How to start a nonprofit in Missouri

How to start a nonprofit in Missouri, step by step

1. Name your Missouri nonprofit

   A reservation costs $25. No corporate ending like Inc. is required; the name only needs to be distinguishable and honest about your purpose.

2. 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.

3. File your Articles of Incorporation (Form Corp. 52)

   File Form Corp. 52 with the Secretary of State's Corporations Division for $25, one of the lowest fees in the country. Missouri's paperwork quirk: the check is payable to the Director of Revenue, not the Secretary of State, and filings with the wrong payee bounce back.

4. Name your registered agent

   A registered agent and registered office with a physical Missouri street address; a post office box alone is not enough.

5. 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.

6. 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.

7. 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. Everyone else files the full Form 1023, $600. This is the step that makes donations tax-deductible. 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.

8. Handle Missouri taxes

   Income tax is close to automatic: the Department of Revenue says a corporation filing a federal 990, 990-EZ, 990-N or 990-PF is not required to file a Missouri corporation income tax return. The exception is unrelated business income. The MO-1120 instructions list federal Form 990-T among the returns that do require a Missouri filing, so an organization filing both a 990 and a 990-T owes one. Sales and use tax takes an application: Form 1746 to the Department of Revenue, and the federal letter helps but does not guarantee approval.

9. Register to fundraise

   Missouri registers soliciting charities through the Attorney General, but organizations recognized under 501(c)(3), (c)(7) or (c)(8) are exempt from registering entirely, which makes Missouri one of the few states where a 501(c)(3) never files a charity registration at all. Non-exempt organizations pay $15 and renew within 75 days of fiscal year end.

10. Stay in good standing

    The Annual Registration Report: $10 online or $15 by paper, due by the end of your anniversary month. Missouri will not change your due month, so the anniversary is permanent.

Missouri-specific things to know

1. The Director of Revenue check

   The $25 incorporation fee is paid to the Director of Revenue even though you file with the Secretary of State. Write the wrong payee and the filing comes back.

2. Fundraise without registering

   A Missouri 501(c)(3) can solicit in-state without any charitable registration. If you also solicit donors in other states, their rules still apply, and most of them do require registration.

General information for people starting a nonprofit in Missouri, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and fees are updated; confirm specifics with the Missouri offices named on this page, the IRS, or a qualified professional before you file.

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Sources: Form Corp. 52 and instructions; SOS fee schedule; Missouri DOR corporate income FAQ; Missouri AG charity registration FAQ. Read August 2026, re-checked against the same primary sources 1 September 2026.