Connecticut charitable solicitation registration

Connecticut’s Solicitation of Charitable Funds Act requires most organizations soliciting money for charitable purposes to register or claim an exemption with DCP. Map mail, email, events, telephone, paid solicitation, targeted digital appeals, and donation pages. Incorporation, an IRS determination letter, and the DCP charity record are separate statuses.

DCP says charities register before any solicitation. An organization does not need to be incorporated or already recognized under section 501(c)(3) to file, but it must not misrepresent deductibility while federal status is pending. Apply the statutory exemption categories to the complete facts and distinguish an exemption from financial-report requirements from absence of the underlying registration record.

A full charity registration includes information about the organization, its personnel, purpose, and completed-year finances, plus the annual $50 fee. A qualifying exempt organization follows the DCP exemption route and does not pay the registration fee. Use the current application and do not assume a religious, school, or small-charity category from the organization’s name alone.

The initial application can be completed online or on paper. Search eLicense for an older registration or predecessor before creating a new record. Reconcile the legal name, EIN, fiscal year, officers, addresses, solicitation names, purpose, and filing contact across the state application, formation record, and donor materials.

For a full initial registration, DCP requires the appropriate Form 990, 990-N, 990-EZ, or 990-PF for the most recently completed fiscal year. A 990-N filer prepares a Form 990 or 990-EZ for Connecticut state purposes. A newly organized charity that has not completed its first fiscal year does not provide an invented prior-year financial report.

Organizations claiming a financial exemption generally do not submit a Form 990 with the application, except where DCP’s current instructions request it for the selected category. Build a public disclosure copy, reconcile the financial period and contribution totals, and keep professional solicitor or fundraising counsel records separate because those parties can have their own bond, contract, and reporting duties.

Save the signed application, exact financial attachment, fee evidence, submission receipt, and DCP correspondence. Confirm the accepted CHR record through Connecticut eLicense. A submitted form, payment, or email is not proof of active status, and DCP registration does not make donations tax deductible.

Connecticut registration expires on the last day of the eleventh month after fiscal year end, so the initial term can be shorter or longer than 12 months. Record the expiration shown in eLicense and install the renewal control immediately. If the organization targets a Connecticut resident after a passive online gift, DCP’s current Internet guidance treats that follow-up as solicitation requiring registration.

For an out-of-state organization relying on passive website facts, retain the campaign settings, donor source, absence of Connecticut targeting, and communications history. If the organization follows up with a Connecticut donor, buys a Connecticut audience, or otherwise directs an appeal to the state, revisit registration before the next request. A general donate button and a targeted donor relationship are not the same fact pattern under DCP’s current guidance. Add this review to campaign intake so development, marketing, and vendors do not make contradictory assumptions. Record the date of the review and the owner responsible for reopening it.