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A nonprofit organization (abbreviated "NPO", or "non-profit" or "not-for-profit") is an organization whose primary objective is to support some issue or matter of private interest or public concern for non-commercial purposes. Nonprofits may be involved in an innumerable range of areas relating to the arts, charities, education, politics, religion, research, sports or some other endeavor. It has been suggested that Apocopation be merged into this article or section. ...
An organization or organisation (read more about -ize vs -ise) is a formal group of people with one or more shared goals. ...
The Arts is a broad subdivision of culture, comprised of many expressive disciplines. ...
A charitable organization (also known as a charity) is a trust, company or unincorporated association established for charitable purposes only. ...
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For-profit distinction Most experts consider that it is the legal and ethical restrictions on the distribution of profits to owners or shareholders which fundamentally distinguishes nonprofits from commercial enterprises. A more precise term is 'not-for-profit', rather than 'nonprofit', and this is often used in legislation and texts. Wall Street, Manhattan is the location of the New York Stock Exchange and is often used as a symbol for the world of business. ...
Nonprofits generally do not operate to generate profit, a characteristic widely considered to be the defining characteristic of such organizations. However, a nonprofit organization may accept, hold and disburse money and other things of value. It may also legally and ethically trade at a profit. The extent to which it can generate income may be constrained, or the use of those profits may be restricted. Nonprofits therefore are typically funded by donations from the private or public sector, and often have tax exempt status. Private donations may sometimes be tax deductible. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
Income, generally defined, is the money that is received as a result of the normal business activities of an individual or a business. ...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
A donation is a gift to a fund or cause, typically for charitable reasons. ...
The private sector of a nations economy consists of those entities which are not controlled by the state - i. ...
< [[[[math>Insert formula here</math>The public sector is that part of economic and administrative life that deals with the delivery of goods and services by and for the [[government </math></math></math></math> Direct administration funded through taxation; the delivering organisation generally has no specific requirement to meet commercial...
In the United States, tax exempt status is a status granted to non-profit organization, such as churches and charities by the IRS, in reference to income tax. ...
A tax deduction or a tax-deductible expense, is an item which is subtracted from gross income in order to arrive at the taxable income. ...
Additionally, a nonprofit organization may have members as opposed to shareholders.
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Nature and goals Nonprofit organizations often are charities or service organizations; they may be organized as a not-for-profit corporation or as a trust, a cooperative, or they may be purely informal. Sometimes they are also called foundations, or endowments that have large stock funds. Most foundations give out grants to other nonprofit organizations, or fellowships to individuals. However, the name foundations may be used by any not-for-profit corporation -- even volunteer organizations or grass roots groups. A nonprofit may be a very loosely organized group, such as a block association or a trade union, or it may be a complex structure such as a university, hospital, documentary film production company or educational book publisher. A charitable organization (also known as a charity) is a trust, company or unincorporated association established for charitable purposes only. ...
A Not-for-profit corporation is a corporation created by statute, government or judicial authority that does not issue stock. ...
A charitable trust (or charity) is a trust organized to serve private or public charitable purposes. ...
A cooperative (also co-operative or co-op) is a group of persons who join together or co-operate, to carry on an economic activity of mutual benefit. ...
A Foundation is a type of philanthropic organization set up by either individuals or institutions as a legal entity (either as a corporation or trust) with the purpose of distributing grants to support causes in line with the goals of the foundation. ...
A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution, with the stipulation that it be invested, and the principal remain intact. ...
A stock fund or equity fund is a fund that invests in Equities more commonly known as stocks. ...
A grant is money given to an individual or an organization that does not hold an obligation of repayment. ...
A Foundation is a type of philanthropic organization set up by either individuals or institutions as a legal entity (either as a corporation or trust) with the purpose of distributing grants to support causes in line with the goals of the foundation. ...
The term volunteer is contested — there is no one agreed-to definition, and the term is frequently debated. ...
Grassroots democracy is the political processes which are driven by groups of ordinary citizens, as opposed to larger organisations or wealthy individuals with concentrated vested interests in particular policies. ...
The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...
Representation of a university class, 1350s. ...
A physician visiting the sick in a hospital. ...
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Film production on location in Newark, New Jersey. ...
A publisher is a person or entity which engages in the act of publishing. ...
In many countries applying Germanic or Nordic law (e.g. Germany, Sweden, Finland), nonprofit organizations typically are voluntary associations, although some have a corporate structure (e.g. housing cooperatives). A voluntary association usually is founded upon a principle of one person–-one vote. A large, nation-wide organization usually is organized as a league: the local level has a town- or county-level association with natural person membership, these associations being members of the national association. This is perceived to give the local level the maximal autonomy, while it also protects the organization from the financial blunders of any single association. The organization of such leagues (e.g. trade union or a party) may be extremely complex. Often there are separate laws regulating usual, "idealist" associations (anything from a sports club to a trade union), political parties and religious denominations, restricting each type of organization to its chosen field. A voluntary association (also sometimes called just an association) is a group of individuals who voluntarily enter into an agreement to form a body (or organization) to accomplish a purpose. ...
A housing co-operative is a legal entity that owns real estate, one or more residential buildings. ...
This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...
A political party is a political organization subscribing to a certain ideology or formed around very special issues. ...
Note that this kind of denomination is not that of a coin or banknote. ...
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Legal aspects Most countries have laws which regulate the establishment and management of nonprofit organizations, and which require compliance with corporate governance regimes. Most larger organizations are required to publish their financial reports detailing their income and expenditure for the public. In many aspects they are similar to business entities though there are often significant differences. Both nonprofit and for-profit entities must have board members, steering committee members, or trustees who owe the organization a fiduciary duty of loyalty and trust. A notable exception to this involves churches, which are often not required to disclose finances to anyone, not even its own members if the leadership choose. Corporate governance is the set of processes, customs, policies, laws and institutions affecting the way a corporation is directed, administered or controlled. ...
The term business entity refers generally to any organization engaged in business activities, regardless of legal structure. ...
A fiduciary is a person who occupies a position of trust in relation to someone else such that he is required to act for the latters benefit within the scope of that relationship. ...
A church building (or simply church) is a building used in Christian worship. ...
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Formation and structure In the United States, nonprofit organizations are normally formed by incorporating in the state in which they expect to do business. The act of incorporating creates a legal entity enabling the organization to be treated as a corporation under law and to enter into business dealings, form contracts, and own property as any other individual or for-profit corporation may do.
Nonprofits can have members but many do not. The nonprofit may also be a trust or association of members. The organization may be controlled by its members who elect the Board of Directors or Board of Trustees. Nonprofits may have a delegate structure to allow for the representation of groups or corporations as members. Alternately, it may be a non-membership organization and the board of directors may elect its own successors. In common law legal systems, a trust is a relationship in which a person or entity (the trustee) holds legal title to certain property (the trust property or trust corpus), but is bound by a fiduciary duty to exercise that legal control for the benefit of one or more individuals...
A voluntary association (also sometimes called just an association) is a group of individuals who voluntarily enter into an agreement to form a body (or organization) to accomplish a purpose. ...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
A primary difference between a nonprofit and a for-profit corporation is that a nonprofit does not issue stock or pay dividends, (for example, The Code of the Commonwealth of Virginia includes the Non-Stock Corporation Act that is used to incorporate nonprofit entities) and may not enrich its directors. However, like for-profit corporations, nonprofits may still have employees and can compensate their directors within reasonable bounds. State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner Official languages English Area 110,862 km² (35th) - Land 102,642 km² - Water 8,220 km² (7. ...
Managing director is the term used for the chief executive of many limited companies in the United Kingdom and some other English speaking countries. ...
Managing director is the term used for the chief executive of many limited companies in the United Kingdom and some other English speaking countries. ...
Some critics of corporations argue that when corporations donate to charities to reduce taxes, the companies whitewash their reputations, sometimes benefitting in terms of marketing and public relations purposes. In some countries, e.g. in civil law European states, the idea of deductible donations is not endorsed as it is considered to violate the popular sovereignty. In a democracy, the people, i.e. the parliament, arguably should be able to decide where the tax money goes. Some people believe that when donors who indirectly decide on the use of their taxes, the donors are engaging in an act that should be the privilege of parliament, not of individuals. Others feel that individuals can make better choices than a governing body about which organizations are most effective and deserving of their support, especially when it comes to local charities, and that such donations make tax usage more efficient. In countries where donations are not tax-deductible, the state may assume a larger role in supporting nonprofit organizations.
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Tax exemption In many countries, nonprofits may apply for tax exempt status, so that the organization itself may be exempt from income tax and other taxes, and (in some cases) so that financial donors may claim back any income tax paid on donations, or deduct from their own tax liability the amount of the donation. In the United States, tax exempt status is a status granted to non-profit organization, such as churches and charities by the IRS, in reference to income tax. ...
The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...
A donation is a gift to a fund or cause, typically for charitable reasons. ...
Only limited types of tax exempt, non-profit organizations offer to donors the advantage of deductions for the amount donated.
- For a United States analysis of this issue, see 501(c).
In the United States, after a recognized type of legal entity has been formed at the state level, it is customary for the nonprofit organization to seek tax exempt status with respect to its income tax obligations. That is typically done by applying to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), although statutory exemptions exist for limited types of nonprofit organizations. The IRS, after reviewing the application to ensure the organization meets the conditions to be recognized as a tax exempt organization (such as the purpose, limitations on spending, and internal safeguards for a charity [1]), may issue an authorization letter to the nonprofit granting it tax exempt status for income tax payment, filing, and deductibility purposes. The exemption does not apply to other Federal taxes such as employment taxes. Additionally, a tax-exempt organization must pay federal tax on income that is unrelated to their exempt purpose.[2] Failure to maintain operations in conformity to the laws may result in an organization losing its tax exempt status. 501(c) is a subsection of the United States Internal Revenue Code (), which lists 28 types of tax exempt non-profit organizations. ...
The United States imposes an income tax on the taxable income of individuals, corporations, trusts, decedents estates and certain bankruptcy estates. ...
Seal of the Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the United States government agency that collects taxes and enforces the tax laws. ...
Also in the United States, individual states and localities offer nonprofits exemptions from other taxes such as sales tax or property tax. Federal tax-exempt status does not guarantee exemption from state and local taxes. These exemptions generally have separate application processes and their requirements may differ from the IRS requirements. Furthermore, even a tax exempt organization may be required to file annual financial reports at the state and federal level. A sales tax is an excise tax on the privilege of selling or renting certain property or services in a state or locality. ...
// Property tax is an ad valorem tax that an owner of real estate or other property pays on the value of the thing taxed. ...
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Religious Entities in U.S. Because the First Amendment guarantees freedom of religion, religious non-profit entities like churches are subject to less rigorous federal filing and reporting requirements than many other tax-exempt organizations.[3] The first ten Amendments to the U.S. Constitution make up the Bill of Rights. ...
It has been suggested that Religious toleration be merged into this article or section. ...
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United Kingdom In the England and Wales nonprofit organizations which take the form of charities must generally be registered with the Charity Commission. In Scotland the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator serves the same function. Other organizations which are classified as nonprofit organizations in the U.S., such as trade unions, are subject to separate regulations, and are not regarded as charities in the technical sense. The Charity Commission is the non-ministerial government department that regulates registered charities (and hence to some extent most churches) in England and Wales. ...
Motto: (Latin for No one provokes me with impunity)1 Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official language(s) English, Gaelic, Scots2 Government Constitutional monarchy - Queen of the UK Queen Elizabeth II - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP - First Minister Jack McConnell MSP Unification - by...
The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) is an Executive Agency of the Scottish Executive Development Department with responsibilty for the regulation of Scottish charities. ...
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Issues faced by nonprofits Capacity building is an ongoing problem faced by nonprofits that rely on external funding to maintain their operations, largely because nonprofit organizations have little control over their source(s) of revenue. Increasingly in the United States, many nonprofits rely on government funds to support their operations, often through grants, contracts, or customer-sided subsidies, such as vouchers or tax credits. Some nonprofits may also rely primarily on support from charitable foundations and donations. Changes in these sources of revenue may influence the reliability or predictability with which the organization can hire and retain staff, sustain facilities, or create programs. Increasingly, there are few sources of revenue that allow nonprofits to develop their organizational capacities.[citation needed]Founder's syndrome is an issue organizations face as they grow. Dynamic founders with a strong vision of how to operate the project try to retain control over the organization, even as new volunteers want to expand the project's scope and try new things. Capacity building is assistance which is provided to entities, usually developing country governments, which have a need to develop a certain skill or competence, or for general upgrading of performance ability. ...
A grant is money given to an individual or an organization that does not hold an obligation of repayment. ...
A contract is any promise or set of promises made by one party to another for the breach of which the law provides a remedy. ...
In economics, a subsidy is generally a monetary grant given by government to lower the price faced by producers or consumers of a good, generally because it is considered to be in the public interest. ...
A voucher is a certificate which is worth a certain monetary value and which may only be spent for specific reasons or on specific goods. ...
Within the Australian, Canadian, United Kingdom, and United States tax systems, a tax credit is an item which is treated as a payment already made towards taxes owed. ...
A Foundation is a kind of philanthropic organization, set up by either individuals or institutions as a legal entity (usually either a corporation or a trust) with the purpose of distributing grants to support causes in line with the goals of the foundation. ...
A donation is to give a fund or cause or such donated gift usually for charitable reasons. ...
Founders syndrome occurs in a non-profit organization when decisions are made by a prominent person or small group of people, in an attempt to shape that organization according to a specific vision. ...
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Examples The largest nonprofit organization in the United States is the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has an endowment of approximately $27 billion. The second largest is the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which has an endowment of approximately $14.8 billion. Elsewhere in the world, the largest nonprofit organization is probably the British Wellcome Trust, which is a "charity" in British usage. Note that this assessment excludes universities, at least a few of which have assets in the tens of billions of dollars. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the worlds largest charitable foundation. ...
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is a United States non-profit medical research institute based in Chevy Chase, Maryland and originally founded by the aviator and engineer Howard Hughes in 1953. ...
New Wellcome Trust building on Euston Road The Wellcome Trust is a United Kingdom-based charity established in 1936 to administer the fortune of the American-born pharmaceutical magnate Sir Henry Wellcome. ...
Representation of a university class, 1350s. ...
Some nonprofits which are particularly well known, often for the charitable or social nature of their activities conducted over a long period of time, include Amnesty International, the Better Business Bureau, Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Cato Institute, the Red Cross and Red Crescent organisations, UNESCO, IEEE and WWF. Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty or AI) is an non-governmental membership organization with the stated purpose of campaigning for internationally recognized human rights. ...
BBB logo The Better Business Bureau, founded in 1912, is an organization based in the United States and Canada devoted to honest business. ...
The Carnegie Corporation was founded by the will of Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to promote the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding. ...
The Cato Institute is a large libertarian, non-profit public policy research foundation (think tank) headquartered in Washington, D.C. The Institutes stated mission is to broaden the parameters of public policy debate to allow consideration of the traditional American principles of limited government, individual liberty, free markets, and...
The Anarchist Black Cross was originally called the Anarchist Red Cross. The band Redd Kross was originally called Red Cross. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is the worlds largest group of humanitarian non-governmental organizations, often known simply as the Red Cross, after its original symbol. ...
UNESCO logo UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established in 1945. ...
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers or IEEE (pronounced as eye-triple-ee) is an international non-profit, professional organization incorporated in the State of New York, United States. ...
WWF – World Wide Fund for Nature (formerly the World Wildlife Fund, which is still used by WWF-US and WWF-Canada) is a global environment conservation, research, environmental advocacy and restoration organization. ...
However, there are also millions of smaller nonprofit organizations that provide social services or the arts to people throughout the world. There are more than 1.6 million nonprofits in the United States alone. For more see Wikipedia articles on non-profit organizations A social worker is a person employed in the administration of charity, social service, welfare, and poverty agencies, advocacy, or religious outreach programs. ...
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On the Internet Many nonprofit organizations use the .org top-level domain when selecting a domain name to differentiate themselves from more commercially-focused entities which typically use the .com space. In the traditional domain categories as noted in RFC 1591, .org is for "organizations that didn't fit anywhere else" in the naming system, which implies that it is the proper category for noncommercial organizations if they are not governmental, educational, or one of the other types with a specific TLD. It is not specifically designated for charitable organizations or any specific organizational or tax-law status, however; it encompasses anything that does not fall into another category. Currently, no restrictions are enforced on registration of .com or .org, so you can find organizations of all sorts in either of these domains, as well as other top-level domains including newer, more-specific ones which may fit particular sorts of organizations such as .museum for museums. Organizations might also register under the approprate country code top-level domain for their country. .org (organization) is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) used in the Internets Domain Name System. ...
A top-level domain (TLD) is the last part of an Internet domain name; that is, the letters which follow the final dot of any domain name. ...
The term domain name has multiple meanings, all related to the: a name that is entered into a computer (e. ...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
.museum is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) used exclusively by museums, museum associations, and individual members of the museum profession, as these groups are defined by the International Council of Museums (ICOM). ...
A country code top-level domain (ccTLD) is a top-level domain used and reserved for a country or a dependent territory. ...
Organizations with local, regional, or national chapters might give them subdomain addresses in a hierarchical structure, such as florida.example.org for the Florida chapter, and miami.florida.example.org for the Miami group within the Florida chapter. However, in some cases local chapters register separate domains such as miamiexample.org, which can produce inconsistency in the naming structure; if they do not coordinate their naming, another chapter might get an inconsistent name such as example-fortlauderdale.org.
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See also [edit] // Legal definitions A charity is a trust, company or unincorporated association established for charitable purposes only. ...
Charity Navigator is an independent, non-profit organization that evaluates charities. ...
// Community Organization Community organizations are nonprofits that operate within a single local community. ...
A Foundation is a type of philanthropic organization set up by either individuals or institutions as a legal entity (either as a corporation or trust) with the purpose of distributing grants to support causes in line with the goals of the foundation. ...
This page is a list of lists of organizations and a list of otherwise unclassified organizations. ...
A Not-for-profit corporation is a corporation created by statute, government or judicial authority that does not issue stock. ...
501(c) is a subsection of the United States Internal Revenue Code (), which lists 28 types of tax exempt non-profit organizations. ...
A non-commercial enterprise is work that values other considerations above and beyond that of making a profit. ...
Nonprofit technology comprises information and communication technologies that support the goals of nonprofit, nongovernmental, third sector, grassroots, and other mission-based organizations. ...
Program evaluation is essentially a set of philosophies and techniques to determine if a program works. It is a practice field that has emerged, particularly in the USA, as a disciplined way of assessing the merit, value, and worth of projects and programs. ...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards and make it easier to understand, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
Laws - Commonwealth non-profit laws
- European Union non-profit laws
- People's Republic of China non-profit laws
- Republic of India non-profit laws
- Japan non-profit laws
- Russian Federation non-profit laws
- United States of America non-profit laws
[edit] A Non Profit Organisation can be registered in India under Registrar of Societies or by making a Trust deed. ...
Laws regarding non-profit organizations in the United States of America relate to taxation, the special problems of an organization which does not have profit as its primary motivation, and prevention of charitable fraud. ...
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