Start a nonprofit · Oregon
How to Start a Nonprofit in Oregon
Oregon charges $50 to file the articles of a nonprofit corporation, and the form makes you choose a type: public benefit, mutual benefit or religious. That choice drives the rest of the setup, including where the assets go on dissolution and whether the corporation must register with the Department of Justice's Charitable Activities Section. Oregon also asks for an initial president, secretary and treasurer in the articles.
Every fee and rule on this page was checked against the agency's own publication on November 8, 2026. Sources are linked under each item.
At a glance
The Oregon requirements in one table.
| Type of entity | An Oregon nonprofit corporation, public benefit, mutual benefit or religious, created by filing Articles of Incorporation with the Secretary of State's Corporation Division. Sources: Nonprofit articles form |
|---|---|
| State filing fee | $50, a nonrefundable processing fee payable by check to the Corporation Division. The fee schedule also lists $50. |
| Registered agent | An individual or entity that accepts legal service, with a publicly available Oregon street address matching the agent's office. Sources: Nonprofit articles form |
| Initial officers | The articles name the initial president, secretary and treasurer. The form does not address directors. Sources: Nonprofit articles form |
| Federal exemption | Form 1023 ($600) or Form 1023-EZ ($275), filed electronically on Pay.gov. Sources: IRS fee page, IRS e-filing notice |
| Annual renewal | $50 per the fee schedule, which is labeled 07/13, so confirm the current amount. Sources: SOS fee schedule (07/13) |
| Charity registration | Required for an Oregon public benefit nonprofit corporation with the Department of Justice's Charitable Activities Section. Sources: DOJ registration |
The steps
Five steps, in the order they happen.
Choose the corporation type.
Article 5 of the articles asks you to choose one. A public benefit corporation is tax-exempt under 501(c)(3) or formed for a public or charitable purpose, and on dissolution its assets must go to a qualifying charitable, religious, government or 501(c)(3) recipient. A mutual benefit corporation is formed to benefit members or a small group and is not 501(c)(3), though it may qualify under another tax provision. A religious corporation is formed primarily or exclusively for religious purposes.
Sources: Nonprofit articles form
Prepare the articles, including Article 7.
The form asks for the corporate name, the registered agent with an Oregon street address, a notice address for the Division, whether the corporation will have members, each incorporator's name and address, and the initial president, secretary and treasurer. The incorporator signs under penalty of perjury and provides a contact name and phone number.
Article 7 covers dissolution. You either adopt the IRS-recommended 501(c)(3) language or name a recipient. A public benefit corporation that does not adopt that language must name another public benefit corporation to receive its assets. The IRS language, which the form prints as an optional attachment, includes being organized exclusively for charitable, religious, educational and scientific purposes, no private inurement apart from reasonable compensation, no substantial lobbying, no political campaign intervention, and distribution on dissolution to 501(c)(3) purposes or to a government for a public purpose. You can also elect to indemnify directors, officers, employees and agents under ORS 65.387 to 65.414.
Sources: Nonprofit articles form
File and pay $50.
The fee is a $50 nonrefundable processing fee, payable by check to the Corporation Division. The Business Registry fee schedule says all fees must be paid in advance and are nonrefundable. That schedule is labeled 07/13, so confirm current amounts at sos.oregon.gov/business or by calling 503-986-2200.
Apply to the IRS for 501(c)(3) status.
Forming a corporation does not make it tax-exempt. The federal application is Form 1023, with a $600 user fee, or the shorter Form 1023-EZ, with a $275 user fee, for smaller organizations that pass the eligibility worksheet in the form instructions. Both are filed electronically on Pay.gov, and the IRS returns paper applications. The IRS notes that the amounts can change.
The IRS answers with a determination letter, the written ruling that recognizes the exemption.
Sources: IRS fee page, IRS e-filing notice
Register with the Department of Justice.
You must register with the Charitable Activities Section if you are an Oregon public benefit nonprofit corporation, an out-of-state nonprofit corporation that solicits, holds assets or does business in Oregon, a trust holding Oregon assets for charitable beneficiaries, or an association organized for charitable purposes. Email is the best way to submit registration material. Download the corporation or trust form, complete it, and send it with the requested attachments by email, mail or fax.
The page does not state the fee, financial thresholds, annual report requirements or filing timing. If you are unsure whether you need to register, call 971-673-1880 or email [email protected].
Sources: DOJ registration
Charity registration exemptions
Who is exempt from registering with the Department of Justice.
These come from the Department of Justice's registration page.
Mutual benefit nonprofits.
Oregon mutual benefit nonprofits whose purposes are not charitable under ORS 128.620(4).
Sources: DOJ registration
Limited educational institutions.
Educational institutions that hold no Oregon property and limit solicitations to their alumni.
Sources: DOJ registration
After you form
Staying in good standing.
The annual renewal is the main recurring state filing.
Renew the corporation every year.
The Business Registry fee schedule lists a nonprofit renewal, annually, at $50. It also lists a Request for Nonprofit Reinstatement Waiver at $0 and no reinstatement fee for nonprofits. The schedule is labeled 07/13, so confirm current amounts.
Sources: SOS fee schedule (07/13)
Meet the Department of Justice's annual reporting.
The Department's page links separate annual reporting information for charities. Its content was not available for this page, so check the Charitable Activities Section for the deadline and form that apply.
Sources: DOJ registration
Common questions
Quick answers.
How much does it cost to start a nonprofit in Oregon?
The government fees are $50 to the Secretary of State plus the IRS user fee, which is $275 for Form 1023-EZ or $600 for Form 1023. That totals $325 or $650 as of the date this page was verified. Department of Justice registration may add a fee, and its page does not state one.
What is the difference between public benefit and mutual benefit in Oregon?
A public benefit corporation is tax-exempt under 501(c)(3) or formed for a public or charitable purpose. A mutual benefit corporation is formed to benefit members or a small group and is not 501(c)(3).
What does the Oregon dissolution article require?
You adopt the IRS-recommended 501(c)(3) language or name a recipient. A public benefit corporation that does not adopt the IRS language must name another public benefit corporation to receive its assets.
Do I have to register as a charity in Oregon?
An Oregon public benefit nonprofit corporation must register with the Department of Justice's Charitable Activities Section. Churches and similar religious organizations are exempt.
After the filing
What comes next for a Oregon nonprofit.
The state filing is the short part. These are the next four jobs, and the book that handles each.
- Book I
Get the federal application and first-year budget right
The name, bylaws, the IRS application, a founding board and a first-year budget that balances.
- Book X
Start from finished documents
Forty annotated documents, including bylaws, budgets, policies, job descriptions and board papers, as editable Word files.
- Book VII
Build the board on purpose
What a board is for, recruiting for the skills you lack, working with the chair and running meetings that reach decisions.
- Book VIII
Stay in good standing
Charitable solicitation registration, operating in a second state, insurance and annual filings.
The complete set
All ten books and forty documents, $149.
All ten books in PDF and EPUB, plus the forty documents from Book X as editable Word files. The books are not sold separately.
Free when you join the list
Every Document a New Nonprofit Needs
Articles, bylaws, minutes, the exemption application, the policies and the filings: the whole sequence a new organization has to produce, in the order it arrives.
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
- Oregon Secretary of State, Business Registry Fee Schedule (07/13)
- Oregon Secretary of State, Articles of Incorporation, Nonprofit
- Oregon Department of Justice, Registering a New Charity
- IRS, Form 1023 and 1023-EZ: amount of user fee
- IRS, Changes to the exempt organization determinations process
Last verified November 8, 2026. Fees and rules change, so confirm with the agency before you file. This page is general information and not legal or tax advice.