West Virginia charity registration recovery

Use the Secretary of State’s charitable-organization search to locate the exact legal name and review both active and expired results. Save the organization name, city, displayed expiration date, status, lookup date, and any registration names used in solicitations. West Virginia registration is valid for one full year, so identify every missing annual period rather than treating the public “expired” signal as one undifferentiated problem.

Collect each prior CHR-1, acceptance or stamped copy, fee record, Form 990, financial statement, fundraiser contract, extension request and approval, and agency notice. Keep the separate corporation or foreign qualification record beside the charity file but do not combine them: the Secretary of State FAQ expressly describes the charity fee as separate from the entity annual report.

West Virginia Code section 29-19-5 allows the Secretary of State, for good cause, to extend the annual registration statement or report by up to 90 days. During an approved extension, the prior registration remains effective. A planned request, an IRS extension, or an email asking a question is not the same as a granted state extension. Save the written approval and use its stated date.

For each missing period, record the normal expiration, any state-approved extension, the date the filing became late, and the number of months or parts of months through the expected filing date. That schedule supports an accurate inquiry to the Charities Division and prevents one receipt from being misapplied to the wrong registration year.

The current CHR-1 calls for the organization identity and purpose, offices and record custodian, West Virginia affiliates, formation information, officers and executives, fundraising and distribution responsibility, solicitation names, other-government authority, financial information, and fundraiser contracts. It also calls for the IRS determination and the applicable Form 990 materials. Prepare the package from the records for the filing year being cured.

West Virginia’s financial-assurance branches use contributions after excluding government and private-foundation grants. The statute calls for an independent CPA audit above $500,000 and a review above $200,000 but below $500,000. Because the published language leaves an exact-$500,000 boundary to confirm, do not guess at that point. Obtain record-specific instruction before filing.

The current forms page lists a $15 annual fee for an organization collecting under $1 million and $50 for an organization collecting over $1 million. It also warns that a charity is not properly registered until both the registration and late fees are paid. Section 29-19-5 adds $25 for each month or part of a month after the original or extended due date, capped at $500 for the registration statement or report required in one year.

Ask the Charities Division to confirm the amount when multiple periods, an exact threshold, an extension, or a prior payment is involved. Keep a period-by-period calculation and do not treat the cap as covering other years. Submit through the current route with the required signatures and preserve proof that the payment was assigned to the correct filing.

After acceptance, recheck the West Virginia charity search. Save the active result, new expiration date, accepted CHR-1, attachments, fee evidence, and agency correspondence. The public database distinguishes active charities from expired charitable organizations; use the updated state result rather than a delivery receipt as the recovery endpoint.

Then build a forward schedule from the issued one-year term. Set document-close, CPA-assurance, contract-reconciliation, internal signature, filing, and post-filing verification dates. Check the separate business entity and IRS records, but describe each result narrowly. CharityClarity can supply a quick public status signal where available; the West Virginia Secretary of State record and written direction remain controlling.