Five authorities, not one
A Florida 501(c)(3) answers to five different bodies. Registering with one does not automatically register you with the others. Those initial registrations are:
| Who | What |
|---|---|
| Division of Corporations | Articles of Incorporation for a nonprofit corporation |
| IRS | Form 1023 or 1023-EZ, Application for Tax Exemption |
| FDACS | Form 10100 or 10110, Charitable Solicitation Application |
| Department of Revenue | Form DR-5, exemption from Florida sales and use tax |
| County property appraiser | Form DR-504, if you own property |
Then the nonprofit must separately file renewals with those departments:
| Who | What | When |
|---|---|---|
| Division of Corporations | Annual report. The nonprofit must also keep its registered agent’s information up to date | January 1 – May 1 |
| IRS | Form 990 series | 15th day of the 5th month after taxable year end |
| FDACS | Charitable solicitation renewal | One year from initial registration. This date will be provided to the nonprofit upon approval. It can also be found online here. |
| Department of Revenue | Consumer’s Certificate of Exemption (Form DR-14) | Every 5 years |
| County property appraiser | Form DR-504, if you own property | March 1 |
One note on the sales tax certificate: the Department of Revenue reviews each certificate roughly 60 days before it expires and will renew it using publicly available information, rather than requiring a fresh DR-5 every five years. That is convenient, and it is also a reason to keep your corporate status and federal exemption in good standing — the review draws on the same public records that would show an administrative dissolution or an automatic revocation.
It is not enough to file a renewal with just one of these organizations. For example, an organization that has filed all of its 990s with the IRS can still be administratively dissolved by Florida for failing to file its annual report.
Additional maintenance
A nonprofit must have at least one meeting of its board each year. During that meeting, it is important that the nonprofit’s board:
- Adopts the budget.
- Reviews the Form 990 before it is filed. The board, not just the bookkeeper.
- Reaffirms the conflict of interest policy and collects signed disclosures. For FDACS-registered organizations the annual certification of that policy is submitted with the registration, so this is a filing input, not just good practice.
- Reviews compensation with comparable data, the affected person recused.
- Confirms the registered agent and principal address are still correct.
What each miss actually costs
| Missed | Consequence |
|---|---|
| Florida annual report | Administrative dissolution; reinstatement is $175 plus $61.25 per year due |
| Form 990, three years running | Automatic revocation of federal exemption. To reinstate, the nonprofit must submit a new Form 1023. The IRS may impose additional fees. |
| FDACS renewal | $25 per month, then suspension |
| Form DR-504 by March 1 | Property tax for the year |
The two state-level exemptions above each have their own application: see Florida nonprofit tax exemptions for what the DR-5 and the DR-504 actually cover.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Rules differ by state and change over time. Please speak with a licensed attorney about your own situation.