Plan each stage of your nonprofit's creation.
Think through each stage of creating your non-profit organization carefully. This will ensure that you comply with all Florida and federal laws pertaining to nonprofits. Obtain legal assistance from a non-profit lawyer to make sure that your organization files all the correct paper work with all the right offices and departments. The American Bar Association offers a listing of reduced-cost and pro bono lawyers on its website (see Resource 3).
Instructions
1. Write a mission statement that thoroughly and clearly states what your organization does and its target clientele. Research similar nonprofits in the area to ensure that your organization’s services do not duplicate services. Consider the public image you want to create for your organization and how you envision it reaching its goals.
2. Pick a name for your organization that is not overly similar or identical to other corporate names in Florida. Check the availability of your name by searching online at the Florida Department of State’s Division of Corporations’ website. Your organization must include the word "corporation," "incorporated," or an abbreviation of one of these. However, it cannot contain the word "company."
3. Develop a budget and a fund-raising plan for your organization. Consider the best ways to save costs and raise money.
4. Appoint at least three qualified people to serve on your board of directors. They do not have to live in Florida, but they must be at least 18 years of age.
5. Create your organization’s Articles of Incorporation. File them with the Florida Division of Corporations. Submit a $35 application fee with your application. Another $35 fee is charged for the Designation of a Registered Agent. The Citizen Media Law Project states, "The purpose of the registered agent is to provide a legal address for service of process in the event of a lawsuit [, and it] is also where the state government sends official documents such as tax notices and annual reports."
6. Your Articles of Incorporation should include articles stating that the organization is a not-for-profit organization, that it does not engage in political or legislative illegal activities, and that the organization’s assets will not benefit anyone affiliated with the organization if it is dissolved. The Division of Corporations has an example of non-profit Articles of Incorporation on its website.
7. Obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for tax filing and reporting purposes. File Form SS-4 on the IRS website. You must inform the State of Florida when you hire a new employee, as well as the IRS. Find more information about reporting new hires in Florida by visiting the Florida New Hire Reporting website (see Resource 2).
8. Write your organization’s bylaws. State how the organization will be managed and who will do so. The bylaws define who has authority and the bounds of that authority. They also state how authority will be carried out. Write a Conflict of Interest Policy that explains that the members of the board and its officers, as well as those close to them, will not gain any benefit or privilege from the organization’s activities. A Conflict of Interest Policy will assure future donors that your nonprofit will handle donations in an ethical manner. It is not required that you submit a copy of bylaws to the Florida Secretary of State, but they should be in your organization’s main office.
9. Hold the first board meeting. Adopt the Articles of Incorporation, elect officers and committee chairpersons, adopt bylaws, create a corporate bank account and set the budget for the fiscal year.
10. Register the organization with the Division of Consumer Services if you will conduct public fund raising in the state of Florida. Sign your nonprofit up on the Florida Department of Revenue’s website as well. Use the Department of Revenue’s Start-Up Kit for New Business Owners available on the Department’s website for more information about business tax in Florida. Check with your local tax authority for information about exemption from property tax for your nonprofit.
11. File IRS tax-exemption application Form 1023 and Florida Form 1120: Florida Corporate Income/Franchise and Emergency Excise Tax Return. Submit Form 1023 to the IRS and Form 1120 to the Florida Department of Revenue. Turn in your federal tax exemption letter at the time you file Form 1120. Submit Form DR5: for a Consumer's Certificate of Exemption to the Florida Department of Revenue for exemption from state sales tax.
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