Source: https://www.sec.state.vt.us/corporationsbusiness-services/business-nonprofit-services/start-a-vermont-business/nonprofit-corporation.aspx
Timestamp: 2017-08-24 01:01:19
Document Index: 11751776

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 3', '§ 17', '§ 17', '§ 1', '§ 1', '§ 2471']

Navigate Corporations/Business Services: Select... Start a Vermont Business Profit Corporation Limited Liability Company Nonprofit Corporation Nonprofit Directors & Officers Nonprofit Bylaws Cooperative Mutual Benefit Enterprise Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) Limited Partnership (LP) General Partnership Trade Name (DBA)
NOTE: This page only provides information regarding Nonprofit Corporations.
If you are seeking information regarding one of the following for-profit business types (often mistakenly identified as not-for-profit entities), please select the appropriate link:
If you are seeking to register the business name of a not-for-profit association, but are not looking to incorporate, the only other option (aside from registering as a for-profit entity type) is to register as an Association of Individuals (see Trade Name (DBA) Registration).
A nonprofit corporation is an organization of people committed to a one or more, but not limited to, of the following not-for-profit purposes:
charitable; benevolent; eleemosynary; educational; civic; patriotic; political; religious; social; fraternal; sororal; literary; cultural; athletic; scientific; agricultural; horticultural; animal husbandry; and professional, commercial, industrial, or trade association. 11B V.S.A. § 3.01.
While the purposes for which nonprofits are formed do vary, their core purpose always is to further some greater good, either for society as a whole or for a defined community of interest; not the individual profit of those involved.
Public Benefit: Any nonprofit corporation that is:
classified by statute as a public benefit corporation;
recognized as exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or any successor section; or
is organized for a public or charitable purpose and which upon dissolution must distribute its assets to the United States, a state, or a person which is recognized as exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or any successor section. 11B V.S.A. § 17.05(1)-(3).
Mutual Benefit: Any corporation that is:
classified by statute as a mutual benefit corporation; or
does NOT fit within the definition of public benefit corporation. 11B V.S.A. § 17.05(1) and (4).
NOTE: Registration as a Vermont nonprofit does not confer tax exemption status under IRS Code 501(c), (e), (f), or any other federal exemption status with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Please contact the IRS for more information regarding if, and if so, how, a nonprofit may become tax exempt.
Nonprofit corporations are not required to have members. Whether a nonprofit is a membership organization is determined by whether its articles or bylaws provide for members or membership.
Member means (without regard to what a person is called in the articles or bylaws) is any person or persons who on more than one occasion, pursuant to a provision of a corporation's articles or bylaws, have the right to vote for the election of a director or directors. A person is not a member by virtue of any of the following:
any rights such person has to designate a director or directors;
any rights such person has as a director; or
any rights of association, not including the right to vote for the election of a director or directors, created in the corporation's articles of incorporation or bylaws for persons who participate in the activities of the corporation. 11B V.S.A. § 1.40(21).
Membership refers to the rights and obligations a member or members have pursuant to a corporation's articles, bylaws, and Title 11B of the Vermont Statutes Annotated. 11B V.S.A. § 1.40(22).
Under Vermont statutes, all paid fundraisers and paid solicitors who directly or indirectly solicit donations for charitable organizations or charitable purposes are required to register annually with the Vermont Attorney General’s Office and to pay a registration fee. According to 9 V.S.A. § 2471(8):
1. Please see:
"UNDERSTAND YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES: GUIDANCE FOR BOARD MEMBERS OF CHARITABLE NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS IN VERMONT" by the Attorney General's Office, or
2. Visit the Vermont Attorney General’s Office online, or contact them by email at paidfunnulldraisernull@atg.stnullate.vt.nullus or by phone at 802-828-5507.
Business Name of a Nonprofit Corporation
Please see Title 11B of the Vermont Statutes Annotated for more information.
Nonprofit Corporation Filings: Online or by Mail
NOTE: Do not invest in websites, signs, business cards, or other marketing materials until you receive a certificate confirming the availability and your ownership of the requested name.
Before you start, whether filing online or by mail, you will should have the following information available:
Business Name: Please note that all registrations with the Office of the Secretary of State are subject to name availability rules. Please search our online database for your desired business name to avoid any obvious conflicts.
Your initial 3 directors: Please see the Nonprofit Directors & Officers page for more information.
Your initial Registered Agent: Please see the Registered Agent page for more information.
CORP-1(N), Articles of Incorporation (Nonprofit Corporation-Domestic)
CORP-3(N), Articles of Amendment (Nonprofit-Domestic)
CORP-6(N), Articles of Dissolution (Nonprofit Corporation-Domestic)
This page was last updated: 2017-06-12