How to Start a Nonprofit in D.C.

Washington D.C., as home to the American government, has a lot going on. Did you know that all the roads in D.C. lead to the capitol building. And, while their street names are named after letters, because they were named before the letter J was invented, there is not J street. As far as nonprofits go, according to Independent Sector’s State Profile, Washington D.C. has more than 12,000 nonprofits within the district. Nonprofit sectors create tremendous community and economic advantages in the United States. To learn how to start your own D.C. nonprofit, just follow these three easy steps.

1. Choose initial directors
   1. When filing the proper paperwork, you are required to have a minimum of three board of directors (president, secretary and treasurer). The name and physical address of each director is also required.
2. Appoint a registered agent
   1. A registered agent acts as the middleman between your corporation and the government. Your registered agent must be a current resident in Washington D.C.
3. Prepare and file your nonprofit’s Articles of Incorporation
   1. You must file your Articles of Incorporation with the D.C.'s Department of Consumer & Regulatory Affairs. The filing fee is $80 by mail or online. You will need basic information such as your corporation’s name, primary physical address, mission statement, purpose statement, dissolution clause, whether your nonprofit will have members, name and address of your registered agent and each incorporator and a statement verifying that the corporation has been formed under the D.C. Nonprofit Corporation Act.

A Faster, Easy Way to Start Your Nonprofit in Washington D.C.

Now you have your Washington D.C. nonprofit corporation, you can use your state information and federal EIN to open a bank account for your nonprofit. However, setting up your nonprofit in Washington D.C.  is just part of the process of becoming a formal tax-exempt organization. The next step is to file for a federal tax exemption using either IRS form 1023 or 1023-EZ.The average nonprofit takes 100+ hours of time and often several thousand dollars in professional  fees to create. In the past, you were faced with locating, understanding, and filing the forms yourself or hiring an expensive attorney who likely doesn’t specialize in nonprofits.ExemptMeNow is the only secure, fully automated, online platform for creating your Washington D.C. Nonprofit Corporation.