Colorado Charitable Solicitation Registration: $10 Fee, $25,000 Exemption and Fines
Colorado Charitable Solicitation Registration: $10 Fee, $25,000 Exemption and Fines
If your organization asks Colorado residents for money, goods or other support, you may need to complete colorado charitable solicitation registration with the Colorado Secretary of State before you start. The filing is inexpensive: $10 for a new registration and $10 for each annual renewal. The real risk is skipping the filing or missing the renewal. The state can fine a charity $300 for soliciting while unregistered and $60 for failing to renew. This guide covers who has to register, who may be exempt, what it costs, and how to file.
Informational content only. This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice. Charitable solicitation and nonprofit tax rules are technical, and the facts of your organization matter. Consult a qualified attorney or CPA before relying on any of this for a specific organization.
What the Registration Requirement Means
Colorado requires charities that solicit within the state to register with the Secretary of State, Business Organizations Division, before they solicit. A charity may begin soliciting once its registration is approved. The Secretary of State reviews applications within ten days, so plan your first campaign around that window rather than the date you first want to fundraise.
Solicitation covers more than a formal donation drive. Requests made in person, by phone, by mail, by email or at events can all count. Online donation pages also count as solicitation when the organization targets Colorado or collects donations on a repeated or substantial basis. A live or silent auction counts as solicitation too. Running an auction does not by itself require a bingo-raffle license, but it does count toward the registration analysis.
Who Is Exempt
Colorado provides three exemptions. Each one depends on facts you can count, so check them against your actual records before you assume you are exempt.
- The $25,000 revenue exemption. A charity that does not intend to raise, and does not raise, more than $25,000 in gross revenue in a fiscal year is exempt. When making this calculation, government grants and grants from 501(c)(3) organizations are left out, so they do not count toward the $25,000 figure.
- The contributor exemption. A charity that receives contributions from not more than ten persons in a fiscal year is exempt. The test is a count of people, not dollars. Ten contributors still qualify. Eleven contributors do not.
- The church exemption. Churches, as defined for federal tax purposes, are exempt. A religious organization that files a Form 990 is not treated as a church for this purpose and must register.
Federal 501(c)(3) status does not, by itself, exempt an organization from registration. Keep a fiscal-year record of gross revenue and the number of contributors so you can show why you qualify. If your facts are close to a line, confirm your position with the Secretary of State or an attorney before soliciting.
Colorado Charitable Registration Fees
The figures below come from the Secretary of State charitable fee schedule revised April 30, 2024.
| Filing | Fee |
|---|---|
| New charitable registration | $10 |
| Annual renewal | $10 |
| Amendment | $10 |
| Paid solicitor, registration | $175 |
| Paid solicitor, renewal | $175 |
| Professional fundraising consultant, registration | $175 |
| Professional fundraising consultant, renewal | $175 |
| Statement of Foreign Entity Authority (out-of-state charity) | $100 |
Fee schedules change. Confirm the current amounts on the Secretary of State website before you file. If you need a fee that is not listed here, check with the Secretary of State directly rather than relying on a third-party estimate.
Fines for Late Renewal and Unregistered Solicitation
The penalties are specific and worth planning around:
- $60 for a charity that fails to renew. This fine is six times the $10 renewal fee.
- $300 for soliciting while unregistered.
The easiest way to avoid both fines is a simple calendar system. Put the renewal date on your board calendar the day your registration is approved, and assign one person to own it. Before any new campaign, confirm that your registration is active, especially if you run an online donation page that reaches Colorado donors.
How to Register Step by Step
- Confirm you are not exempt. Total your gross revenue for the fiscal year and count your contributors. Record both numbers.
- Confirm your entity exists. If you are a new nonprofit corporation, you need Articles of Incorporation. Nonprofit articles cost $50 when filed online. A nonprofit corporation also files a periodic report, but the fee and due date that apply to your entity should be confirmed with the Secretary of State. You can check an entity's record through the Colorado Secretary of State business search.
- File the charitable registration online. Most business documents in Colorado must be filed through the Secretary of State online filing system, available at coloradosos.gov. Pay the $10 new-registration fee at filing.
- Wait for approval. Review takes up to ten days. Do not begin soliciting until the registration is approved.
- Renew every year. Renewal costs $10. Confirm the renewal due date for your registration on the Secretary of State pages, then calendar it with a reminder well before the deadline.
If your organization changes its information after registering, such as its name, address or purposes, file an amendment for $10. Keeping the record accurate prevents questions later if a donor or regulator checks your status.
Paid Solicitors and Professional Fundraising Consultants
If you hire an outside firm or individual to raise money for you, that person may have its own registration obligation. Paid solicitors and professional fundraising consultants each pay $175 to register and $175 to renew. Ask any vendor for proof of registration before you sign an agreement, and confirm with the Secretary of State which party is responsible for filing. Contract terms on this point deserve a review by an attorney.
Out-of-State Charities
A charity based outside Colorado that wants to solicit Colorado residents first files a Statement of Foreign Entity Authority for $100. An out-of-state organization that solicits through a website, a mailing or an event aimed at Colorado should assume the registration rules apply and check its position before it solicits. Because the online-donation rule turns on whether you target Colorado or collect on a repeated or substantial basis, a national donation page can still trigger the requirement.
Sales Tax on Charity Sales
Registration is separate from sales tax, but many charities run both. Charity sales are sales tax exempt only if the funds stay in charitable service and the net proceeds were $45,000 or less in the prior calendar year, under C.R.S. 39-26-718. If your net proceeds exceed that figure, the sales may be taxable, so review the numbers each year.
A charity that wants to buy goods tax-free needs to give the seller an exemption certificate. Confirm the current certificate form and filing steps with the Colorado Department of Revenue at tax.colorado.gov. Keep in mind that the state sales tax rate is 2.9% plus special district taxes, and home-rule cities such as Denver, Aurora, Colorado Springs, Boulder and Fort Collins collect and license their own city sales tax. A state sales tax exemption does not automatically apply in those cities, so check with the city before a charity sale there.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Assuming a 501(c)(3) letter is enough. Federal recognition does not exempt you from Colorado registration by itself.
- Counting only dollars. The contributor exemption depends on the number of persons who contribute, so track donors as well as revenue.
- Ignoring online giving. A donation page that reaches Colorado donors on a repeated basis may count as solicitation.
- Missing renewal. The $60 late renewal fine is avoidable with a calendar reminder.
- Soliciting before approval. The $300 fine applies even if the gap is short.
When to Get Professional Help
Registration itself is a short online filing, but the exemptions, contributor counts, online solicitation rules and sales tax thresholds can become complicated quickly. Consider a consultation with a Colorado attorney or CPA if your organization runs multi-state campaigns, pays fundraising vendors, holds large auctions, or sits near the $25,000 revenue or ten-contributor thresholds. The Colorado Small Business Development Center Network at sbdc.colorado.gov can also help with planning and financial recordkeeping.
Official Resources
- Colorado Secretary of State, Business Organizations Division: coloradosos.gov/pubs/business
- Secretary of State online filing system: coloradosos.gov/pubs/business/fileAForm.html
- Secretary of State business search: coloradosos.gov/biz/BusinessEntityCriteriaExt.do
- Colorado Department of Revenue, Taxation Division: tax.colorado.gov
Charitable registration is one of the simplest compliance steps a Colorado nonprofit will ever take, but only if it is done before the first request for support and renewed on time every year. Verify the current fees and dates on the Secretary of State site, keep clean records of revenue and donors, and get professional advice when your facts are close to an exemption line.