Washington D.C. Fundraising Licensing

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Fundraising Compliance Info by State

Below, you'll find licensing requirements for a range of fundraising activities. At a glance, you can see requirements, fees, filing instructions, and links to forms for everything from charitable gaming and cause marketing to professional fundraisers and charitable gift annuities.

Make sure your fundraising activities meet the unique requirements of each jurisdiction where you’re soliciting. Feel free to explore, bookmark, and share!

Washington D.C. charitable solicitation license, Washington D.C. fundraising license
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Company Licenses

Washington D.C. Nonprofit & Fundraising Company Licenses

District of Columbia Bingo License

Game Type:

Bingo

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Notes:

Class A licenses are for games with 500 or more players, Class B licenses are for games with 250 to 500 players, Class C licenses are for games with 250 or fewer players, and Class D licenses are for recreational senior citizen groups.

Initial Registration

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Form:

Regular Bingo License Application

Agency Fee:

$500 for a Class A license, $250 for a Class B license, $50 for a Class C license, $0 for Class D license.

Original Ink:Not required
Notarize:Not required

Registration Renewal

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Form:

Regular Bingo License Application

Agency Fee:

$500 for a Class A license, $250 for a Class B license, $50 for a Class C license, $0 for Class D license.

Due:

Annually by the date of issuance.

Original Ink:Not required
Notarize:Not required

District of Columbia Charitable Gift Annuity Registration

Not required



Charitable Gift Annuity licensure is not required on the State level in District of Columbia.

The District of Columbia does not distinguish between annuities issued by charitable and for-profit entities.

District of Columbia Charitable Solicitation License

Agency:District of Columbia Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs - Business Licensing Division
Law:

District of Columbia Code Ann. § 44-1703

Foreign Qualification is Prerequisite:Yes
Registered Agent (Special Agency) Required?Yes

Registration to Obtain Exemption

Exemption Eligible Organizations:
  • Charities that raise less than $25,000 in contributions per calendar year and do not use paid solicitors
  • Religious institutions
  • Membership organizations
  • Public or private organizations that solicit only from employees as long as the solicitation is approved by and conducted under the supervision of the employer or the employer's duly authorized representative, and is only carried on within the place or places of employment of the work force
Filing Method:

Online

Agency Fee:

$0

Renewal to Maintain Exemption

Exemption Eligible Organizations:
  • Charities that raise less than $1,500 in contributions per calendar year and do not use paid solicitors
  • Religious institutions
  • Educational institutions
  • Membership organizations
Filing Method:

Online

Agency Fee:

$0

Due:

Biennially by the end of the month prior to your registration month. If you registered for the first time in September, your report will be due by the end of August two years later.

Initial Registration

Filing Method:

Online

Agency Fee:

$412.50

Turnaround:

3-4 weeks

Notes:
  • Some District of Columbia counties and municipalities may require charities that solicit in-person to register prior to fundraising.
Before you Apply:

Domestic Applicants:

  • Check the available exemptions to see if your charity is eligible for exemption from the full registration requirement.
  • Appoint a registered agent to receive legal documents in D.C.
  • Look through the list of required attachments and make sure that you have each required document in hand before starting the registration application.

Foreign Applicants:

  • Check the available exemptions to see if your charity is eligible for exemption from the full registration requirement.
  • Appoint a registered agent to receive legal documents in D.C.
  • Obtain a certificate of good standing from your home state (to be filed during the foreign qualification process). The certificate cannot be more than 90 days old when filing foreign qualification documents.
  • Look through the list of required attachments and make sure that you have each required document in hand before starting the registration application.
How to Apply:

Domestic Applicants:

  1. File entity formation documents with the District of Columbia Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs - Corporations Division.
  2. Complete a New Business Registration with the District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue.
  3. Create a MyTax account and submit a franchise tax exemption request online.
  4. Create an Access DC account and submit an application for a charitable solicitation basic business license along with all required attachments.

Foreign Applicants:

  1. File foreign qualification documents with the District of Columbia Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs - Corporations Division.
  2. Complete a New Business Registration with the District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue.
  3. Create a MyTax account and submit a franchise tax exemption request online.
  4. Create an Access DC account and submit an application for a charitable solicitation basic business license along with all required attachments.
Required Attachments:

  • IRS determination letter
  • Professional fundraising contracts
  • Certificate of occupancy
  • DC tax number or certificate
  • Certified resolution

Registration Renewal

Filing Method:

Online

Agency Fee:

$412.50

Due:
  • Biennially by the end of the month prior to your registration month. If you registered for the first time in September, your report will be due by the end of August two years later.
  • Licenses can be renewed as early as 75 days prior to their expiration date.
Due Date Extension:

D.C. does not grant extensions for charitable organization registration.

Required Attachments:

None

Cancellation

Filing Method:

Online

Agency Fee:

$0

Notes:

To close out your registration, submit a BBL cancellation request form online.

District of Columbia Commercial Co-Venturer Registration

Not required



Commercial Co-venturer licensure is not required on the State level in District of Columbia.

District of Columbia does not currently have a traditional registration requirement for commercial co-venturers, but they may need to follow other regulations before and after fundraising events.

District of Columbia Fundraising Counsel Registration

Not required



Fundraising Counsel licensure is not required on the State level in District of Columbia.

District of Columbia does not currently have a traditional registration requirement for fundraising counsels, but they may need to follow other regulations before and after fundraising events.

District of Columbia Monte Carlo Night Party License

Game Type:

Monte Carlo games

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Notes:

Charities cannot hold more than 2 Monte Carlo events in a calendar year.

Initial Registration

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Form:

Monte Carlo Night Party License Application

Agency Fee:

$100 for Monte Carlo Night Party or Monte Carlo and raffle license, $10 for senior citizen group Monte Carlo license, and $500 for a combined Monte Carlo and texas hold'em license.

Original Ink:Not required
Notarize:Not required

Renewal Not Required

Not required



Monte Carlo Night licenses allow for a single event and cannot be renewed.

More information: District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games

District of Columbia Professional Fundraiser Registration

Not required



Professional Fundraiser licensure is not required on the State level in District of Columbia.

District of Columbia does not currently have a traditional registration requirement for professional fundraisers, but they may need to follow other regulations before and after fundraising events.

District of Columbia Raffle License

Game Type:

Raffles

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Prize Limits:

Class 2 license prizes cannot exceed $100,000, Class 3 license prizes cannot exceed $15,000, Class 4 license prizes cannot exceed $3,000, Class 5 license prizes cannot exceed $500.

Initial Registration

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Form:

Raffle License Application

Agency Fee:

$200 for a Class 1 license, $100 for a Class 2 license, $50 for a Class 3 license, $25 for a Class 4 license, $10 for a Class 5 license.

Original Ink:Not required
Notarize:Not required

Registration Renewal

Agency:District of Columbia Office of Lottery and Charitable Games
Form:

Raffle License Application

Agency Fee:

$200 for a Class 1 license, $100 for a Class 2 license, $50 for a Class 3 license, $25 for a Class 4 license, $10 for a Class 5 license.

Due:

Class 1, 2, and 3 license expire one year from the date of issuance. Class 4 and 5 licenses expire 180 days from the date of issuance.

Original Ink:Not required
Notarize:Not required

Individual Licenses

Washington D.C. Individual Nonprofit & Fundraising Licenses

District of Columbia Individual Professional Fundraiser Registration

Not required



Professional Solicitor licensure is not required on the State level in District of Columbia.

Solicitors who are not employed by a professional fundraising firm but operate independently may be required to register. Employees of professional fundraising firms are generally not required to register as an individual solicitor in District of Columbia.

There’s a Better Way to Stay Compliant Stop spending precious time managing state-by-state fundraising requirements. Take advantage of our full-service compliance solutions and get back to focusing on what’s most important: fulfilling your organization’s mission. Reduce Your Workload

Learn about fundraising in other jurisdictions:

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware D.C. Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho
Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri
Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Related Resources
Webinar
Charitable Solicitation
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Thursday, December 16th at 1:00 - 2:00PM ET
White Paper
Charitable Solicitation Compliance
An explanation of increasingly complex state charity requirements.

Revised September 07, 2021. Complete data last reviewed December 04, 2017.
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