Mississippi charitable solicitation registration

Mississippi defines a charitable organization broadly enough to include a section 501(c)(3) organization and an organization soliciting contributions for charitable purposes. Map public asks, donation pages, events, grants, peer-to-peer campaigns, solicitation names, and fundraising professionals before launch. The Secretary of State says registration must be filed before solicitation and renewed annually.

Religious institutions and other statutory categories may be exempt, but the current instructions route an organization claiming an exemption through an online Notice of Exemption before solicitation. Preserve the exemption facts and approval. Do not use a federal tax label as an automatic state exemption.

Create the filer account with an email address controlled by an accountable owner. Prepare the EIN, legal and trade names, current officer and director list, contact information, bylaws, articles or other formation documents, IRS determination letter if applicable, and current fundraising-professional contracts. At least two officer addresses must differ from the charity’s address.

Reconcile the organization and officer data before opening signature requests. The online filing requires two different signers: the president or another authorized officer and the chief fiscal officer or treasurer. The same person cannot sign twice, and each electronic signature request expires after ten days.

Include the Form 990 when applicable. Current Mississippi guidance requires a reviewed financial statement when monetary donations exceed $250,000 but are below $750,000, excluding government grants from the calculation. An audited financial statement using cash-basis measurement is required above $750,000 in monetary donations or when fundraising functions are not performed solely by unpaid people.

Apply the live instructions to a first-time filer with no prior Form 990 rather than uploading a placeholder. Reconcile the contribution calculation, financial period, fundraiser compensation, and state attachment to the approved books. Preserve the accountant’s final report and do not expose unrelated confidential records.

Finish every online section, send the two controlled signature requests, and complete the $50 credit-card or e-check payment. Save the filed record, signature confirmations, payment receipt, attachments, and state correspondence. If a signature link expires, use the system’s replacement process rather than circulating an uncontrolled copy.

After state review, confirm the organization in the Mississippi charity search and record the renewal due date. A portal account, draft, or payment alone is not current-status evidence. Coordinate professional fundraiser records separately and keep solicitation materials consistent with the registered names.