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Step-by-step guide · checked against state sources
How to start a nonprofit in Alabama
Updated October 2026
Alabama makes you reserve your name before you may file, charges $200 to incorporate, and then tells you that federal tax exemption means nothing for state sales tax. Here is the whole path, checked against state sources.
Reserve your name first ($25 by mail, $27.75 online) because the certificate must be attached to your formation filing. Then file the Domestic Nonprofit Corporation Certificate of Incorporation with the Secretary of State for $200. Register with the Attorney General before soliciting: $25 initial and $25 annually, within 90 days of fiscal year end, exempt under $25,000 if no one is paid to fundraise. There is no Secretary of State annual report for nonprofits.
How to start a nonprofit in Alabama, step by step
Name your Alabama nonprofit
Alabama nonprofits need no corporate ending: the name is not required to include Corporation, Incorporated or an abbreviation, which is the opposite of the rule for Alabama business corporations. Reservation is not optional though. It costs $25 by mail or $27.75 online with a card, and the certificate must be attached to your formation documents.
Choose your first board of directors
Plan on at least three people who are not related to each other. Some states allow fewer on paper, but three unrelated directors is what the IRS application works best with, and what funders expect. Pick people who will actually show up.
File your Certificate of Incorporation (domestic nonprofit)
File the Domestic Nonprofit Corporation Certificate of Incorporation directly with the Secretary of State, sending the original and one copy along with your Certificate of Name Reservation. The fee is $200. Filing electronically avoids the $100 expedite fee that paper filers may pay, which Alabama removed for online filings in 2020.
Name your registered agent
Alabama requires a registered agent with a registered office at an Alabama street address, not a post office box, and the filing asks for the county the registered office sits in as well as a mailing address if different.
Adopt bylaws and hold your first board meeting
Bylaws are your internal rulebook: how directors are chosen, how votes work, what officers you have. At the first meeting the board adopts them, elects officers, and approves opening a bank account. Keep minutes; they are your first governance record.
Get your free EIN
It is free from the IRS; any site charging for an EIN is reselling a free thing. Apply online if your responsible party has an SSN or ITIN and your principal place of business is in the US. It takes minutes. Three limits to know: one EIN per responsible party per day, the tool is not open around the clock, and it times out after 15 minutes with nothing saved. Without an SSN or ITIN you file Form SS-4 by fax or mail instead, which takes weeks. You need the EIN for the bank account and every filing after this.
Apply for 501(c)(3) status with the IRS
Two forms, two fees. The short Form 1023-EZ has a $275 user fee, but you may use it only if you clear the whole Eligibility Worksheet. That means three things. Gross receipts did not exceed $50,000 in any of the past three years. They are not projected to exceed $50,000 in any of the next three years. And total assets are $250,000 or less. Churches, schools, hospitals and a few other types cannot use it at all. If you cannot use the EZ, you file the full Form 1023, $600. For most groups, this is the step that makes donations tax-deductible. Some groups can be tax-exempt without applying, such as churches, some very small charities, and local chapters covered by their national group's IRS group exemption. The IRS currently issues 80 percent of 1023-EZ decisions within about 22 days and 80 percent of full 1023 decisions within about 191 days. It publishes current figures on its status page. Fees read 1 September 2026.
Handle Alabama taxes
Income tax is easy and sales tax is not. Organizations exempt under 26 U.S.C. 501(a) are not required to file Alabama corporation income tax returns while that status holds, and are outside the Business Privilege Tax; file Form 20C with a copy of federal Form 990-T if you have unrelated business income. For sales tax, a 501(c)(3) letter buys nothing: the Department of Revenue says a nonprofit must be specifically listed in Title 40, Chapter 9 of the Alabama Code to be exempt. If yours is, apply on Form ST: EX-A1-SE.
Register to fundraise
Register with the Attorney General's office before soliciting, using the Charitable Organization Registration Form. It costs $25 initially and $25 for each annual filing, due within 90 days of the close of your fiscal year, with a 180-day extension available on request. Organizations whose fundraising is done entirely by people who are not paid for it, and that neither intend to receive nor actually receive more than $25,000 in contributions in a fiscal year, are exempt, and have 30 days to register once they cross it.
Stay in good standing
There is no Secretary of State annual report for Alabama nonprofits; the annual report line is for domestic for-profit corporations, and 501(a) organizations are outside the Business Privilege Tax return it accompanies. The recurring obligation is the Attorney General renewal at $25, within 90 days of fiscal year end.
Alabama-specific things to know
The probate judge instructions are obsolete
The Secretary of State's site still hosts a 2011 form telling you to file with the county Judge of Probate at $100. That path is superseded. File directly with the Secretary of State at $200 using the current form, or lose a filing cycle.
Name reservation is a prerequisite, not a nicety
You cannot file formation documents without the Certificate of Name Reservation attached. Budget $225 minimum, and get the reservation done first.
Federal exemption does nothing for Alabama sales tax
The Department of Revenue is explicit: a nonprofit is exempt only if it is specifically listed in the statute. Most ordinary charities are not, and pay sales tax on their purchases.
General information for people starting a nonprofit in Alabama, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and fees are updated; confirm specifics with the Alabama offices named on this page, the IRS, or a qualified professional before you file.
The Ember tool for thisEmber Spark
Ember Spark walks you from idea to real nonprofit, one step at a time, free. In an Ember account, it also drafts your bylaws, conflict-of-interest policy and Form 1023 narrative for you to finish, and links you to your state's filing office. Unlimited users on every tier.
Sources: Alabama SOS domestic corporations; Alabama SOS fee schedule; Alabama AG charitable organizations; Alabama DOR on nonprofit sales tax. Read 1 September 2026.