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Ho does a ministry become a registered nonprofit organization?

Discussion in 'Evangelism, Missions & Witnessing' started by bodyofchrist32, Aug 5, 2009.

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  1. bodyofchrist32

    bodyofchrist32 New Member

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    I am seeking to start a ministry aimed at mailing a gospel tract to every person in NC, and I was told that the best way to do this would be to start a nonprofit orginization. I was told that a nonprofit could get the stamps for free. Does anyone know if this is true? And, if so, how does one go about becoming registered as nonprofit?
     
    #1 bodyofchrist32, Aug 5, 2009
  2. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
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    Free Stamps - Not likely,. However, if you get a Postal permit, you are able to send bulk mail at a much reduce rate. check with the post office for that info

    As far as being registered as a non-profit, you would need to check with your State. Here is NY it was quite a process, but at least now we are tax exempt!

    I would recommend to check with a local Non-profit and ask for some advice.

    In NY I was told it would cost about $500 to incorporate.

    Better yet, would your church consider as a ministry and just do everything thur the church?
     
    #2 Salty, Aug 5, 2009
  3. matt wade

    matt wade Well-Known Member

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    You aren't going to get stamps for free. You can qualify for non-profit mailing rates, but the costs are still going to be huge. There are a 9.2 million people in NC. Sending a 1 ounce letter at non-profit rates ($0.132 each) comes up to 1.214 million dollars. That doesn't even include the cost of the tracts themselves, not to mention the time involved. Oh, that best rate also assumes that you are printing all the addresses on the envelopes in a particular format and including the postal routing information. That's something you are going to need a mailing company for.

    I don't mean to bum you out, but you may want to start with something not quite so huge. Maybe just start with your local city, depending on size.
     
    #3 matt wade, Aug 5, 2009
  4. annsni

    annsni Well-Known Member
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    Yep - I've been working with non-profits for 25 years and free postage is a fallacy.
     
    #4 annsni, Aug 5, 2009
  5. sag38

    sag38 Active Member

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    No free stamps, but I pray that your ministry will be successful and bring forth a harvest.
     
    #5 sag38, Aug 6, 2009
  6. bodyofchrist32

    bodyofchrist32 New Member

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    Okay, so no free stamps. But does anyone know what I would have to do to become a registerd nonprofit?
     
    #6 bodyofchrist32, Aug 6, 2009
  7. Johnv

    Johnv New Member

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    An individual cannot obtain not-for-profit status. What you will need to do is form a corporation, and register for 501c3 status for that corporation (since it will be a charitable organization). I suggest visiting the sites legalzoom.com and irs.gov for detailed information on doing so.

    Regarding free postage, that's a myth.
     
    #7 Johnv, Aug 6, 2009
  8. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
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    See post # 2
     
    #8 Salty, Aug 6, 2009
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