Outside U.S.A.

Are you or your organization outside the U.S.A.?

Would you like your own organization in the U.S. so that you can raise money for projects in the country you are in?

No problem. We do everything by e-mail so it's smooth and easy.

You need someone in the U.S. to be your Contact Person and do some minimal tasks during the process of incorporation and securing tax-exempt status from the IRS (a phone call, printing out documents and mailing them to the Secretary of State and to the IRS). This person (or someone else in the U.S.) can be the incorporator. For an additional $300 fee, we can even do this for you.

You need a resident agent who resides in the state you decide to incorporate in (whose only responsibility is to pass legal papers on to the organization). If you don't know of anyone who can be your resident agent, you can do an Internet search for "resident agent service" and find a company that can perform this service for you.

Your treasurer must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident in the U.S., and your books (financial records) must be kept in the U.S. if you wish U.S. donors to be able to deduct their donations. If your treasurer and financial records are not in the U.S., donations are normally not tax-deductible although you may receive grants from 501(c)(3) organizations. The same is true if control of the organization is outside the U.S.

Your directors (you need at least three) and officers do not need to reside in the U.S. or be U.S. citizens (with the exception of the treasurer already mentioned). However, if a majority of your directors are outside the U.S., then control of the organization is outside the U.S. (please see previous paragraph). [U.S. citizens and U.S. Permanent Residents are not considered "outside the U.S." for these purposes even if they reside abroad.]

The organization must have a control mechanism to assure that any monies spent in your foreign country are actually going for the tax-exempt purposes you intend.

The organization cannot be merely a channel for contributions to a foreign charitable organization. Your corporation must review and approve foreign projects and have control and discretion as to the use of the contributions given to any foreign organizations. Specifically, Revenue Ruling 63-252, 1963-2 C.B. 101 and 66-79, 1966-1 C.B. 48 provide that contributions to certain domestic charitable organizations are deductible if it can be shown that the gift is, in fact, to or for the use of the domestic organization and that the domestic organization is not serving a an agent for, or a channel to, a foreign charitable organization. Contributions to the domestic organization would be deductible if the domestic organization has reviewed, and approved the foreign project as being in furtherance of its own exempt purpose and if the domestic organization has control and discretion as to the use of the contributions given to foreign organizations.

Payment for our fees from outside the U.S. is only by wire transfer.

Here is an IRS video that should be helpful if your nonprofit will operate outside the U.S.A. (International Activities of Domestic Charitable Organizations):