Can I Start My Nonprofit Befor Registering It In Illinois

To start a nonprofit corporation in Illinois, you must file nonprofit articles of incorporation with the Illinois Secretary of State. You can file your articles online, in person, or by post. The manufactures of incorporation cost $52 to file. One time filed with the state, your articles of incorporation officially create your Illinois nonprofit corporation, but truly preparing a nonprofit to pursue its mission involves several additional steps.

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To incorporate an Illinois nonprofit, you must complete and file nonprofit manufactures of incorporation with the Illinois Secretary of Country. Meet the certificate below and click on whatsoever number to see what information is required in the corresponding section.

1. Corporate Proper name

Your nonprofit's name needs to clearly differ from any existing business entity operating in Illinois, and it can't contain words indicating established political parties (for example, "democratic," "democrat," and "republican"). You lot can practice a name search at the Illinois Secretary of State's website. An optional 90-solar day name reservation is available for a $25 fee.

2. Registered Agent and Office

Your registered agent needs to be a natural individual (such as yourself or a willing acquaintance) or a business authorized to provide registered agent service. In either case, the agent needs an office with a street address in Illinois to receive services of process. When you hire Northwest, our name and Illinois street address go hither.

3. Purpose

Illinois has some pretty specific guidelines for how to describe your nonprofit's purpose. You must select from 1 of 33 allowable purposes ("charitable," "eleemosynary," "able-bodied," etc.), which you lot can read through on the Illinois Secretary of State's website, and yous'll as well provide a more than detailed description of your nonprofit's purpose to supplement the selected category. Moreover, if you intend to apply for federal tax-exempt status with the IRS, keep in mind that some of Illinois'southward commanded purposes won't qualify every bit exempt purposes in the eyes of the IRS. Check out our guided to understanding the IRS 501(c)(3) requirements to come across the specific tax-exempt language required by the IRS.

4. The Commencement Lath of Directors

Illinois requires your nonprofit to have at least iii directors. Your directors don't have to be residents of Illinois or members of your nonprofit unless you craft your bylaws or boosted provisions to include requirements of this kind.

5. Other Provisions

You may besides include additional, optional provisions that govern your nonprofit, including descriptions of your directors' and officers' duties (some of this material, however, may appear in your bylaws instead). More importantly, if you intend to use for 501(c)(iii) tax-exempt status, you should include a statement of purpose and a clarification of your nonprofit's procedures for preventing individual enrichment if and when your nonprofit dissolves (often called a "dissolution clause"). If your Articles include additional provisions, you will need to print and mail in a paper form instead of filing online.

half dozen. Incorporator(south)

Include the name and address of at least one incorporator. An incorporator is simply the person who signs and submits your articles of incorporation, and it doesn't demand to exist a director, officer, or member of your nonprofit. When you lot hire Northwest to form your nonprofit, we will exist your incorporator.

How Much Does Information technology Cost to Comprise an Illinois Nonprofit?

Illinois charges $52 for the Secretary of State's routine filing time (around xxx days), but you can also pay an extra $25 for expedited, 24 hour service, and the state will charge an additional processing fee if yous pay with a credit card.

Hire Northwest to class your Illinois nonprofit, and your total, which includes a full year of registered amanuensis service, is $277 for 30 day filing and $302.75 for expedited ane twenty-four hours filing.

How Long Does It Have to Start an Illinois Nonprofit?

Standard processing for an Illinois nonprofit is around one month. If you file online or in person and pay a $25 expedite fee, however, you tin can get your articles of incorporation candy in one business concern day.

Does an Illinois Nonprofit Need a Registered Agent?

Yeah, your nonprofit is required to appoint an Illinois registered agent. You can do the task yourself, appoint a willing associate, or hire an authorized business that provides registered agent service (like Northwest). We recommend hiring a registered agent service.

Why? Considering your registered agent has to be available during normal business concern hours to receive services of process, which isn't an piece of cake task for an private human being being. If y'all take on the chore yourself, you lot can't get bogged down in lengthy business concern meetings, travel to meet with potential donors, accept vacations, or exercise much of anything, really, that takes you away from your nonprofit'south registered part. The address you lot list also goes into the public record, and so you will most likely bargain with a lot of junk mail, spam, and unwanted solicitors.

When you hire Northwest, notwithstanding, our Illinois accost replaces yours, and we will always scan services of process and send them to yous on the day nosotros receive them. We aid y'all protect your privacy, keep your system in good standing with the state, and free you up to manage your nonprofit's vision on your own terms.

You lot will demand a federal employment identification number (FEIN or EIN) if you lot want to apply for a bank account in your nonprofit'southward name and utilize for federal and/or land taxation exemptions. After the Illinois Secretary of Country approves your articles, you can apply for an EIN on the IRS website. You can also add our EIN service for an boosted fee when y'all hire Northwest.

Illinois requires your nonprofit'due south board of directors to adopt bylaws at your organizational meeting. Yous don't need to submit your bylaws to the state (and the land wouldn't have them if you did), just that hardly matters. Even if your nonprofit wasn't required to write and adopt bylaws, you would want to do so. No aggressive and successful nonprofit can function well without its directors, officers, and members knowing who has power over what, who speaks for the organization, how long an officer's term lasts, who gets to vote on resolutions, and and then on. Bylaws are all about self-command. They are the agreement your nonprofit makes with itself.

It isn't easy to write bylaws, of course, but Northwest is here to help. When yous hire Northwest to form your nonprofit, you lot will gain access to our template for writing bylaws, also equally numerous gratis nonprofit forms to help you form and manage your new nonprofit. Why? Considering we desire to do business with yous for years to come, and your nonprofit needs to be successful for that to happen. At Northwest, we understand that, in the end, our clients' success is our success.

Will My Illinois Nonprofit Be Tax Exempt?

Not immediately. Get-go, you need to become the IRS to recognize your nonprofit as a taxation-exempt organization, and that takes more than than a little time and effort. Y'all'll submit the detailed Awarding for Recognition of Exemption to the IRS, pay a hefty filing fee, and look around three-6 months while the IRS examines your organization and makes its decision. If your nonprofit intends to seek 501(c)(iii) revenue enhancement-exempt status for public charities and private foundations, be sure your Articles of Incorporation include the special language required by the IRS that dedicates your activities exclusively to the pursuit of 1 or more tax-exempt purposes.

If your nonprofit obtains federal tax-exempt condition, it's then automatically exempt from the Illinois state income taxation. To get an Illinois sales revenue enhancement exemption, however, yous'll need to file Form STAX-ane (the Application for Sales Revenue enhancement Exemption) to the Illinois Section of Revenue. Acquire more at Northwest's guide to Illinois country taxation exemptions.

Does an Illinois nonprofit need a business license?

Illinois doesn't require a statewide business license, but some cities and counties take licensing requirements of their own. It'south best to contact your city and county clerks and enquiry your local requirements before conducting business in Illinois.

Does an Illinois nonprofit need a country revenue enhancement ID?

Your nonprofit should annals for a state taxpayer ID with the Illinois Department of Revenue before hiring any employees or making any purchases or sales (basically, earlier doing business of any kind). Yous can register by submitting a Business Registration Application (REG-1) online at the MyTax Illinois website or by sending your printed application to:

Key Registration Sectionalisation
Illinois Department of Revenue
PO Box 19030
Springfield, IL 62794-9030

Should my Illinois nonprofit register equally a clemency?

If your nonprofit volition collect donations, you will demand to register as an Illinois charity with the Illinois Attorney General. At that place is a $15 registration fee, and an additional $15 fee each twelvemonth when you submit your Charitable Organization Annual Report (Form AG0990-IL), not to be confused with the annual report y'all will submit each twelvemonth to the Illinois Secretary of Land! The charitable annual report'due south deadline is 6 months after the close of your nonprofit's fiscal year. If your nonprofit is a religious charity, however, information technology may be exempt from the annual reporting requirement and fee.

Whatever you do, make sure to register before soliciting donations in Illinois, and always submit your charitable annual report on time. The Illinois Chaser General charges a $200 fee if you solicit contributions prior to registration and a $200 re-registration fee for nonprofits that don't file annual reports past the deadline.

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To open a bank account for your Illinois nonprofit, you will need to bring the post-obit items with y'all to the banking concern:

A copy of your Illinois nonprofit manufactures of incorporation
A copy of your nonprofit'due south bylaws
Your Illinois nonprofit's EIN

Information technology'southward wise to call your banking concern ahead of fourth dimension to cheque its requirements. Some banks may require you to bring a resolution authorizing you to open up a depository financial institution account in your nonprofit's name (peculiarly if your nonprofit has several directors and/or officers).

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What is the Idaho nonprofit annual report?

The Illinois annual report updates (or confirms) your nonprofit's information as it appears on the state'southward records, including your nonprofit'due south name and registered agent information (among other details). There is a $ten filing fee for nonprofits, and you can file online at the Illinois Secretary of State'southward website or by mail. The borderline is e'er prior to the first day of the ceremony month of your nonprofit's incorporation with the state.

Hire Northwest, and we'll remind you when your annual written report'due south deadline approaches, just you tin also sign up for our Illinois Annual Report Service and leave the unabridged process to u.s.a..

Permit Us Be Your Guide

Registered Agent Office Graphic

At Northwest Registered Agent, nosotros've spent years crafting our Illinois Nonprofit Service. When you hire us, we'll grade your Illinois nonprofit for $277 total ($302.75 expedited) and include:

Ane twelvemonth of registered agent service
Digital notifications
Illinois almanac report reminders and directions for fast filing
A secure online business relationship filled with intuitive business concern maintenance tools and forms to brand upkeep simple
Lifetime Corporate Guide Service—call us someday and one of our Corporate Guides volition assist y'all navigate whatever business trouble, job or curiosity you have.

Northwest Registered Agent is the merely national nonprofit formation service dedicated to your personal privacy. We don't well data to third-parties, and we do everything nosotros can to continue your personal information secure.

START YOUR ILLINOIS NONPROFIT FOR $277 TOTAL