court can grant one or more of the following: 

• temporary or permanent injunction
• appoint receiver
• restitution
• other relief as the court deems appropriate

Reinstatement Petitions include (at the minimum): 

• All required past-due filings and applicable late fees
• Proof of compliance/good standing with the IRS, California Franchise Tax Board, and California Secretary of State
  • If not in good standing, provide a written statement of the steps taken to comply
• Written explanation of why the organization failed to comply with the registration and reporting requirements and failed to respond to notices from the Registry of Charities and Fundraisers
• Written explanation that will provide sufficient assurance to the Registry of Charities and Fundraisers that there has been no loss of charitable assets, there will be no harm to the public if the registration is reinstated, and if the petition is granted the organization will be able to comply with the annual registration and reporting requirements and no violations will occur in the future

Form RRF-1: Annual Registration Renewal Report

Varies

File a Form RRF-1 for the partial-year (along with all required attachments). The renewal fee will be required based on the total revenue for the reporting period. 

Online

$0

Within 30 days of entering into a partnership with a charitable fundraising platform, unless notification was already provided through the platform charity’s registration as a trustee/charity, or through registration of the partnering platform.

11 CA ADC § 315

• Every platform charity registered as a trustee/charity in California must file Form PL-3 with the Registry when the platform charity enters into a partnership with a charitable fundraising platform to facilitate solicitations on that charitable fundraising platform, unless: notification was already provided through the platform charity’s registration as a trustee/charity, or through registration of the partnering platform.
• If a platform charity entered into a partnership with more than one charitable fundraising platform in the last 30 days, submit one Form PL-3 for all partnerships.

Form RRF-1: Annual Registration Renewal Report

Mail or online

Varies depending on gross annual revenue.

To close out your registration, file a final report with the required fee along with a letter explaining that you would like to cancel your registration. Domestic organizations must also submit proof of dissolution with Secretary of State and distribution of assets.