Apply for Certification as a Non-Profit Organization

Is your organization eligible?

To get certified, your non-profit organization must meet these requirements:

• Your organization must be a non-profit company that doesn’t pay taxes (called "tax-exempt").
• At least 51% of your Board of Directors and Voting Members must be women, veterans, or people from minority groups.
• These same people must also run the organization every day and make important long-term decisions.
• Your non-profit must be active and doing business regularly.
• Your organization must be independent and not controlled by another person or group that doesn’t meet the requirements.
• You cannot create or change your organization just to apply for this certification.

What is a Tax-Exempt non-profit?

To qualify, your organization must have 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) status from the IRS. That means the government sees your group as a non-profit that doesn’t have to pay taxes.

Your non-profit must also be in good standing with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office and the Massachusetts Secretary of State’s Office.

How do you know if your non-profit’s Board and Voting Membership are eligible?

At least 51% of the Directors/Trustees must be either women, veterans, and/or members of a minority group. If there is a voting membership entitled to elect Directors/Trustees, at least 51% of the voting membership must be either women, veterans, and/or members of a minority group.

• At least 51% must be women, veterans, or from minority groups.
• If your group has voting members who elect leaders, 51% of them must also be women, veterans, or minority members.

These people must be:

• 18 years or older
• U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or people living legally in the U.S.
• Either women, veterans, or from a minority group

Minority groups (as defined in CMR 425 2.00) include:

• Indian or Indigenous Person: All persons having origins in any of the indigenous peoples of Northern Canada, Greenland, Alaska, and Eastern Siberia, and persons having origins in any of the indigenous peoples of North America and who are recognized as an Indian by a tribe or tribal organization.
• Asian: All persons having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian sub-continent, or the Pacific Islands, including, but not limited to China, Japan, Korea, Samoa, India, and the Philippine Islands.
• Black: All persons having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa, including, but not limited to, African Americans, and all persons having origins of the original peoples of the Cape Verdean Islands.
• Hispanic: All persons having their origins in any of the peoples of Latin America, including Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Central or South America, including Brazil, or the Caribbean Islands.

What type of NPO certification can you get?

It depends on who makes up the majority (over 51%) of your board and voting members:

What does it mean to "control" a non-profit?

People who are women, veterans, or minorities must be the ones making daily and long-term decisions for the non-profit. They must also set requirements for how the non-profit is run. These roles and powers should be clearly written in your organization’s legal documents.

How does it mean to be "ongoing"?

Your non-profit must show that it is actively doing work, not just getting started.

You should have:

• An office or workspace that fits what your group does
• Your own equipment or things you lease
• Marketing, money coming in, or other signs of business
• The same kind of tools or space as other groups like yours

Note: You don’t need to be in business for a long time or have a certain amount of money, but you must be clearly active. Just planning to do work in the future is not enough.

What does it mean to be "independent"?

Your non-profit must be able to do its work without help or pressure from people or groups who are not eligible. You must make your own decisions and not depend on others who don't meet the requirements.