How to start a nonprofit in Michigan
To start a nonprofit in Michigan you file the articles of incorporation with the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division, meet Michigan’s minimum number of directors, keep a registered agent in the state, and register before asking the public for money. Each step below carries the form, the fee and the deadline, cited to Michigan’s own agencies.
133 facts · 114 source verified · 19 in progress · 83 official sources
On this page
- How to start a nonprofit in Michigan
- Start Here
- Compact Operational Reference
- Form the corporation and choose its structure
- Govern the corporation and keep its records
- File the annual report, renew, and record corporate changes
- Foreign nonprofit authority in Michigan
- Register to solicit, and renew on Michigan’s own clock
- Charitable trusts and the financial statements the Attorney General asks for
- Professional fundraisers, solicitors, and public-safety appeals
- Handle state taxes, sales tax, property tax, and licensing
- Register and manage nonprofit employment
- Raffles, bingo, millionaire parties, and alcohol at events
- Lobbying and political activity
- Dissolution and multi-agency closure
- Official Sources
- Recent Compliance Updates
- What can we help with
- Methodology & Disclaimer
Free before any contract. Michigan specifics included.
How to start a nonprofit in Michigan
- Pick the entity type: Form an ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation with Form 502
- File the articles: Include the required Form 502 article information
- Name the board: Maintain at least one director and follow any larger governing-document minimum
- Appoint the officers: Appoint a president, secretary, and treasurer
- Keep a registered agent: Maintain a Michigan resident agent and registered office
- Register before asking for money: Register before soliciting or receiving contributions in Michigan unless exempt
- Claim the state tax exemption: Apply the statutory federal-exempt-person rule separately from incorporation
Start Here
These are the Michigan decision points an ordinary nonprofit meets first, in roughly the order they arrive. Each links to the full requirement below, with its applicability, verification status and official source. Activity-triggered systems are deliberately absent: gaming, alcohol, lobbying, professional fundraisers, property claims and employment are real Michigan law and each is a group of its own further down rather than a universal first step. Three Michigan patterns are worth knowing before the rest. The corporate Annual Report on 1 October is a Secretary of State filing and not the Attorney General charity filing, and two consecutive missed reports can dissolve the corporation automatically. Charity duties run on two separate acts, solicitation and the supervision of charitable trusts, so one registration does not cover both. And Michigan charity registration has no calendar renewal date: a confirmation expires one year and seven months after the submitted financial period ends.
- Form an ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation with Form 502 Applies to: An organization choosing the ordinary domestic nonprofit corporation form under 1982 PA 162.
- Distinguish Michigan nonprofit status from federal and state exemption systems Applies to: Every Michigan nonprofit corporation, including organizations intending to seek 501(c)(3) status.
- Select membership or directorship governance accurately Applies to: An ordinary nonprofit forming under the Nonprofit Corporation Act.
- State whether the nonprofit is stock or nonstock Applies to: An ordinary nonprofit corporation filing Form 502.
- Maintain a Michigan resident agent and registered office Applies to: Every domestic nonprofit and authorized foreign nonprofit.
- Maintain at least one director and follow any larger governing-document minimum Applies to: An ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation governed by a board.
- Adopt bylaws and keep them consistent with the articles and statute Applies to: Every ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation.
- Appoint a president, secretary, and treasurer Applies to: An ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation.
- Maintain corporate, membership, and accounting records and honor inspection rights Applies to: Michigan nonprofit corporations, directors, and members with statutory inspection rights.
- File the Michigan nonprofit Annual Report by October 1 Applies to: Every domestic nonprofit corporation and every authorized foreign nonprofit corporation.
- Treat late reports and automatic dissolution or revocation as a separate enforcement stage Applies to: A nonprofit that misses Annual Reports or fees.
- Register before soliciting or receiving contributions in Michigan unless exempt Applies to: A domestic or foreign charitable organization that solicits or receives contributions in Michigan and is not exempt.
- Calculate solicitation-registration expiration as one year and seven months after the submitted financial year end Applies to: A registered charitable organization renewing under COSA.
- Register charitable assets separately under the Supervision of Trustees for Charitable Purposes Act Applies to: A corporation, association, trust, private foundation, or other person holding or administering charitable assets in Michigan and not exempt.
- Close charity, trust, tax, payroll, UI, insurance, gaming, alcohol, foreign, and local accounts separately Applies to: A dissolving or withdrawing nonprofit with any noncorporate registration, license, account, permit, or policy.
Compact Operational Reference
A summary and navigation device only. Start Here above carries the ordinary decision points; these twelve rows are the operational actions that carry a stated Michigan amount or a hard date, which is what makes them worth collecting in one place. Every row links to the complete requirement below, where the applicability line, the exceptions and the official source live, and every row rests on a source-verified fact. Each cell is generated from the linked fact's own fields rather than summarized, so this table can never state a fee or a deadline the requirement itself does not.
| Requirement | Requirement status | Fee | Deadline | Research status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Form an ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation with Form 502 | Required | $10 — Filing fee | Before operating as a Michigan nonprofit corporation. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Maintain a Michigan resident agent and registered office | Required | $5 — Form 520 change of registered office or resident agent | At formation or qualification and continuously afterward. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| File the Michigan nonprofit Annual Report by October 1 | Required | $20 — On-time current-year nonprofit Annual Report fee | October 1 each year; first report in the year after incorporation or Certificate of Authority. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Renew corporate existence or foreign authority with the five-report restoration formula | Conditional | $25 — Prior-year report fee (each) | After automatic dissolution or revocation and before relying on restored status. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Use a statutory plan and required approvals for merger or consolidation | Conditional | $50 — Merger/consolidation fee, per domestic corporation | Before closing or filing the transaction. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Obtain a Michigan Certificate of Authority before transacting affairs | Conditional | $10 — Filing fee | Before transacting affairs in Michigan. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Calculate solicitation-registration expiration as one year and seven months after the submitted financial year end | Required | $0 — No renewal fee stated | Renewal should be filed at least 30 days before the confirmation expiration date. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Maintain the $10,000 bond and power of attorney | Required | $10000 — Required surety bond amount (CTS-08) | Before licensure and continuously while licensed. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Choose a small or large raffle license using the $500 daily-prize boundary | Required | $15 — Small raffle license, 1-3 days | Apply before ticket sales or the licensed event under current processing guidance. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Obtain separate licenses for annual large bingo and special bingo | Required | $150 — Annual Large Bingo license | Before each licensed bingo program or special occasion. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Obtain the nonprofit Special License, law-enforcement approval, and internal board or membership resolution | Required | $25 — Special License per day — organization established at least one year | See full requirement | SOURCE VERIFIED |
| Use Form 530 before commencement of affairs and Form 531 after commencement | Conditional | $10 — Form 530 (before commencement) | After required approval and at the correct stage of corporate life. | SOURCE VERIFIED |
Form the corporation and choose its structure
Michigan forms an ordinary nonprofit with Form 502 under 1982 PA 162, currently $20 in total before any expedited tier, and Form 503 is a different statute for an ecclesiastical corporation rather than a variant of the same one. Two choices live inside the filing and cannot be imported from another state's practice: membership or directorship governance, and stock or nonstock. Michigan nonprofit status is also not federal or state tax exemption, and this group says so plainly because the two get conflated at exactly this step. Also here: the required article information, the incorporator and organizational action, the resident agent and registered office, charitable-purpose and restricted-asset drafting, delayed effective dates, and the expedited-service tiers with their daily cutoffs.
File Form CSCL/CD-502. Michigan incorporation creates a state-law nonprofit corporation but does not itself create federal 501(c)(3) recognition, Attorney General registration, or tax exemption.
- Deadline
- Before operating as a Michigan nonprofit corporation.
- Fee
- $10 — Filing fee
- $10 — Franchise fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-502; MiBusiness Registry Portal.
Applies to: An organization choosing the ordinary domestic nonprofit corporation form under 1982 PA 162.
- Ecclesiastical corporations use Form 503 and a separate statute; LLC and profit-corporation forms are not substitutes.
- CSCL/CD-502; MiBusiness Registry Portal.
- Ohio nonprofit corporation type required
- Alaska nonprofit corporation type required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 5 more
View official sources (6)
Form CSCL/CD-503 is a separate ecclesiastical Articles filing under 1931 PA 327. It asks for church or society location, resident agent, office, term, and ecclesiastical governance information and must not be merged with ordinary Form 502.
- Deadline
- At formation of an ecclesiastical corporation.
- Fee
- $10 — Filing fee
- $10 — Franchise fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-503; MiBusiness Registry Portal.
Applies to: A church or religious society choosing incorporation under the Michigan ecclesiastical-corporation statute.
- Federal church treatment, Michigan solicitation exemption, and property-tax treatment remain separate determinations.
- CSCL/CD-503; MiBusiness Registry Portal.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (5)
State nonprofit incorporation, IRS recognition, Attorney General solicitation registration, charitable-trust registration, Corporate Income Tax treatment, sales/use tax exemption, and property-tax exemption are legally separate systems.
- Deadline
- Analyze each system before the related activity or tax claim.
- Official form or portal
- Form 502 or 503; IRS application; CTS forms; Treasury forms; local property-tax process.
Applies to: Every Michigan nonprofit corporation, including organizations intending to seek 501(c)(3) status.
- Some tax rules operate automatically by statute, while others require documentary proof or local adjudication.
- Form 502 or 503; IRS application; CTS forms; Treasury forms; local property-tax process.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 7 more
View official sources (8)
Form 502 requires a nonstock corporation to state whether it is organized on a membership or directorship basis. In a membership corporation members generally vote on corporate action; in a directorship corporation the board determines corporate action and any members may be nonvoting.
- Deadline
- At formation and whenever the articles are amended.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-502; bylaws.
Applies to: An ordinary nonprofit forming under the Nonprofit Corporation Act.
- Ecclesiastical corporations and special-purpose entities may use different governance rules.
- CSCL/CD-502; bylaws.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Michigan permits Form 502 to describe a nonprofit as organized on a stock or nonstock basis. A stock corporation states authorized shares and classes; a nonstock corporation describes assets, financing, and membership or directorship structure.
- Deadline
- At formation.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-502.
Applies to: An ordinary nonprofit corporation filing Form 502.
- Federal 501(c)(3) qualification imposes separate private-benefit and distribution limits; state permission to use shares does not establish federal eligibility.
- CSCL/CD-502.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Michigan law limits distributions and protects property committed to charitable purposes. Articles, donor restrictions, charitable-trust law, and Attorney General supervision may control transfers, mergers, conversions, and dissolution.
- Deadline
- Before accepting restrictions and before any distribution or fundamental transaction.
- Official form or portal
- Articles; gift instruments; CTS filings; transaction documents.
Applies to: A nonprofit organized for charitable purposes or holding donor-restricted, trust, or other charitable assets.
- A noncharitable nonprofit may have different Attorney General treatment, but federal exemption and specific gifts can independently restrict assets.
- Articles; gift instruments; CTS filings; transaction documents.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 3 more
View official sources (4)
State the corporate name, purposes, stock or nonstock basis, membership or directorship structure, resident agent and registered office, incorporator information, and any additional provisions.
- Deadline
- At formation.
- Fee
- $0 — Included in the $20 formation total
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-502.
Applies to: A new ordinary domestic nonprofit corporation.
- Educational corporations may have additional incorporator requirements; regulated activities need separate licenses.
- CSCL/CD-502.
- Indiana articles of incorporation required
- Maine articles of incorporation required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
One or more persons may execute the articles. After effectiveness, incorporators or initial directors should adopt bylaws, elect directors and officers, authorize banking and tax filings, and complete other organizational action at a meeting or by permitted written action.
- Deadline
- At formation and promptly after effectiveness.
- Fee
- $0 — No separate state fee for internal organization
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-502; organizational minutes or consent.
Applies to: A newly formed ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation.
- An educational corporation may require at least three incorporators; ecclesiastical corporations follow their own form and statute.
- CSCL/CD-502; organizational minutes or consent.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Continuously maintain an eligible resident agent and a registered office in Michigan. The registered office is the official service location and is distinct from an operational principal office.
- Deadline
- At formation or qualification and continuously afterward.
- Fee
- $5 — Form 520 change of registered office or resident agent
- $0 — Form 521 resident-agent resignation
- $5 — Form 522 appointment of successor agent
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-520, 521, 522.
Applies to: Every domestic nonprofit and authorized foreign nonprofit.
- The resident agent, registered office, mailing address, and principal office are separate data points.
- CSCL/CD-520, 521, 522.
- Wisconsin registered agent required
- New Hampshire registered agent permitted, not required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 4 more
View official sources (5)
The filing may specify a later effective date, but the date may not be more than 90 days after LARA receives the document.
- Deadline
- State the delayed date in the filing.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-502 or 503.
Applies to: A filer that wants corporate existence to begin after LARA receives the articles.
- Delayed corporate effectiveness does not delay separate tax, licensing, or registration duties once activity begins.
- CSCL/CD-502 or 503.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Michigan offers 24-hour, same-day, two-hour, and one-hour expedited service for eligible filings, with different formation and existing-entity charges. Same-day requests must be received by 1 p.m.; two-hour requests by 3 p.m.; one-hour requests by 4 p.m., Eastern time. Confirm the portal-displayed timing on the filing date.
- Deadline
- Submit before the applicable daily cutoff with the document and fee.
- Fee
- $50 — Formation/authority: 24-hour expedite
- $100 — Formation/authority: same-day expedite
- $500 — Formation/authority: two-hour expedite
- $1000 — Formation/authority: one-hour expedite
- $100 — Existing-entity 24-hour expedite (generally)
- $200 — Existing-entity same-day expedite (generally)
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- As needed
- Official form or portal
- MiBusiness Registry; expedited-service request.
Applies to: A filer requesting faster processing of an eligible corporation document.
- Not every filing is eligible; expedited service does not cure defects.
- MiBusiness Registry; expedited-service request.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (4)
The current Forms 502 and 503 do not identify a newspaper-publication step or a separate formation-year initial corporate report. However, no current official source was found that affirmatively eliminates every possible special-statute, judicial, local, or activity-specific notice or report.
- Deadline
- No ordinary filing deadline is identified; the first standard corporate Annual Report is due in the year after incorporation.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Unknown
- Official form or portal
- No ordinary publication or initial-report form identified.
Applies to: An ordinary new nonprofit corporation and special nonprofit subtypes.
- The October 1 Annual Report is a later recurring filing, not a separate formation-year initial report.
- No ordinary publication or initial-report form identified.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: official ordinary formation materials omit both steps, but omission alone is not affirmative proof of a universal negative. Confirm with: LARA and any special-purpose or local authority (supporting sources MI-S001, MI-S002, MI-S003, MI-S004, MI-S009).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 4 more
View official sources (5)
Govern the corporation and keep its records
Michigan corporate law generally permits one or more directors, which is a lower floor than most states and is separate from what the Attorney General's solicitation-registration guidance asks a charity to disclose about its board. The ordinary officer slate is president, secretary and treasurer, offices may be combined, and whether one person may act in two capacities on a single instrument is treated as its own question. The rest of the group is the machinery: director qualifications, terms and classes, vacancies and removal, compensation, bylaws, member and board meetings including remote participation and proxies, committee delegation, records and inspection rights, financial statements on proper demand, fiduciary duties and interested transactions, and the conditional systems for loans, indemnification and volunteer liability.
Michigan corporate law generally permits a nonprofit board with one or more directors. The Articles or bylaws may require a larger board, and separate Attorney General charity-registration forms require additional officer and director information.
- Deadline
- At organization and continuously.
- Official form or portal
- Articles, bylaws, and director roster.
Applies to: An ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation governed by a board.
- Current Attorney General solicitation-registration forms separately require at least three officer/director names and state a three-director requirement for Michigan organizations; those filing instructions do not change the general corporate minimum under MCL 450.1505.
- Articles, bylaws, and director roster.
- Indiana minimum number of directors required
- Oregon minimum number of directors required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Directors are natural persons and generally must be at least 18 unless a statutory youth-director provision or the governing documents lawfully permits otherwise. Michigan does not impose a general in-state residency requirement, but articles or bylaws may add qualifications.
- Deadline
- Before election or appointment and throughout service.
- Official form or portal
- Bylaws; minutes; director roster.
Applies to: Directors of an ordinary Michigan nonprofit.
- Regulated programs, grants, ecclesiastical rules, or governing documents may impose additional qualifications.
- Bylaws; minutes; director roster.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
The articles or bylaws may set director terms and divide directors into classes for staggered service within statutory limits. If no special term is stated, statutory defaults apply.
- Deadline
- At bylaw adoption and before the affected election.
- Official form or portal
- Articles; bylaws; minutes.
Applies to: A nonprofit choosing fixed, staggered, or classified director terms.
- Member-elected and board-elected seats may use different authorized procedures.
- Articles; bylaws; minutes.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Use the vacancy and removal rules applicable to the seat, including whether members, directors, or another authorized body elected the director and whether the governing documents require cause.
- Deadline
- When a vacancy arises or before removal action.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Minutes; written consent; notices.
Applies to: A corporation with a board vacancy or considering director removal.
- Judicial removal and ecclesiastical rules are separate; a resignation may create different effective timing.
- Minutes; written consent; notices.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Director compensation is not automatically prohibited, but it should be authorized under the articles, bylaws, or board authority, be reasonable, and comply with fiduciary, conflict, charitable-asset, and federal tax rules.
- Deadline
- Before approving or paying compensation.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Compensation policy; minutes; payroll records.
Applies to: A nonprofit considering compensation or expense reimbursement for directors.
- Volunteer-liability treatment and employee status can change when compensation is paid.
- Compensation policy; minutes; payroll records.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
The initial board or incorporators should adopt bylaws governing meetings, elections, officers, committees, records, and other internal procedures. Bylaws are generally internal and are not routinely filed with LARA.
- Deadline
- Promptly after incorporation and before relying on internal procedures.
- Fee
- $0 — No state filing fee for internal bylaws
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- Internal bylaws and resolutions.
Applies to: Every ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation.
- A bylaw cannot override the Act or articles; tax authorities, banks, grants, or the Attorney General may request a copy.
- Internal bylaws and resolutions.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Hold annual meetings at the time provided in the bylaws and special meetings when properly called. Follow statutory and governing-document rules for place, notice, record date, quorum, voting, and adjournment.
- Deadline
- Annual on the governing-document schedule; special meetings when triggered.
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Meeting notices and minutes.
Applies to: A membership corporation with voting members.
- A directorship or nonmember corporation does not use member approval unless its articles grant such rights.
- Meeting notices and minutes.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Michigan permits remote participation when the corporation can identify participants and enable simultaneous communication as required by the Act and governing documents. Remote participation counts as presence when the statutory conditions are satisfied.
- Deadline
- At each remote meeting.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Notices, minutes, platform records.
Applies to: Members, directors, or committees participating remotely.
- Member and board remote-meeting provisions may differ; regulated bodies may have additional open-meeting duties.
- Notices, minutes, platform records.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Member proxies and written consents are permitted only under the Act and the articles or bylaws. Preserve the authorization, scope, duration, signatures, and vote count.
- Deadline
- Before counting the proxy or written action.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Proxy; written consent; vote tabulation.
Applies to: A membership corporation taking member action by proxy or without a meeting.
- Board written action follows a separate rule and must not be modeled as member proxy voting.
- Proxy; written consent; vote tabulation.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Board action must comply with the Act and governing documents for meeting call, notice, waiver, quorum, voting, adjournment, and written action.
- Deadline
- Before and at each board action.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Board records.
Applies to: The board of directors of a Michigan nonprofit.
- The articles or bylaws may change statutory defaults only where the Act permits.
- Board records.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
A board may create committees and delegate permitted authority, but committees cannot exercise powers reserved by statute to the full board, members, or another body, including specified fundamental transactions and governance changes.
- Deadline
- At committee creation and before each delegated action.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Committee charter; resolutions; minutes.
Applies to: A board establishing executive or other committees.
- Advisory committees without board authority are distinct from statutory board committees.
- Committee charter; resolutions; minutes.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
The corporation must have a president, secretary, and treasurer, and may appoint a chair, vice presidents, and other officers under the bylaws or board resolutions.
- Deadline
- Promptly after formation and continuously.
- Official form or portal
- Minutes; officer roster; bylaws.
Applies to: An ordinary Michigan nonprofit corporation.
- Ecclesiastical corporations may use titles and procedures consistent with their special statute and governing rules.
- Minutes; officer roster; bylaws.
- Ohio required officers required
- Arizona required officers required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
One person may generally hold two or more Michigan nonprofit offices. However, that person cannot sign, acknowledge, or verify the same instrument in multiple capacities when Michigan law, the Articles, or the bylaws require two or more officers.
- Deadline
- At appointment and before executing any instrument requiring two or more officer capacities.
- Official form or portal
- Bylaws, appointment resolutions, and the applicable transaction instrument.
Applies to: A nonprofit appointing one person to multiple offices or executing an instrument for which Michigan law, the Articles, or the bylaws require two or more officers.
- The Articles or bylaws may restrict the combination of offices or impose additional signature requirements; banking, real-estate, regulated-program, and federal forms may also require separate signers.
- Bylaws, appointment resolutions, and the applicable transaction instrument.
- Ohio officer role restrictions not yet confirmed
- Montana officer role restrictions permitted, not required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Maintain minutes, written actions, accounting records, member records where applicable, current governing documents, and officer/director information. Provide inspection to directors and qualifying members under the statutory purpose, notice, and scope rules.
- Deadline
- Continuously; respond to a proper demand under the statutory process.
- Official form or portal
- Corporate record book; accounting system; membership ledger.
Applies to: Michigan nonprofit corporations, directors, and members with statutory inspection rights.
- Attorney General, IRS, grant, and public-funding disclosure duties are separate from internal inspection rights.
- Corporate record book; accounting system; membership ledger.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
Prepare financial information sufficient to show the corporation's condition and results and furnish statements as required by the Act, governing documents, member rights, or Attorney General registration.
- Deadline
- After fiscal-year end and upon a qualifying demand or filing deadline.
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Internal statements; IRS return; CTS renewal attachments.
Applies to: A nonprofit required to report to members or responding to an authorized request.
- The corporate duty is separate from the CTS-02 CPA review/audit thresholds and federal Form 990.
- Internal statements; IRS return; CTS renewal attachments.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Directors and officers must act in good faith, with the care an ordinarily prudent person would use, and in the corporation's best interests. Disclose conflicts, use disinterested approval where available, document fairness and comparability, and preserve recusals.
- Deadline
- At every decision and before a conflict transaction when practicable.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Conflict disclosure; minutes; supporting valuation.
Applies to: Directors and officers, especially when an insider has a financial or personal interest.
- Federal excess-benefit rules and grant conditions may be stricter.
- Conflict disclosure; minutes; supporting valuation.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Michigan restricts certain loans to directors or officers, permits indemnification and expense advancement under stated standards, and provides conditional volunteer protections. None is universal immunity; document statutory authority and insurance.
- Deadline
- Before a loan or advancement and when a claim arises.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Resolutions; indemnification agreement; insurance policy.
Applies to: A nonprofit considering insider loans, advances, indemnification, insurance, or relying on volunteer immunity.
- Willful misconduct, gross negligence, professional services, vehicle claims, compensation, and federal claims may fall outside protections.
- Resolutions; indemnification agreement; insurance policy.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Legislature — Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162
View official source
File the annual report, renew, and record corporate changes
The corporate Annual Report is due 1 October, starts the year after incorporation or foreign qualification, opens online around 15 June, and is currently online only. It is a Secretary of State filing and not the Attorney General charity filing, and the two are easy to mistake for each other. Missing it is unusually expensive here: two consecutive missed domestic reports can dissolve the corporation automatically, and restoration then runs through no more than the last five required reports at $25 per prior year. One conflict is preserved rather than resolved, because the official sources disagree: the ordinary fee schedule says $20 for the current-year report while the renewal page says $25 when restoration is filed on or after 1 October. Amendments, restated articles, agent changes, mergers, consolidations and conversions complete the group.
File the corporate Annual Report each year by October 1, beginning in the calendar year after incorporation or foreign qualification. This LARA filing is separate from Attorney General charity renewal, federal Form 990, and Michigan tax returns.
- Deadline
- October 1 each year; first report in the year after incorporation or Certificate of Authority.
- Fee
- $20 — On-time current-year nonprofit Annual Report fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Nonprofit Annual Report, commonly identified as Form 2000 or current portal successor.
Applies to: Every domestic nonprofit corporation and every authorized foreign nonprofit corporation.
- The Attorney General renewal cycle uses a different formula and filing.
- Nonprofit Annual Report, commonly identified as Form 2000 or current portal successor.
- Wisconsin annual or biennial report required
- North Dakota annual or biennial report required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 5 more
View official sources (6)
The online Annual Report workflow generally opens June 15 for the October 1 due date. LARA sends email reminders about 90 days before the due date when an email is on the entity record, so maintain current contact information.
- Deadline
- Online filing opens June 15; report due October 1.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- MiBusiness Registry Annual Report workflow.
Applies to: A nonprofit preparing its annual LARA report.
- Portal opening and reminder delivery are operational practices; the legal due date remains October 1.
- MiBusiness Registry Annual Report workflow.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (3)
Provide the resident agent and registered office, principal-office information, and current officers and directors required by the portal. The annual report can update listed report information but does not replace a charter amendment or every separate event filing.
- Deadline
- With each October 1 report and promptly when separate statutory filings are required.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- MiBusiness Registry Annual Report; Forms 515 and 520 as applicable.
Applies to: A domestic or foreign nonprofit filing the annual report.
- The report does not renew an assumed name, amend purposes, or cure all resident-agent defects automatically.
- MiBusiness Registry Annual Report; Forms 515 and 520 as applicable.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (4)
A domestic nonprofit that neglects or refuses for two consecutive years to file reports or pay required fees is automatically dissolved. Current LARA guidance states that a foreign corporation faces the relevant revocation consequence after one year, subject to the separate statutory notice and revocation procedure.
- Deadline
- Automatic domestic dissolution after the second consecutive missed report year; foreign consequence after the one-year LARA period, with statutory notice and revocation procedure still applicable.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- MiBusiness Registry; renewal procedure.
Applies to: A nonprofit that misses Annual Reports or fees.
- The one-year LARA point for foreign corporations does not replace statutory notice requirements. Automatic dissolution or revocation is not voluntary dissolution and does not close Attorney General, tax, payroll, gaming, alcohol, or local accounts.
- MiBusiness Registry; renewal procedure.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Renew by filing reports for the last five years or any lesser number of years that were required and paying the fees for those years plus a $5 penalty for each delinquent report. Reports older than the five-year restoration window are not separately required by the stated formula.
- Deadline
- After automatic dissolution or revocation and before relying on restored status.
- Fee
- $25 — Prior-year report fee (each)
- $5 — Penalty per delinquent report
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- Corporate renewal/restoration workflow under MCL 450.2925.
Applies to: A domestic nonprofit automatically dissolved under MCL 450.2922 or a foreign nonprofit whose Certificate of Authority was revoked.
- Form 525 addresses renewal after expiration of a stated corporate term and should not automatically be substituted for this annual-report restoration workflow.
- Corporate renewal/restoration workflow under MCL 450.2925.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
LARA’s current renewal page states that the current-year report is also required with $25 when renewal is received on or after October 1, while the ordinary current nonprofit Annual Report fee schedule states $20. Confirm the live portal amount and preserve the distinction between current-year and prior-year charges.
- Deadline
- At restoration submission on or after October 1.
- Fee
- $20 — Ordinary current-year Annual Report fee schedule amount
- $25 — Renewal-procedure current-year amount (conflicting)
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- MiBusiness Registry renewal workflow.
Applies to: A nonprofit submitting corporate renewal on or after October 1.
- The $25 prior-year report fee is separately stated and is not the same question.
- MiBusiness Registry renewal workflow.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: two current official LARA sources state different current-year amounts in the renewal context. Confirm with: LARA, Corporations Division (supporting sources MI-S006, MI-S011).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
View official sources (2)
Current Form 525 is titled Certificate of Renewal of Corporate Existence and refers to renewal after expiration of a corporate term. The annual-report-default restoration rule is implemented through MCL 450.2925 and the renewal portal. Do not describe Form 525 as the universal restoration form without current LARA confirmation.
- Deadline
- After the relevant expiration or dissolution event.
- Fee
- $10 — Form 525 filing fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-525; MiBusiness Registry renewal workflow.
Applies to: A corporation whose stated term expired or a nonprofit seeking restoration after annual-report default.
- Voluntary-dissolution revocation under Form 533 is another separate process.
- CSCL/CD-525; MiBusiness Registry renewal workflow.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: the current form and renewal page describe different legal triggers and payment structures. Confirm with: LARA, Corporations Division (supporting sources MI-S011, MI-S012).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
View official sources (2)
Upon statutory renewal, corporate rights and authority are generally restored as provided by MCL 450.2925, including treatment of acts and contracts during dissolution. Renewal does not automatically reinstate separate tax, charity, payroll, insurance, gaming, alcohol, or local accounts.
- Deadline
- At renewal and before resuming regulated activity.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- MiBusiness Registry; agency-specific portals.
Applies to: A nonprofit whose existence or authority is renewed after automatic dissolution or revocation.
- Name availability and resident-agent corrections may be required before renewal completes.
- MiBusiness Registry; agency-specific portals.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 6 more
View official sources (7)
Form 540 reserves an available name for six months following the month in which the application is filed. Form 541 adopts an assumed name, Form 542 renews it, and Form 543 terminates it. Name filings do not create trademark rights or tax/charity approvals.
- Deadline
- Before formation or assumed-name use; a reservation lasts six months after the filing month, and assumed names must be renewed before their stated expiration.
- Fee
- $10 — Form 540 name reservation
- $10 — Form 541 assumed-name adoption
- $10 — Form 542 assumed-name renewal
- $10 — Form 543 assumed-name termination
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-540, 541, 542, 543.
Applies to: A nonprofit reserving a name or operating under an assumed name.
- Local permits may separately request a trade name; nonprofit and ecclesiastical naming restrictions still apply.
- CSCL/CD-540, 541, 542, 543.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Use Form 511 for ordinary nonprofit restated Articles and Form 515 for an amendment. Obtain the member, director, or other approvals required by the corporation’s classification and governing documents.
- Deadline
- Before representing the change as effective.
- Fee
- $10 — Restated Articles (Form 511, generally)
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-511; CSCL/CD-515.
Applies to: A nonprofit changing or consolidating its articles.
- Internal bylaw or officer changes do not require an article filing unless the articles themselves change.
- CSCL/CD-511; CSCL/CD-515.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Form 517 abandons an amendment under the statutory conditions; Form 518 corrects specified inaccuracies or defects. Neither substitutes for a substantive new amendment.
- Deadline
- Before the amendment becomes effective for abandonment; promptly after discovering a correctable defect.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-517; CSCL/CD-518.
Applies to: A corporation abandoning an approved but not effective amendment or correcting a filed document.
- Fundamental transactions and annual-report corrections may use different workflows.
- CSCL/CD-517; CSCL/CD-518.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
The corporation files Form 520 for an entity-initiated change. A resident agent may resign on Form 521, and the corporation may appoint a successor on Form 522. Maintain uninterrupted service coverage.
- Deadline
- Promptly after a change or resignation and continuously.
- Fee
- $5 — Form 520 change
- $0 — Form 521 resignation
- $5 — Form 522 appointment of successor
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-520, 521, 522.
Applies to: A nonprofit whose resident agent or registered office changes, or whose agent resigns.
- Annual-report updates do not necessarily substitute for every separate agent filing.
- CSCL/CD-520, 521, 522.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Prepare a plan, obtain the approvals required for a membership or directorship corporation, protect restricted assets, and file the required certificate. LARA’s current fee schedule charges $50 for each domestic corporation involved, plus assumed-name charges when applicable.
- Deadline
- Before closing or filing the transaction.
- Fee
- $50 — Merger/consolidation fee, per domestic corporation
- $10 — New assumed name, if applicable
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Current nonprofit merger form or portal.
Applies to: A nonprofit entering a merger or consolidation.
- Foreign law, federal tax rules, and Attorney General review may add conditions.
- Current nonprofit merger form or portal.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Obtain the board, member, or other approvals required by the Act and governing documents, satisfy debts and restrictions, and obtain Attorney General or court review when charitable assets require it.
- Deadline
- Before signing or closing the disposition.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Plan and asset-transfer documents.
Applies to: A nonprofit disposing of substantially all assets outside normal operations.
- Ordinary-course dispositions do not use the same approval standard.
- Plan and asset-transfer documents.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Conversion requires a statutory plan, approvals, and the correct certificate and organizational filing. A nonprofit-to-Michigan-LLC conversion currently has a $100 minimum state total: $50 conversion plus $50 LLC Articles; nonprofit-to-foreign-LLC conversion lists a $50 conversion fee.
- Deadline
- Before conversion becomes effective.
- Fee
- $50 — Conversion fee
- $50 — Resulting LLC Articles fee (nonprofit-to-Michigan-LLC)
- $50 — Nonprofit-to-foreign-LLC conversion fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-554 or current successor; resulting Articles.
Applies to: A nonprofit converting to a Michigan or foreign LLC, profit corporation, or other permitted entity, or another entity converting into a Michigan nonprofit.
- Conversion to a for-profit entity can require Attorney General approval or no-objection treatment because charitable assets cannot become private assets. Domestication and conversion effective dates and statutory fees are not unresolved — the enacted amounts above are settled; only certain implementation details required separate confirmation.
- CSCL/CD-554 or current successor; resulting Articles.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Submit the proposed transaction and asset-disposition plan to the Charitable Trust Section and obtain required approval, no-objection, or court relief before filing or closing.
- Deadline
- Before the corporate conversion or asset transfer.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Attorney General transaction submission; LARA conversion filing.
Applies to: A charitable-purpose or 501(c)(3) nonprofit proposing conversion to a for-profit corporation or LLC, or another transaction that could divert charitable assets.
- Noncharitable nonprofit and religious organizations may follow different Attorney General procedures, but restricted gifts remain enforceable.
- Attorney General transaction submission; LARA conversion filing.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Record internal changes in minutes, consents, bylaws, or policies. File with LARA only when the Annual Report or a specific statute/form requires updated public information; do not submit a charter amendment for every internal change.
- Deadline
- At the internal action and at the next required public filing if applicable.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Minutes, bylaws, Annual Report, or Form 515 as appropriate.
Applies to: A nonprofit changing internal officers, committees, policies, or bylaws without changing the articles.
- A purpose, name, stock/nonstock, membership/directorship, or other article change requires a public filing.
- Minutes, bylaws, Annual Report, or Form 515 as appropriate.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Foreign nonprofit authority in Michigan
For nonprofits incorporated elsewhere. A certificate of authority comes before transacting affairs in Michigan, supported by a home-jurisdiction certificate dated inside the statutory window, and an alternate or assumed name is its own filing when the real name is unavailable. A qualified foreign nonprofit then carries the same 1 October annual report as a domestic one, and amendments follow the statutory event period.
File Form CSCL/CD-560, appoint a Michigan resident agent and registered office, describe the specific Michigan affairs, and provide the required home-jurisdiction evidence. Corporate authority is separate from charitable-solicitation and tax registration.
- Deadline
- Before transacting affairs in Michigan.
- Fee
- $10 — Filing fee
- $10 — Franchise fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-560.
Applies to: A nonprofit corporation formed outside Michigan that will transact affairs in Michigan and does not fall within a statutory exclusion.
- The Act lists activities that do not alone constitute transacting affairs; the classification is fact-specific.
- CSCL/CD-560.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Attach a certificate of good standing or equivalent official evidence from the home jurisdiction dated no earlier than 30 days before LARA receives the application, with authentication or translation as the current instructions require.
- Deadline
- With Form 560; certificate dated within the preceding 30 days.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-560 and home-jurisdiction certificate.
Applies to: A foreign nonprofit applying on Form 560.
- Foreign-country documents may require additional authentication or certified translation.
- CSCL/CD-560 and home-jurisdiction certificate.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official source
State an alternate name in the authority application when the true name is unavailable and file or maintain an assumed name when required by the selected structure.
- Deadline
- At qualification and before using the alternate or assumed name.
- Fee
- $10 — Assumed-name filing (Forms 541-543)
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-560; CSCL/CD-541, 542, 543.
Applies to: A foreign nonprofit whose legal name is not available or that will use another name in Michigan.
- Name filings do not grant trademark rights or charity-name approval.
- CSCL/CD-560; CSCL/CD-541, 542, 543.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (3)
Michigan statutes list excluded activities, but current official sources do not provide a single bright-line test for every modern combination of remote work, passive websites, targeted solicitation, grantmaking, and isolated transactions.
- Deadline
- Analyze before sustained Michigan activity begins.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- Form 560 if authority is required.
Applies to: A foreign nonprofit with Michigan employees, property, programs, contracts, grants, meetings, passive websites, crowdfunding, or targeted online activity.
- Charitable solicitation can require Attorney General registration even when corporate qualification does not.
- Form 560 if authority is required.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: the statutory framework is clear, but no current official universal internet or remote-worker rule was found. Confirm with: LARA and courts (supporting sources MI-S001, MI-S018, MI-S024).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
File the current amended-certificate form when the legal name, jurisdiction, duration, or other authority information changes; continue October 1 Annual Reports; and file the current withdrawal form when ending Michigan authority.
- Deadline
- Amend within the statutory event period; Annual Report by October 1; withdraw when ceasing authority.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- Amended Certificate of Authority; foreign withdrawal form.
Applies to: An authorized foreign nonprofit changing authority information or leaving Michigan.
- Withdrawal does not automatically terminate solicitation registration, charitable-trust reporting, tax, payroll, or local accounts.
- Amended Certificate of Authority; foreign withdrawal form.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 4 more
View official sources (5)
Register to solicit, and renew on Michigan’s own clock
Registration comes before soliciting or receiving contributions, on CTS-01 with the organizing, IRS, governance, financial and fundraising documents, and a pending or incomplete filing is not authority to solicit. Michigan then does not use a calendar renewal date: a confirmation expires one year and seven months after the end of the submitted financial period, renewal is filed at least thirty days before that, and a five-month extension has to be requested before the current registration expires rather than after. The small-charity exemption carries a boundary conflict this page keeps visible, because current Attorney General guidance says less than $25,000 while the statute uses a not-more-than formulation, and the volunteer condition applies either way.
COSA registration applies to covered organizations that solicit or receive contributions in Michigan. File CTS-01 and required attachments. Corporate formation, foreign authority, and federal exemption do not replace this registration.
- Deadline
- Before covered solicitation or receipt of contributions; a complete filing becomes effective under the Attorney General process.
- Fee
- $0 — No state registration fee stated on the current form or agency page
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-01 Initial Solicitation Form.
Applies to: A domestic or foreign charitable organization that solicits or receives contributions in Michigan and is not exempt.
- Statutory exemptions must be confirmed under CTS-03; pending, incomplete, and exempt statuses are distinct.
- CTS-01 Initial Solicitation Form.
- Ohio charitable solicitation registration required
- Nevada charitable solicitation registration required in some cases
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 3 more
View official sources (4)
CTS-01 requires the legal and solicitation names, entity status, organizing documents, bylaws, IRS determination or application information, resident-agent information, solicitation methods, financial information, related chapters, professional-fundraising contracts, and a list of current officers and directors. The form requires the names of at least three officers/directors; that disclosure does not create the general Michigan corporate-law board minimum.
- Deadline
- With the initial registration.
- Fee
- $0 — No filing fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CTS-01.
Applies to: A charity making its initial solicitation registration.
- The CTS-01 requirement to name at least three officers/directors is an Attorney General solicitation-registration disclosure and does not replace the one-or-more general corporate board rule. A new organization without a completed financial period follows the form’s startup instructions rather than inventing a Form 990.
- CTS-01.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
The current renewal form states that an existing registration remains valid while a timely renewal is pending unless the Attorney General notifies the organization otherwise. The same unconditional rule was not confirmed for a first-time, incomplete, or late initial filing.
- Deadline
- Before soliciting while an initial or defective filing is pending.
- Fee
- $0 — No filing fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Attorney General efiling and charity search.
Applies to: An organization that submitted CTS-01 or a renewal but has not received confirmation.
- A complete timely renewal and an initial application have different status histories.
- Attorney General efiling and charity search.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: official sources directly protect a timely renewal while pending but do not provide an equally clear universal first-time pending rule. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (supporting sources MI-S024, MI-S025, MI-S026, MI-S027).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Current Attorney General guidance describes an exemption for an organization that raises funds exclusively through volunteers and receives less than $25,000 a year. MCL 400.283(b), however, is phrased as not intending to solicit and receive and not actually receiving contributions of more than $25,000 during any 12-month period, while also requiring all fundraising functions to be performed by unpaid persons and a financial statement to be made available. Paying anyone for fundraising can require registration even below the monetary threshold. Submit CTS-03 for exemption confirmation.
- Deadline
- Before relying on the exemption or beginning solicitation.
- Fee
- $0 — CTS-03 currently has no filing fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-03.
Applies to: A small charitable organization seeking exemption from COSA registration.
- Government grants, dues, program revenue, donated goods, chapters, and in-kind support require classification under the statute and form; do not subtract them without authority.
- CTS-03.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: current official shorthand uses "less than $25,000" while the statute uses a "more than $25,000" formulation that appears to include exactly $25,000. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (supporting sources MI-S025, MI-S028, MI-S030, MI-S083).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Current public summaries do not fully resolve every receipt category for the small-charity exemption. Use CTS-03 and the statutory definitions to determine whether government grants, membership dues, program-service revenue, in-kind property, donated goods, or chapter receipts count for the specific exemption.
- Deadline
- Before relying on the exemption and each year near the threshold.
- Fee
- $0 — No fee for CTS-03
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-03; supporting financial schedule.
Applies to: A small organization near the $25,000 threshold with mixed receipts or affiliated chapters.
- The CPA threshold uses its own federal-return-derived metric and should not be imported into this exemption.
- CTS-03; supporting financial schedule.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: the official form requires classification evidence, but current public guidance does not give a reusable rule for every mixed-receipt category. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (supporting sources MI-S025, MI-S028, MI-S030).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Michigan has category-specific exemptions for specified religious, educational, hospital, veterans, individual-benefit, membership, governmental, and other organizations. Eligibility depends on exact statutory and form criteria; file CTS-03 rather than relying on a short label.
- Deadline
- Before solicitation or before claiming exemption.
- Fee
- $0 — No fee for CTS-03
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-03.
Applies to: An organization that may fit a statutory COSA exemption other than the small-volunteer exemption.
- Soliciting only members, operating as a foundation, or having 501(c)(3) status does not automatically establish the exemption without satisfying the listed conditions.
- CTS-03.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Keep the Attorney General record current and submit required amendments and professional-fundraising contract information. Current CTS instructions require fundraising contract copies or summaries within the stated event period.
- Deadline
- Promptly after a material change; professional-fundraiser contract filing within the current 10-day instruction where applicable.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CTS-01/02 amendment submission; CTS-11.
Applies to: A registered charity whose name, address, officers, methods, fiscal year, chapters, or fundraising relationships change.
- LARA corporate amendments and Annual Reports are separate.
- CTS-01/02 amendment submission; CTS-11.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Check the Attorney General public charity search for current registration and expiration information. When solicitation ends, submit the requested final financial information and termination or withdrawal notice; a foreign corporate withdrawal does not automatically close the charity file.
- Deadline
- Before solicitation verification and when Michigan solicitation ends.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Attorney General charity search; final filing or correspondence.
Applies to: A charity verifying its status or ending Michigan solicitation.
- Charitable-trust final accounting may remain even if solicitation registration ends.
- Attorney General charity search; final filing or correspondence.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 3 more
View official sources (4)
COSA covers solicitation and receipt of contributions in Michigan, and CTS-01 asks about internet and electronic methods. Current official sources do not publish a universal passive-website, targeted-advertising, or platform nexus safe harbor.
- Deadline
- Analyze before launching Michigan-accessible campaigns and after targeting or receipts change.
- Fee
- $0 — No classification fee; registration has no stated fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-01/02; charity efiling.
Applies to: A domestic or foreign charity using a website, email, social media, crowdfunding, or fundraising platform accessible in Michigan.
- Corporate foreign qualification and tax nexus are separate analyses.
- CTS-01/02; charity efiling.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: official sources establish electronic methods as relevant but do not resolve every passive or targeted scenario. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (supporting sources MI-S024, MI-S026, MI-S030).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
The current CTS-02 states that registration expires one year and seven months after the end date of the financial report submitted with the last registration. Use the expiration date shown on the Attorney General confirmation rather than a universal December 31, anniversary, October 1, or Form 990 date.
- Deadline
- Renewal should be filed at least 30 days before the confirmation expiration date.
- Fee
- $0 — No renewal fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02 Renewal Solicitation Form.
Applies to: A registered charitable organization renewing under COSA.
- A fiscal-year change or startup period can change the formula; use the AG confirmation date.
- CTS-02 Renewal Solicitation Form.
- Wisconsin charity registration renewal required
- Indiana charity registration renewal required in some cases
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
A written extension request may add up to five months. The initial request must reach the Attorney General before the current registration expires; current guidance states an approved extension request applies to future registrations unless changed.
- Deadline
- Before the current registration expires.
- Fee
- $0 — No extension fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02; written extension request.
Applies to: A registered charity unable to complete renewal by expiration.
- An IRS extension does not automatically replace the Michigan written-extension process.
- CTS-02; written extension request.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Submit the applicable federal return and Michigan renewal information. Form 990-N filers must provide total revenue and at least three officers/directors. The current CTS-02 also states that Michigan organizations require three directors. These are Attorney General solicitation-registration instructions and are separate from the general LARA corporate-law minimum of one or more directors.
- Deadline
- At least 30 days before registration expiration, subject to extension.
- Fee
- $0 — No renewal fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02; current Form 990-N renewal form.
Applies to: A registered charity renewing with a completed federal return or Form 990-N filing.
- The CTS-02 three-director instruction is not the general corporate-formation minimum. A new organization without a completed financial period follows the startup instructions; fiscal-year changes must be disclosed.
- CTS-02; current Form 990-N renewal form.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
The general AG page says registration expires seven months after fiscal-year end, while current CTS-02 states one year and seven months after the end of the financial report submitted with the last registration. The form’s complete cycle is the more precise implementation rule; preserve the confirmation expiration date and conflict.
- Deadline
- Use the expiration date on the official confirmation and file 30 days before it.
- Fee
- $0 — No fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02; AG registration confirmation.
Applies to: Publishers and organizations reconciling the AG website with CTS-02.
- The page may be describing the operational due point for the next fiscal period rather than the full statutory registration span.
- CTS-02; AG registration confirmation.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: current official materials use different shorthand; the direct form is more specific but the conflict should remain visible. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (supporting sources MI-S024, MI-S027).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Charitable trusts and the financial statements the Attorney General asks for
Holding charitable assets is registered separately, under the Supervision of Trustees for Charitable Purposes Act, and that is a different act from solicitation registration. Qualifying Michigan solicitation registrants may receive integrated trust registration and reporting, but an asset holder exempt from solicitation registration is not thereby exempt from this one. The CPA threshold is computed from CTS-02 line F rather than from total revenue as reported elsewhere, and the exact $575,000 case is left as the form leaves it: at that amount the current form simultaneously requires an audit and permits either a review or an audit. Waivers, exemptions and annual accounting close the group.
STCPA registration is separate from corporate formation and solicitation registration. COSA-exempt corporations or associations generally use CTS-05 with CTS-03; trusts use CTS-06.
- Deadline
- Upon becoming subject to STCPA and before relying on an exemption.
- Fee
- $0 — No filing fee stated on current CTS forms
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-03, CTS-05, CTS-06.
Applies to: A corporation, association, trust, private foundation, or other person holding or administering charitable assets in Michigan and not exempt.
- Solicitation exemptions and trust exemptions are separate; foreign charities holding Michigan assets can still be subject.
- CTS-03, CTS-05, CTS-06.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 4 more
View official sources (5)
Current Attorney General guidance states that Michigan organizations registered to solicit are automatically registered as charitable trusts, and the solicitation renewal may serve as the annual charitable-trust financial report. The organization must remain within the integrated registration conditions and provide the required financial filing.
- Deadline
- At successful solicitation registration and each integrated renewal.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-01; CTS-02.
Applies to: A Michigan organization that obtains charitable-solicitation registration and holds charitable assets.
- COSA-exempt corporations holding Michigan charitable assets generally use CTS-05 plus CTS-03; trusts use CTS-06.
- CTS-01; CTS-02.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Submit an annual financial accounting within six months after fiscal-year end using an IRS return, certified audit, or qualifying corporate-trustee annual statement as permitted.
- Deadline
- Six months after fiscal-year end.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Annual trust accounting; IRS return, certified audit, or corporate trustee statement.
Applies to: A registered charitable trust or entity not satisfying its annual accounting through an integrated solicitation renewal.
- An integrated COSA renewal can satisfy the trust report only when all integration conditions are met.
- Annual trust accounting; IRS return, certified audit, or corporate trustee statement.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Current AG guidance lists categorical trust exemptions and a narrow annual-accounting waiver for a corporation with contributions under $8,000, gross receipts under $25,000, and assets that have always remained under $100,000. Confirm through CTS-03 and preserve all operators.
- Deadline
- Before omitting registration or annual accounting and whenever amounts change.
- Fee
- $0 — No CTS-03 fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-03.
Applies to: A charitable entity seeking an STCPA exemption or waiver.
- Religious, governmental, educational, amateur-theater/music, hospital, and other categorical exemptions use their own criteria.
- CTS-03.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Submit a final accounting and receipts or other proof of distributions to charitable beneficiaries. An unregistered trust may also need CTS-06 before the final accounting can be accepted.
- Deadline
- At termination and after final distributions.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CTS-06; final accounting.
Applies to: A terminating charitable trust or charitable-asset arrangement.
- Corporate dissolution, solicitation termination, and tax closure are separate.
- CTS-06; final accounting.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Calculate line F by adding contributions from Form 990 Part VIII line 1h or Form 990-PF line 1, net special-event income from line 8c, and net gaming income from line 9c, then subtracting governmental grants from line 1e. Do not substitute gross receipts or total revenue.
- Deadline
- For each renewal financial period.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
Applies to: A registered charity completing CTS-02 and determining whether reviewed or audited financial statements are required.
- The small-solicitation exemption uses a different metric and must not be imported into this calculation.
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official source
Current CTS-02 requires reviewed or audited statements only when line F is greater than $325,000. Exactly $325,000 is not within that middle band; internally prepared statements may be accepted unless another rule or agency condition requires CPA work.
- Deadline
- With the renewal for the financial period.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
Applies to: A registered charity whose CTS-02 line F is at or near $325,000.
- An Attorney General request, grant, contract, federal Single Audit, or other law can independently require an audit.
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
- Wisconsin audit and financial statements required in some cases
- Maryland audit and financial statements required in some cases
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official source
The April 2026 form says an audit is required when line F is $575,000 or more, but the next bullet says reviewed or audited statements are required when line F is greater than $325,000 and not greater than $575,000. Exactly $575,000 falls in both instructions.
- Deadline
- Before submitting the renewal and commissioning the engagement.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
Applies to: A registered charity whose calculated CTS-02 line F equals exactly $575,000.
- Above $575,000 the audit requirement is clear; greater than $325,000 and below $575,000 permits review or audit.
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: the direct current form contains overlapping operators at the exact boundary. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (supporting source MI-S027). The conservative public statement may advise obtaining an audit or written Attorney General confirmation at the exact boundary.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
View official source
CTS-02 allows a request for a one-time audit waiver or conditional registration. Conditional registration requires an engagement letter and later submission of the completed audit or review. Approval is not automatic.
- Deadline
- With the renewal before expiration.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
Applies to: A charity that met a review or audit threshold but did not complete the required engagement before renewal.
- The form says audit/review according to the applicable threshold; do not convert “reviewed or audited” into audit-only below the clear audit tier.
- CTS-02 Attachment B.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official source
Professional fundraisers, solicitors, and public-safety appeals
Applies when someone other than the organization's own people asks for money. Michigan keeps five roles distinct and they carry different duties: ordinary professional fundraisers, consultant-only engagements, individual solicitors, charity employees, and public-safety fundraisers. A professional fundraiser is licensed and bonded at $10,000 before licensure, contracts are filed within ten days, an individual solicitor registers before soliciting and renews before a 30 June expiration, and public-safety solicitation runs on its own registration with its own fee ladder.
File CTS-07 before acting. A consultant can fall within the definition even without personally soliciting unless every consultant-only exclusion condition is satisfied.
- Deadline
- Before performing covered fundraising services.
- Fee
- $0 — No ordinary professional-fundraiser license fee stated; do not invent one
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-07.
Applies to: A person or firm meeting the COSA professional-fundraiser definition for a charity.
- Public-safety professional fundraisers use CTS-13, a separate $200 system.
- CTS-07.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
The current CTS-07 consultant criteria are cumulative: compensation is a fixed fee or rate not based on funds raised; services are limited to advising or planning without solicitation; the consultant does not receive or control funds; and the consultant does not employ or compensate solicitors.
- Deadline
- Before contracting and throughout the engagement.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-07; CTS-11.
Applies to: A fundraising consultant seeking exclusion from campaign financial statement treatment or the professional-fundraiser definition.
- A charity employee or percentage-compensated employee may be classified differently under COSA; job title alone does not decide.
- CTS-07; CTS-11.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
File CTS-08 for a $10,000 surety bond with the required power of attorney and maintain continuation through the license term and renewal.
- Deadline
- Before licensure and continuously while licensed.
- Fee
- $10000 — Required surety bond amount (CTS-08)
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS-08.
Applies to: An ordinary licensed professional fundraiser.
- Public-safety fundraisers use a different graduated bond schedule.
- CTS-08.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
File a Contract Summary Sheet and required contract information for each engagement within the current event deadline. Preserve compensation, campaign, custody, solicitation, and termination terms.
- Deadline
- Within 10 days after the contract or as the current CTS instructions direct.
- Fee
- $0 — No CTS-11 fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CTS-11.
Applies to: A charity and professional fundraiser entering a covered fundraising contract.
- Consultant-only contracts still require accurate classification; public-safety contracts use the separate system.
- CTS-11.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
File CTS-09 before the individual solicits and renew for the July 1 through June 30 registration year.
- Deadline
- Before solicitation; renew before June 30 expiration.
- Fee
- $0 — No individual registration fee stated; confirm before payment
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-09.
Applies to: An individual solicitor employed or engaged by a professional fundraiser for covered telephone or door-to-door solicitation.
- Ordinary charity employees and volunteers may be treated differently depending on compensation and role.
- CTS-09.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 1 more
View official sources (2)
File CTS-10 within 90 days after campaign completion. For an ongoing campaign, file the required annual statement. Consultant-only engagements are excluded from the campaign financial statement when every exception condition is met.
- Deadline
- 90 days after campaign completion; annually for ongoing campaigns.
- Fee
- $0 — No CTS-10 fee stated
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CTS-10.
Applies to: A professional fundraiser conducting a covered campaign, except a qualifying consultant-only engagement.
- Cancellation and early termination can trigger a closing statement; consultant-only status must be documented.
- CTS-10.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Follow statutory rules for solicitation disclosures, custody and prompt transfer or deposit of funds, records, accounting, and representations. Percentage or contingent compensation can affect classification and must be disclosed and lawful.
- Deadline
- During every solicitation and throughout the records period.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Official form or portal
- CTS forms; contracts; bank records.
Applies to: Charities, professional fundraisers, and solicitors handling Michigan campaigns.
- Donation-box operations, commercial co-ventures, charitable sales promotions, and charity employees require their own statutory classification.
- CTS forms; contracts; bank records.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
A covered organization generally must have at least 75% of voting members who are current or former law-enforcement officers, firefighters, or corrections officers and at least 25% of all individuals it claims to represent. File CTS-12 before soliciting or receiving solicited contributions.
- Deadline
- Before covered solicitation or receipt; renew before expiration.
- Fee
- $25 — CTS-12 initial registration fee
- $25 — CTS-12 renewal fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- CTS-12.
Applies to: An organization meeting the Public Safety Solicitation Act definition, not merely a charity that supports police or firefighters.
- Supporting public-safety causes does not itself make an ordinary charity a statutory public-safety organization; narrow benefit exceptions exist.
- CTS-12.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
File CTS-13, pay the separate $200 registration fee, file contracts and solicitors, and maintain the bond amount determined by prior-year contributions: $25,000 through $100,000; $50,000 for $100,001–$200,000; $75,000 for $200,001–$300,000; and $100,000 at $300,001 or more.
- Deadline
- Before fundraising and before expiration.
- Fee
- $200 — CTS-13 registration fee
- $25000 — Bond: contributions up to $100,000
- $50000 — Bond: contributions $100,001-$200,000
- $75000 — Bond: contributions $200,001-$300,000
- $100000 — Bond: contributions $300,001 or more
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- CTS-13 and public-safety bond forms.
Applies to: A professional fundraiser acting for a statutory public-safety organization.
- The initial bond is $25,000 before contribution history; ordinary professional fundraisers use the separate $10,000 CTS-08 bond.
- CTS-13 and public-safety bond forms.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Handle state taxes, sales tax, property tax, and licensing
Michigan decides each of these on its own terms rather than on federal recognition. The statutory federal-exempt-person rule for the Corporate Income Tax is applied separately from incorporation, and unrelated business income has its own return on Form 4891. Form 3372 is a purchase certificate the seller retains, supported by qualifying federal evidence or a grandfathered Treasury letter; it is not an application and there is no universal nonprofit exemption number behind it. Sales by a nonprofit are their own question again, with fundraising-sale limits. Property-tax exemption is local and use-dependent under MCL 211.7o and the category-specific statutes, requiring ownership, occupancy and actual use, and Form 2368 is not the ordinary charitable route. Business, activity-specific and local licensing sit at the end because Michigan publishes no single universal one.
MCL 206.625 generally exempts a federally tax-exempt person from Corporate Income Tax, subject to listed exceptions and tax on business income attributable to unrelated business activity. Michigan nonprofit incorporation alone does not establish the federal-exempt-person condition.
- Deadline
- Apply when federal exemption becomes effective and for each taxable year.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- IRS determination; Form 4891 when required.
Applies to: A nonprofit corporation or other entity that is federally tax exempt and within Michigan Corporate Income Tax jurisdiction.
- MCL 206.625 expressly lists exceptions including specified IRC classifications and unrelated-business income.
- IRS determination; Form 4891 when required.
- Wisconsin state income tax exemption required
- New Jersey state income tax exemption required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Current official CIT authority applies the exemption by statute based on federal tax-exempt status and listed conditions. No current separate numbered Michigan CIT exemption-letter application was identified. Legacy Treasury exemption letters discussed in nonprofit guidance concern sales/use tax evidence, not a universal CIT application.
- Deadline
- Retain federal proof and analyze CIT each year.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- IRS determination; MTO.
Applies to: A federally exempt nonprofit evaluating Michigan Corporate Income Tax status.
- Treasury may request proof or issue correspondence; other IRC categories have special exceptions.
- IRS determination; MTO.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Michigan does not issue a general nonprofit exemption number and Form 3372 is not an application. Give the seller a completed exemption certificate supported by qualifying federal evidence or a valid grandfathered Treasury exemption letter.
- Deadline
- Before or at the exempt purchase.
- Fee
- $0 — No state fee for Form 3372
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Official form or portal
- Form 3372.
Applies to: A qualifying nonprofit making a direct exempt-purpose purchase.
- The seller must retain documentation; the certificate is not a seller’s sales-tax license.
- Form 3372.
- Wisconsin sales tax when you buy required in some cases
- California sales tax when you buy required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Current Treasury guidance recognizes qualifying organizations such as IRC 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), and 501(c)(19) organizations when statutory conditions are met. A health, welfare, educational, cultural-arts, charitable, or benevolent organization may also rely on a qualifying Treasury exemption ruling letter issued before July 17, 1998 for sales tax and before June 13, 1994 for use tax.
- Deadline
- Before claiming an exempt purchase and while retaining seller records.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Official form or portal
- Form 3372; IRS letter; legacy Treasury letter.
Applies to: A nonprofit claiming sales/use tax exemption under Michigan law.
- Not every IRC 501(c) category qualifies; current-use, purchaser, inurement, public-benefit, and purpose conditions remain.
- Form 3372; IRS letter; legacy Treasury letter.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 2 more
View official sources (3)
The organization must be the purchaser and use the property or service for its exempt purposes. The exemption does not cover employee, volunteer, member, or other private use, and cannot simply be lent to another purchaser.
- Deadline
- At each purchase and use decision.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Official form or portal
- Form 3372 and purchasing records.
Applies to: A qualifying nonprofit using Form 3372.
- Meals, lodging, vehicles, utilities, admissions, fundraising inventory, and mixed-use items have transaction-specific rules.
- Form 3372 and purchasing records.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 1 more
View official sources (2)
A contractor is generally the consumer of materials it purchases for real-property improvements and cannot automatically use the nonprofit owner’s Form 3372. Use the current contractor eligibility certificate and statutory exception only when the project and entity qualify.
- Deadline
- Before the contractor purchases materials or enters the tax treatment in the contract.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Official form or portal
- Form 3520; Form 3372.
Applies to: A nonprofit improving real property through a contractor.
- Certain nonprofit hospitals, schools, religious organizations, and other projects may have specific rules; do not generalize.
- Form 3520; Form 3372.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Register for a sales-tax license, collect and remit Michigan’s 6% tax, file assigned periodic returns and the annual return, and maintain records. Michigan does not impose a separate local sales tax.
- Deadline
- Before taxable retail sales begin; periodic returns follow assigned schedule.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- MTO; sales-tax license; Form 5080 series or current returns.
Applies to: A nonprofit selling taxable tangible personal property or taxable services in Michigan without a specific exemption.
- Purchase exemption does not exempt the organization’s own sales.
- MTO; sales-tax license; Form 5080 series or current returns.
- Indiana sales tax when you sell required in some cases
- Idaho sales tax when you sell required in some cases
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Michigan tax treatment depends on what is sold, frequency, seller, purchaser, use, and a specific statutory or administrative exemption. Donated inventory or charitable purpose does not automatically make a retail sale exempt.
- Deadline
- Before each fundraising sales program.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- MTO; sales-tax returns; event records.
Applies to: A nonprofit conducting fundraising sales or events.
- Raffles and gaming prizes have separate Lottery and income-withholding rules; alcohol and food permits are separate.
- MTO; sales-tax returns; event records.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Michigan has occasional or isolated transaction rules, but current official sources reviewed do not support one universal exemption for every nonprofit auction, thrift sale, event, or donated-goods sale.
- Deadline
- Before the sale or event.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Treasury guidance; MTO registration if required.
Applies to: A nonprofit making infrequent or isolated sales without an established retail business.
- Frequency, item type, prior purchase tax, venue, and seller structure can change the result.
- Treasury guidance; MTO registration if required.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: official guidance is transaction-specific and does not establish a blanket nonprofit occasional-sale exemption. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Treasury (supporting sources MI-S051, MI-S053).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 1 more
View official sources (2)
MCL 211.7o exempts qualifying property owned and occupied by a nonprofit charitable institution and used solely for its incorporated purposes. Administration begins with the city or township assessor and is fact-intensive.
- Deadline
- Qualifying status is measured on the applicable tax day; submit the local request in time for assessment and Board of Review review.
- Filing agency
- Local city or township assessor (with Board of Review and Michigan Tax Tribunal)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Local assessor form or written request; no universal statewide ordinary charitable form confirmed.
Applies to: A nonprofit charitable institution owning and occupying Michigan real or personal property for its charitable purposes.
- Federal 501(c)(3) status is evidence but not dispositive; ownership, occupation, actual use, and charitable character must be proven.
- Local assessor form or written request; no universal statewide ordinary charitable form confirmed.
- Ohio property tax exemption required in some cases
- Tennessee property tax exemption required
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Michigan has separate statutory exemptions for religious, educational, hospital, nonprofit housing, supportive housing, conservation, and other uses. Use the exact statute rather than treating MCL 211.7o as universal.
- Deadline
- On the relevant tax day and local filing/appeal schedule.
- Filing agency
- Local city or township assessor (with Board of Review and Michigan Tax Tribunal)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Local form; statutory exemption evidence.
Applies to: A nonprofit whose property fits a category other than the general charitable-institution provision.
- Each category has its own ownership, occupancy, use, beneficiary, income, and duration conditions.
- Local form; statutory exemption evidence.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Leasing, unrelated commercial use, mixed use, vacancy, construction, future intended use, thrift operations, administrative offices, and employee housing can change exemption eligibility or support only partial exemption. Current official authority does not support one universal rule for all such facts.
- Deadline
- Analyze before acquisition or change of use and on each tax day.
- Filing agency
- Local city or township assessor (with Board of Review and Michigan Tax Tribunal)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Local exemption request and supporting records.
Applies to: A nonprofit with property not used exclusively and currently for a single exempt purpose.
- Prospective use can be recognized only under specific statutes and facts; one municipality’s form cannot be generalized statewide.
- Local exemption request and supporting records.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: the statutes and cases require category-specific actual-use analysis rather than a universal nonprofit rule. Confirm with: local assessor, Board of Review, and Michigan Tax Tribunal (supporting sources MI-S055, MI-S056, MI-S057, MI-S058).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Preserve the local Board of Review protest when required and file any Michigan Tax Tribunal appeal within the applicable statutory deadline. Do not wait for informal discussions to expire appeal rights.
- Deadline
- Board of Review dates and Tribunal deadlines vary by assessment type and notice.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Official form or portal
- Local protest; Tax Tribunal petition.
Applies to: A nonprofit disputing a property-tax exemption denial or assessment.
- Some exemption appeals have different original-jurisdiction or timing rules; verify the current Tribunal instructions.
- Local protest; Tax Tribunal petition.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Form 2368 is the Principal Residence Exemption Affidavit for an individual’s qualifying principal residence. It is not the ordinary application for a charitable institution’s property-tax exemption.
- Deadline
- Not applicable to ordinary charity property; use the local assessor process instead.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Official form or portal
- Form 2368; local charitable exemption request.
Applies to: A nonprofit seeking exemption for organizational property.
- Nonprofit housing and employee residences require their own statutory analysis.
- Form 2368; local charitable exemption request.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Michigan uses activity-specific state licenses and local licensing, zoning, occupancy, fire, building, and event systems. No current official source was found establishing one universal statewide general business license for every nonprofit, but absence of a universal license does not mean no license applies.
- Deadline
- Before beginning the regulated activity or occupying the site.
- Filing agency
- Applicable Michigan city, township, or county government
- Official form or portal
- Michigan business/license search; local applications.
Applies to: A nonprofit beginning operations in Michigan.
- Detroit, Grand Rapids, Lansing, Ann Arbor, and other local rules cannot be generalized statewide.
- Michigan business/license search; local applications.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: official resources organize licensing by activity and location rather than one nonprofit-wide license. Confirm with: state activity regulator and local government (supporting source MI-S074).
- Indiana local business license required in some cases
- Alabama local business license required in some cases
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official source: State of Michigan — Michigan Business One Stop / State License Search
View official source
Use the relevant state and local licensing process before operating food service, temporary food events, child care, schools, camps, healthcare, behavioral health, adult foster care, transportation, or professional services.
- Deadline
- Before opening or providing the regulated service.
- Official form or portal
- Activity-specific application and portal.
Applies to: A nonprofit conducting a regulated program.
- A nonprofit exemption or charitable purpose does not replace health, safety, credential, or facility licensing.
- Activity-specific application and portal.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: State of Michigan — Michigan Business One Stop / State License Search
View official source
Michigan cities can administer income taxes and local governments administer zoning, occupancy, building, fire, signage, and special-event permits. Determine requirements from the actual city, township, county, and venue; do not generalize one locality.
- Deadline
- Before payroll, occupancy, construction, signage, or an event and on local return schedules.
- Filing agency
- Applicable Michigan city, township, or county government
- Official form or portal
- Local tax and permit forms.
Applies to: A nonprofit with employees, property, offices, events, or business activity in a Michigan locality.
- Michigan has no local sales tax, but city income taxes and other local charges are separate.
- Local tax and permit forms.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Register and manage nonprofit employment
Applies once the organization pays anyone, which is also why employer withholding is here rather than with the taxes. Unemployment insurance and workers' compensation use different tests and neither implies the other: the qualifying nonprofit unemployment rule uses four workers in twenty weeks, while workers' compensation generally turns on three employees at one time or the alternative statutory test. A nonprofit may elect its unemployment financing method in writing within the statutory window. New-hire reporting runs to twenty days, and wage, labour and activity-specific employment rules complete the group.
Nonprofit and tax-exempt status does not generally remove employer withholding duties. Register through MTO, obtain the account, withhold from covered compensation, file returns, remit tax, and close the account when employment ends.
- Deadline
- Before or when covered payroll begins; returns and payments follow assigned frequency.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Official form or portal
- MTO; Form 518; withholding returns.
Applies to: A nonprofit employer required to withhold federal income tax or otherwise covered by Michigan withholding rules.
- Out-of-state nonprofits with Michigan employees can be required to register; clergy and other special payments require separate analysis.
- MTO; Form 518; withholding returns.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Register for an unemployment employer account through MiUI. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit generally becomes subject under the special nonprofit coverage rule when it has four or more individuals in employment in each of 20 different weeks in a calendar year, subject to excluded services.
- Deadline
- When covered employment reaches the statutory test and before required quarterly reporting.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity) (UIA)
- Official form or portal
- MiUI employer registration; UIA liability questionnaire.
Applies to: A nonprofit with covered Michigan employment that meets the applicable liability test.
- Church employees, ministers, students, volunteers, and other services may be excluded; the general $1,000/one-worker tests on standard guides are not a substitute for the special nonprofit rule.
- MiUI employer registration; UIA liability questionnaire.
- Wisconsin unemployment insurance required in some cases
- Louisiana unemployment insurance required in some cases
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (4)
A covered 501(c)(3) nonprofit may pay regular contributions or elect to reimburse UIA dollar-for-dollar for benefits charged. Without a valid reimbursing election, contribution financing applies by default.
- Deadline
- Make the election in writing within the statutory or agency election window and before relying on reimbursing status.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity) (UIA)
- Official form or portal
- UIA Schedule A; MiUI.
Applies to: A qualifying 501(c)(3) nonprofit subject to unemployment insurance.
- Only qualifying governmental, tribal, and 501(c)(3) employers use this special election; FUTA treatment is separate.
- UIA Schedule A; MiUI.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (4)
Current UIA operational guidance generally requires security equal to 4% of payroll when a reimbursing nonprofit reaches the $100,000 range. The current UIA toolkit and webpage use “equals or exceeds $100,000,” while the older but still officially posted Schedule A uses “more than $100,000.” Confirm the requirement with UIA when annual gross payroll is exactly $100,000.
- Deadline
- With the reimbursing election or immediately when the applicable payroll threshold is reached; confirm treatment at exactly $100,000.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity) (UIA)
- Frequency
- Annual
- Official form or portal
- Current UIA reimbursing-employer security workflow; UIA Schedule A remains an officially posted form.
Applies to: A nonprofit electing reimbursing-employer status and approaching or exceeding the UIA payroll-security threshold.
- The agency may determine the required amount and approve security devices; group accounts and governmental employers have separate rules.
- Current UIA reimbursing-employer security workflow; UIA Schedule A remains an officially posted form.
Safe public wording: current UIA guidance generally requires 4% security in the $100,000 payroll range, but official sources conflict at exactly $100,000. Confirm with: Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (supporting sources MI-S060, MI-S061, MI-S082).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
View official sources (3)
File all current and past-due quarterly wage reports and tax payments through MiUI for tax functions. During the 2026 transition, some benefit functions continue in MiWAM until the later phase launches.
- Deadline
- Quarterly by the current UIA due date; 2026 reports use MiUI.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity) (UIA)
- Frequency
- Quarterly
- Official form or portal
- MiUI; transitional MiWAM.
Applies to: A registered Michigan unemployment employer.
- The portal split is temporary and should be rechecked before publication updates.
- MiUI; transitional MiWAM.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (2)
Coverage is generally required if the employer regularly employs three or more employees at one time, including part-time employees, or regularly employs one or more employees at least 35 hours per week for 13 weeks or longer during the preceding 52 weeks.
- Deadline
- Before or when either coverage test is met.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Workers' Disability Compensation Agency (Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity) (WDCA)
- Official form or portal
- Workers’ compensation policy; self-insurance approval.
Applies to: A private nonprofit employer meeting Michigan’s Workers’ Disability Compensation Act coverage tests.
- Public, agricultural, domestic, and other employers have additional rules.
- Workers’ compensation policy; self-insurance approval.
- Wisconsin workers compensation required in some cases
- Florida workers compensation required in some cases
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official source
Corporate officers are generally treated as employees for coverage analysis, while volunteer, compensated-volunteer, and independent-contractor status depends on remuneration, control, statutory exclusions, and the actual relationship. No universal nonprofit volunteer exclusion applies.
- Deadline
- Before service begins and whenever compensation or duties change.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Workers' Disability Compensation Agency (Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity) (WDCA)
- Official form or portal
- Contracts; payroll records; insurance classification.
Applies to: A nonprofit using corporate officers, volunteers, stipended workers, interns, or independent contractors.
- A worker can be classified differently under workers’ compensation, unemployment, wage, tax, and licensing law.
- Contracts; payroll records; insurance classification.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: current official guides emphasize factual employee/contractor tests and do not support one universal volunteer rule. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, Workers' Disability Compensation Agency, and UIA for unemployment classification (supporting sources MI-S060, MI-S064).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
View official sources (2)
Report covered new hires and rehires within 20 days after the employee begins or resumes work, maintain payroll and employee records, and coordinate withholding and unemployment reporting.
- Deadline
- Within 20 days after hire or rehire.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS)
- Official form or portal
- Michigan New Hire Reporting.
Applies to: A Michigan nonprofit employer hiring covered employees.
- Multi-state employer reporting and nonemployee relationships have separate criteria.
- Michigan New Hire Reporting.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Treasury and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Nonprofit status does not create a general exemption from minimum wage, overtime, earned sick time, wage payment, youth employment, workplace posters, safety, or anti-discrimination duties. Apply the current rule to the worker and activity.
- Deadline
- Before employment and continuously.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO)
- Official form or portal
- LEO wage-and-hour and poster resources.
Applies to: A nonprofit employer with covered Michigan workers.
- Small-employer, worker-classification, ministerial, domestic, agricultural, and other statutory exceptions require separate analysis.
- LEO wage-and-hour and poster resources.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official source
Michigan background-check, fingerprinting, registry, credential, mandated-reporting, and staffing duties are activity-specific. Identify the licensing statute and regulator before employing or placing staff or volunteers.
- Deadline
- Before licensure, employment, or volunteer placement as the program requires.
- Official form or portal
- Activity-specific application and check.
Applies to: A nonprofit operating child care, schools, camps, healthcare, adult foster care, mental-health, youth, or vulnerable-population programs.
- No universal statewide background check applies to every nonprofit worker or volunteer.
- Activity-specific application and check.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: State of Michigan — Michigan Business One Stop / State License Search
View official source
Raffles, bingo, millionaire parties, and alcohol at events
These are separate authorisations and one never implies another: a raffle or bingo licence does not authorise a millionaire party, and none of them authorises serving alcohol. Raffle licensing turns on a $500 boundary with its own fee ladder, bingo and charity game tickets are licensed per programme or occasion, and a millionaire party is licensed and then regulated during the event with reports after it. For alcohol the ordinary nonprofit route is a Special License, currently filed at least ten business days ahead, and it is required for the event rather than implied by charitable status.
Obtain qualifying-organization status, provide organizing and tax-exemption evidence and any required local governing-body resolution, then apply for the specific game license. Qualification alone does not authorize a game.
- Deadline
- Before the license application and before gaming activity.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (Charitable Gaming)
- Official form or portal
- Qualification application; game-specific application.
Applies to: A nonprofit seeking Michigan Lottery charitable-gaming licenses.
- Raffles, bingo, charity game tickets, millionaire parties, and casino gaming are separate systems.
- Qualification application; game-specific application.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division and 2 more
View official sources (3)
A small raffle has total prizes of $500 or less per day; a large raffle exceeds $500 in prizes per day. A small raffle license is $15 for one to three days plus $5 for each additional day; a large raffle license is $50 per drawing day. Allow approximately four to six weeks for processing.
- Deadline
- Apply before ticket sales or the licensed event under current processing guidance.
- Fee
- $15 — Small raffle license, 1-3 days
- $5 — Small raffle, each additional day
- $50 — Large raffle license, per drawing day
- Filing agency
- Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (Charitable Gaming)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Small Raffle or Large Raffle License Application.
Applies to: A qualified organization conducting a raffle.
- Alternative formats require a current directive or prior written approval; alcohol prizes and sales-tax consequences are separate.
- Small Raffle or Large Raffle License Application.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Keep required ticket, prize, worker, bank, and expense records; use proceeds for lawful purposes; comply with worker eligibility and compensation limits; and file the raffle financial statement by the 10th day of the month after the final drawing.
- Deadline
- 10th day of the month following the final drawing.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (Charitable Gaming)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Raffle Financial Statement.
Applies to: A licensed raffle organization.
- Prize tax reporting and withholding may apply; the charity’s sales/use tax treatment is separate.
- Raffle Financial Statement.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division — Raffles
View official source
Current Lottery materials regulate licensed raffles and alternative formats but do not provide one comprehensive current authorization for every electronic-sale, delivery, payment, location, and out-of-state-purchaser scenario. Obtain written Charitable Gaming approval before implementation.
- Deadline
- Before advertising or selling tickets through an electronic method.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (Charitable Gaming)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Alternative Raffle request/directive; raffle application.
Applies to: A nonprofit proposing website sales, social-media checkout, email tickets, payment apps, credit cards, mailing tickets, or purchasers outside Michigan.
- Online promotion without online sale may be treated differently; presence and mailing rules can vary by format.
- Alternative Raffle request/directive; raffle application.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: no single current official source directly resolves all modern electronic sales and delivery facts. Confirm with: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (supporting sources MI-S069, MI-S071).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Annual Large Bingo currently costs $150 and generally authorizes one occasion per week, subject to game and $3,500 occasion prize limits. Special Bingo currently costs $25 and may cover up to seven consecutive days at the same location under its separate limits.
- Deadline
- Before each licensed bingo program or special occasion.
- Fee
- $150 — Annual Large Bingo license
- $25 — Special Bingo license
- Filing agency
- Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (Charitable Gaming)
- Official form or portal
- Annual Large Bingo or Special Bingo application.
Applies to: A qualified organization conducting bingo.
- Bingo is not a raffle and does not authorize millionaire-party games or alcohol service.
- Annual Large Bingo or Special Bingo application.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division and 1 more
View official sources (2)
An Annual Charity Game license currently costs $200 for up to 365 days. A Special Charity Game license costs $15 per day for up to four consecutive days and no more than eight licenses per year; qualifying ticket sales may also occur under specified bingo or large-raffle licenses.
- Deadline
- Before selling charity game tickets.
- Fee
- $200 — Annual Charity Game license (up to 365 days)
- $15 — Special Charity Game license, per day
- Filing agency
- Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (Charitable Gaming)
- Official form or portal
- Annual or Special Charity Game application.
Applies to: A qualified organization selling Michigan charity game tickets.
- Charity game tickets are not generic raffle tickets; event and supplier rules remain.
- Annual or Special Charity Game application.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official source
Michigan permits only formats covered by statute, rule, directive, or written Charitable Gaming approval. Submit a detailed description for an unlisted format and comply with the applicable directive, prize, ticket, worker, drawing, and reporting terms.
- Deadline
- Before selling tickets or conducting the format.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division (Charitable Gaming)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Alternative raffle directive/approval.
Applies to: A qualified organization proposing a nonstandard raffle mechanism.
- Alcohol, animal, electronic selection, and progressive mechanisms can trigger additional restrictions.
- Alternative raffle directive/approval.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Qualify with the Michigan Gaming Control Board, obtain the event license, use an approved location and licensed supplier where required, and follow dealer, worker, chip, cash, record, and proceeds rules. A license may cover up to four consecutive days; a qualified organization may generally obtain up to four licenses per year.
- Deadline
- Before advertising or conducting the event.
- Fee
- $50 — Millionaire party license fee, per event day
- Filing agency
- Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- MGCB qualification and Millionaire Party application.
Applies to: A nonprofit conducting poker or other authorized millionaire-party games.
- A Lottery raffle/bingo license does not authorize a millionaire party; alcohol and venue licensing remain separate.
- MGCB qualification and Millionaire Party application.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Gaming Control Board — Millionaire Parties
View official source
Obtain any required local governing-body resolution; use a licensed location and supplier where required; use eligible dealers and workers; control chips and cash; prohibit unauthorized compensation; maintain records and file financial statements; and devote proceeds to lawful purposes.
- Deadline
- Before and during the event; reports after the event under current rules.
- Fee
- $50 — Millionaire party license fee, per licensed day
- Filing agency
- Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- MGCB portal, event application, financial statement.
Applies to: A qualified organization operating a licensed millionaire party.
- Ordinary social gaming, casino licensing, and Lottery charitable games are separate.
- MGCB portal, event application, financial statement.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Gaming Control Board — Millionaire Parties
View official source
A Michigan nonprofit Special License generally requires the organization’s certified board or membership resolution and approval from local police or the county sheriff, but not local legislative-body approval. Apply at least ten business days before the event, preserve the 12-license annual cap including auxiliaries, and direct all alcohol-sale profits to the organization rather than an individual.
- Deadline
- Submit the completed application at least 10 business days before the event; earlier filing is strongly recommended.
- Fee
- $25 — Special License per day — organization established at least one year
- $50 — Special License per day — organization established less than one year, or municipality
- Filing agency
- Michigan Liquor Control Commission (MLCC)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- LCC-110 Special License Application and current Special License instructions.
Applies to: An eligible nonprofit selling or serving beer, wine, or spirits at a temporary event.
- Local legislative-body approval is not required for the ordinary nonprofit Special License. Church or school consent, state-land approval, existing-license escrow, Sunday permits, gaming, food, fire, occupancy, zoning, venue, and raffle approvals may apply separately.
- LCC-110 Special License Application and current Special License instructions.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official source: Michigan Liquor Control Commission — Special Licenses for Nonprofit Organizations
View official source
Donation does not by itself remove licensing, sourcing, possession, auction, tasting, raffle, or service restrictions. Current official materials do not provide one universal rule for every wine pull, auction, donated-product, raffle-prize, or supplier arrangement.
- Deadline
- Before acquiring, advertising, transferring, or serving alcohol.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Liquor Control Commission (MLCC)
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- MLCC special-license application; raffle application if applicable.
Applies to: A nonprofit using donated alcohol or alcohol-related fundraising formats.
- A gaming license never authorizes alcohol service, and a liquor license never authorizes gaming.
- MLCC special-license application; raffle application if applicable.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: current official systems are separate and do not establish a blanket donated-alcohol exemption. Confirm with: Michigan Liquor Control Commission, and Michigan Lottery when a raffle is involved (supporting sources MI-S069, MI-S073).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official sources: Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Lobbying and political activity
Michigan's 2026 thresholds are inflation-adjusted: a lobbyist agent registers above $800, and a lobbyist principal above $3,200 in total or above $800 to a single official. Registration follows the threshold within three calendar days for an agent and fifteen for a principal, and financial reports fall on the current summer and winter dates. Michigan political activity is a state system and stays separate from the federal restrictions on a 501(c)(3), which this group does not restate.
For 2026, a person compensated or reimbursed more than $800 during any 12-month period for lobbying must register as a lobbyist agent within three calendar days. A contract to receive more than the threshold creates immediate status.
- Deadline
- Within 3 calendar days after exceeding the threshold; immediately upon a qualifying contract.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections (Bureau of Elections)
- Official form or portal
- MiTN lobbyist-agent registration.
Applies to: An individual, firm, or organization compensated or reimbursed to lobby Michigan legislative or executive officials for an employer or client.
- Technical information, ordinary communication, and local lobbying require separate definition analysis; not every contact is lobbying.
- MiTN lobbyist-agent registration.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections and 1 more
View official sources (2)
For 2026, registration as a lobbyist is required when lobbying expenditures exceed $3,200 in any 12-month period or expenditures to lobby a single public official exceed $800 in that period. Register within 15 calendar days; a contract to exceed a threshold creates immediate status.
- Deadline
- Within 15 calendar days after threshold status; immediately on a qualifying contract.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections (Bureau of Elections)
- Official form or portal
- MiTN lobbyist registration and financial reports.
Applies to: A nonprofit or other person spending to lobby Michigan legislative or executive officials.
- Federal 501(c)(3) lobbying limits are separate from Michigan registration; local lobbying ordinances may differ.
- MiTN lobbyist registration and financial reports.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections and 2 more
View official sources (3)
File the required periodic financial reports, including zero-activity reports when the system requires them, and report covered gifts, food/beverage, travel/lodging, and financial transactions. For 2026, report financial transactions of $1,600 or more, travel/lodging over $1,050, monthly food/beverage over $79 for an official, and yearly food/beverage over $500 for an official.
- Deadline
- On the current summer and winter report dates; 2026 summer report due August 31 for January 1 through July 31.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections (Bureau of Elections)
- Official form or portal
- MiTN financial report and termination filing.
Applies to: A registered lobbyist or lobbyist agent.
- Thresholds adjust annually; do not reuse 2026 amounts in later years without re-verification.
- MiTN financial report and termination filing.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Michigan’s state Lobby Act materials focus on legislative and executive officials at the state level. Local governments may adopt separate lobbying rules; no universal statewide local-lobbying filing rule was confirmed.
- Deadline
- Before compensated or threshold-level local lobbying.
- Filing agency
- Applicable Michigan city, township, or county government
- Official form or portal
- Local lobbying registration/report.
Applies to: A nonprofit communicating with city, county, township, school, or other local officials.
- Ordinary public comment, technical information, procurement contacts, and ballot advocacy may use different rules.
- Local lobbying registration/report.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: current state sources do not establish one rule for all Michigan local governments. Confirm with: applicable local clerk or ethics authority (supporting source MI-S076).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
Official source: Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections — Lobby Disclosure and MiTN
View official source
Michigan committee registration and reports depend on the activity and spending under campaign-finance law. Separately, a federal 501(c)(3) organization is prohibited from campaign intervention and is limited in lobbying.
- Deadline
- Before crossing a Michigan campaign-finance trigger and before any candidate-related activity by a 501(c)(3).
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections (Bureau of Elections)
- Official form or portal
- Campaign-finance committee forms; IRS guidance.
Applies to: A nonprofit supporting or opposing candidates, ballot questions, or making independent expenditures or electioneering communications.
- Ballot-question advocacy is not automatically candidate intervention but can trigger Michigan committee and federal lobbying/expenditure analysis.
- Campaign-finance committee forms; IRS guidance.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections and 1 more
View official sources (2)
Dissolution and multi-agency closure
Dissolution is not Form 531 on its own. Michigan wants corporate approval, the right form for the stage reached, Form 530 before commencement of affairs and Form 531 after, Attorney General consent where charitable assets are involved, winding up, restricted-asset analysis, Treasury clearance within sixty days of the filing, and final reports to charity, trust, tax, payroll, unemployment, insurance, gaming, alcohol and foreign accounts. Form 533 revokes a dissolution inside the statutory period, which matters when the decision changes before the winding up is irreversible.
Use Form 530 for dissolution before commencement when its statutory conditions are met. After affairs have commenced, authorize dissolution under the board/member/directorship rules, wind up, and file Form 531.
- Deadline
- After required approval and at the correct stage of corporate life.
- Fee
- $10 — Form 530 (before commencement)
- $10 — Form 531 (after commencement)
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-530; CSCL/CD-531.
Applies to: A domestic nonprofit dissolving before or after beginning affairs.
- Revocation of dissolution uses Form 533 and is not the same as renewal after automatic dissolution.
- CSCL/CD-530; CSCL/CD-531.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 3 more
View official sources (4)
Before LARA accepts the charitable-purpose dissolution, obtain the Attorney General letter of consent/no objection or a qualifying court order, or use the statutory affidavit route described on Form 531 after submitting the request and receiving no response within 120 days when legally available.
- Deadline
- Before filing Form 531; affidavit route requires the documented 120-day no-response period.
- Fee
- $10 — Form 531 filing fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CTS-04; CSCL/CD-531.
Applies to: A Michigan charitable-purpose nonprofit and other organizations within the Attorney General dissolution-review scope.
- Current LARA wording focuses on charitable-purpose corporations; broad older CTS-04 language should not erase distinctions for noncharitable and religious organizations.
- CTS-04; CSCL/CD-531.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (4)
Official materials use different breadth: the older CTS-04 says all Michigan nonprofits need an Attorney General letter, while current LARA guidance expressly names nonprofit charitable-purpose corporations and AG FAQs discuss distinct noncharitable and religious treatment. Obtain written Charitable Trust Section confirmation before filing.
- Deadline
- Before dissolution filing.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section (AG)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CTS-04 or written request; Form 531.
Applies to: A Michigan nonprofit that asserts it is noncharitable, ecclesiastical, or religious and seeks dissolution.
- Restricted gifts and charitable assets can create AG jurisdiction even for an entity not primarily charitable.
- CTS-04 or written request; Form 531.
Reason official evidence is insufficient: current official sources do not use identical scope language. Confirm with: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section, and LARA (supporting sources MI-S020, MI-S022, MI-S023).
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Verification note: One or more details in this entry are still being confirmed against the cited official materials.
View official sources (3)
Cease ordinary activity except winding up; collect and liquidate assets as appropriate; address known and unknown claims; pay liabilities; honor donor and grant restrictions; and distribute remaining charitable assets to eligible purposes and recipients. Use court cy pres or Attorney General review when a restriction cannot be followed.
- Deadline
- During winding up and before final distribution.
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- Plan of dissolution; claim notices; gift instruments; distribution receipts.
Applies to: A dissolving nonprofit with operations, creditors, donor restrictions, grants, or charitable assets.
- Publication or notice duties depend on the claims procedure used; do not assume Form 531 alone resolves creditors.
- Plan of dissolution; claim notices; gift instruments; distribution receipts.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 4 more
View official sources (5)
Current LARA guidance directs a corporation to request tax clearance from Michigan Treasury within 60 days after filing dissolution. Complete final Corporate Income Tax, sales/use, withholding, and other state-tax returns and close accounts separately.
- Deadline
- Within 60 days after the dissolution filing for the clearance request; final returns follow tax deadlines.
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Treasury (Treasury)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- Treasury clearance request; MTO.
Applies to: A dissolving corporation within the Treasury clearance process.
- CIT exemption does not automatically close withholding or sales-tax licenses.
- Treasury clearance request; MTO.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
View official sources (3)
Use Form 533 and the required corporate approvals to revoke a voluntary dissolution. This is not the same as renewing corporate existence after automatic dissolution for missed Annual Reports.
- Deadline
- Within the statutory revocation period and before irreversible winding-up actions.
- Fee
- $10 — Form 533 filing fee
- Filing agency
- Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division (LARA)
- Frequency
- One time
- Official form or portal
- CSCL/CD-533.
Applies to: A corporation seeking to undo a voluntary dissolution before the revocation window closes.
- Automatic dissolution under MCL 450.2922 uses the five-report renewal rule.
- CSCL/CD-533.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Legislature and 2 more
View official sources (3)
Corporate dissolution or foreign withdrawal does not automatically terminate Attorney General solicitation registration, charitable-trust accounting, Treasury accounts, withholding, unemployment, workers’ compensation, raffle/bingo/millionaire-party licenses, alcohol licenses, foreign registrations, contracts, or local permits. File final reports and closure notices with each authority.
- Deadline
- At the end of the related activity and on each regulator’s final deadline.
- Frequency
- Event triggered
- Official form or portal
- Final CTS filing; final trust accounting; MTO; MiUI; insurer notices; gaming/alcohol/local closure.
Applies to: A dissolving or withdrawing nonprofit with any noncorporate registration, license, account, permit, or policy.
- Record-retention periods and claim liabilities survive dissolution.
- Final CTS filing; final trust accounting; MTO; MiUI; insurer notices; gaming/alcohol/local closure.
Last verified: 2026-07-23
Official sources: Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section and 8 more
View official sources (9)
Official Sources
83 official sources back the facts on this page.
| Agency / Authority | Source | Accessed | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan Department of Treasury | 2025 Michigan Department of Treasury Tax Text — Sales and Use Taxes | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/-/media/Project/Websites/taxes/Tax-Professional/2025_Tax_Text.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | 2026 Michigan Income Tax Withholding Guide | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/-/media/Project/Websites/taxes/Forms/SUW/TY2026/446_Withholding-Guide_2026.pdf | |
| Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division | Alternative Raffle Formats and Directives | https://www.michigan.gov/cg/raffles/alternative-raffles | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Annual Reports and Annual Statements | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/michigan-business-roadmap/annual-reports-and-annual-statements | |
| Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division | Bingo | https://www.michigan.gov/cg/bingo | |
| Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections | Campaign Finance Disclosure | https://www.michigan.gov/sos/elections/disclosure/cfr | |
| Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division | Charitable Gaming — Qualify and Apply | https://www.michigan.gov/cg/qualify | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | Charitable Organizations | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/charities/charitable-organizations | |
| Michigan Legislature | Charitable Organizations and Solicitations Act, 1975 PA 169 | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-Act-169-of-1975 | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | Charities — Registration, Exemptions, and Filing Hub | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/charities | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | Charities Forms Index | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/charities/forms | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Corporation Forms — Corporation, Limited Liability Company, and Limited Partnership Forms | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/forms/corporation-forms | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Corporations Division Filing Fees | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/filing-fees/filing-fees.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Corporations Division Frequently Asked Questions — Annual Reports and Renewals | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/faqs | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-01 Initial Solicitation Form | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/registration-forms/Initial-Solicitation-Form-CTS-01.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-02 Renewal Solicitation Form, April 2026 | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/consumerprotection/Charities/CTS-02-Renewal-Solicitation-Form-2026-04.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-03 Request for Exemption — COSA and STCPA | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/registration-forms/Request-for-Exemption-CTS-3.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-04 Dissolution Questionnaire | https://www.michigan.gov/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/fundraisers/f021mast_dis_quest.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-05 Registration and Inventory Form for Corporations and Unincorporated Associations | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/forms/CTS-05-Registration-and-Inventory-Form.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-06 Registration and Inventory Form for Trusts | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/forms/CTS-06-Registration-and-Inventory-Form-for-Trusts.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-07 Professional Fundraiser License Application | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/fundraisers/CTS-07-Professional-Fundraiser-License-Application.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-08 Uniform Professional Fundraiser Surety Bond | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/fundraisers/CTS-08-Professional-Fundraiser-Surety-Bond.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-09 Registration Statement for Professional Solicitors | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/fundraisers/CTS-09-Registration-Statement-for-Professional-Solicitors.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-10 Campaign Financial Statement | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/fundraisers/CTS-10-Campaign-Financial-Statement.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-11 Contract Summary Sheet | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/fundraisers/CTS-11-Contract-Summary-Sheet.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-12 Public Safety Organization Registration | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/public-safety/CTS-12-Public-Safety-Organization-Registration.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | CTS-13 Public Safety Professional Fundraiser Registration | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/-/media/Project/Websites/AG/charities/public-safety/CTS-13-Public-Safety-Professional-Fundraiser-Registration.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Dissolution — Corporations Division | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/corporations/maintenance/dissolution | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | Dissolutions — Charitable Trust Section | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/charities/dissolutions | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Domestic Nonprofit Corporation Filing Fees | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/filing-fees/domestic-nonprofit | |
| Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, Workers' Disability Compensation Agency | Employer Insurance Requirements | https://www.michigan.gov/leo/-/media/Project/Websites/leo/Documents/WDCA-RESOURCES-AND-REPORTS/Publications/wca_WCPUB002.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Foreign Nonprofit Corporation Filing Fees | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/filing-fees/foreign-nonprofit | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Form 2368 Principal Residence Exemption Affidavit | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/-/media/Project/Websites/taxes/Forms/2368.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Form 3372 Michigan Sales and Use Tax Certificate of Exemption | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/-/media/Project/Websites/taxes/Forms/3372.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Form 4891 Michigan Corporate Income Tax Annual Return and Instructions | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/business-taxes/cit/forms | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-502 — Articles of Incorporation, Nonprofit Corporation | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/502-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-503 — Articles of Incorporation, Ecclesiastical Corporation | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/503-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-510C — Restated Articles of Incorporation for Nonprofit-to-Profit Conversion | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/510c-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-511 — Restated Articles of Incorporation, Nonprofit Corporation | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/511-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-515 — Certificate of Amendment | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/515-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-517 — Certificate of Abandonment | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/517-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-520 — Certificate of Change of Registered Office or Resident Agent | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/520-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-525 — Renewal After Expiration of Corporate Term | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/525-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-531 — Certificate of Dissolution | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/531-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-540 — Application for Reservation of Name | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/540-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Form CSCL/CD-560 — Application for Certificate of Authority to Transact Affairs in Michigan | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/cscl/NonImages_new/Corps/forms/corporation/560-0725.pdf | |
| Michigan Legislature | General Property Tax Act — Exemption Provisions | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-Act-206-of-1893 | |
| Michigan Legislature | General Property Tax Act — MCL 211.7o | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-211-7o | |
| Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections | Lobby Disclosure and MiTN | https://www.michigan.gov/sos/elections/disclosure/lobby | |
| Michigan Legislature | MCL 400.283 — Charitable Solicitation Exemptions | https://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/mcl/pdf/mcl-chap400.pdf | |
| Michigan Legislature | MCL 450.2531 — Officers and Multiple Offices | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-450-2531 | |
| Michigan Legislature | MCL 450.2925 — Renewal After Automatic Dissolution or Revocation | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-450-2925 | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | MiBusiness Registry Portal | https://mibusinessregistry.lara.state.mi.us/ | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | MiBusiness Registry Portal Transition Information | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/mibusiness-registry-portal | |
| State of Michigan | Michigan Business One Stop / State License Search | https://www.michigan.gov/business | |
| Michigan Legislature | Michigan Corporate Income Tax Act — MCL 206.625 | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-206-625 | |
| Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, Unemployment Insurance Agency | Michigan Employer Liability Toolkit | https://www.michigan.gov/leo/-/media/Project/Websites/leo/Documents/UIA/Publications/MI-Employer-Liability-Toolkit.pdf | |
| Michigan Legislature | Michigan Employment Security Act — Chapter 421 | https://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/mcl/pdf/mcl-chap421.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Health and Human Services | Michigan New Hire Reporting | https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/adult-child-serv/child-sup/resources/employers/new-hire-reporting | |
| Michigan Legislature | Michigan Nonprofit Corporation Act, 1982 PA 162 | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-Act-162-of-1982 | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Michigan Sales and Use Tax Information | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/business-taxes/sales-use-tax | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Michigan Tax Tribunal | Michigan Tax Tribunal | https://www.michigan.gov/taxtrib | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Michigan Treasury Online | https://mto.treasury.michigan.gov/ | |
| Michigan Gaming Control Board | Millionaire Parties | https://www.michigan.gov/mgcb/millionaire-parties | |
| Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, Unemployment Insurance Agency | MiUI University — System Transition | https://www.michigan.gov/leo/bureaus-agencies/uia/miui-university | |
| Internal Revenue Service | Political Campaign and Lobbying Activities of 501(c)(3) Organizations | https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/political-and-lobbying-activities | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | Professional Fundraisers | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/charities/professional-fundraisers | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Property Tax Exemptions | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/property/for-local-govt/property-tax-exemptions | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | Public Safety Organizations and Their Fundraisers | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/charities/public-safety-organizations | |
| Michigan Legislature | Public Safety Solicitation Act, 1992 PA 298 | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-Act-298-of-1992 | |
| Michigan Lottery, Charitable Gaming Division | Raffles | https://www.michigan.gov/cg/raffles | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Register a Business for Michigan Taxes | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/business-taxes/new-business-registration | |
| Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, Unemployment Insurance Agency | Register Your Business with UIA | https://www.michigan.gov/leo/bureaus-agencies/uia/tools/employer-help-center/register-your-business | |
| Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division | Renew My Corporation | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/cscl/corps/how-do-i/renewals/renew-my-corporation | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Revenue Administrative Bulletin 2020-25 — Nonprofit Auctions, Raffles, and Sales | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/-/media/Project/Websites/taxes/RAB/2020/RAB-2020-25.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Revenue Administrative Bulletin 2024-23 — Corporate Income Tax Treatment of Tax-Exempt Entities | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/-/media/Project/Websites/taxes/RAB/2024/RAB-2024-23.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Treasury | Sales and Use Tax Exemptions FAQ | https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/business-taxes/sales-use-tax/exemptions-faq | |
| Michigan Liquor Control Commission | Special Licenses for Nonprofit Organizations | https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/lcc/licensing-list/nonprofit-special-license | |
| Michigan Legislature | Supervision of Trustees for Charitable Purposes Act, 1961 PA 101 | https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-Act-101-of-1961 | |
| Michigan Department of State, Bureau of Elections | The Michigan Lobby Act — 2026 Reporting Thresholds, Fees, and Penalties | https://www.michigan.gov/sos/-/media/Project/Websites/sos/Lobby-Memos/Lobby-Thresholds.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Attorney General, Charitable Trust Section | Trusts and Estates — Charitable Trust Registration and Accounting | https://www.michigan.gov/consumerprotection/charities/trusts-and-estates | |
| Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, Unemployment Insurance Agency | UIA Schedule A — Liability Questionnaire and Nonprofit Financing Election | https://www.michigan.gov/leo/-/media/Project/Websites/leo/Documents/UIA/Employer-Forms/518-Stand-alone-UIA-Schedule-A.pdf | |
| Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity | Wage and Hour, Earned Sick Time, Youth Employment, and Posters | https://www.michigan.gov/leo/bureaus-agencies/ber/wage-and-hour |
Recent Michigan Compliance Updates
Every Michigan domestic and authorized foreign nonprofit corporation files a corporate Annual Report with LARA by October 1 each year. This explainer covers the June 15 online opening date, the $20 current fee, what happens when a report is missed, the five-report MCL 450.2925 restoration formula for automatic dissolution or revocation, the unresolved $20/$25 current-year renewal conflict, and why Form 525 is not the same filing as MCL 450.2925 restoration.
This overview explains the principal formation, governance, corporate-reporting, charitable-solicitation, tax, employment, gaming, alcohol, and dissolution systems documented in the Michigan nonprofit compliance guide — 133 structured facts drawn from 83 official Michigan sources, with 114 source-verified and 19 still under verification.
How we help
We put a mission into words, file the registration, claim the grant and benefit programs that open once the determination letter arrives, worth up to $329 a day of Google advertising alone, and get an operating nonprofit found by donors, sponsors and volunteers.
Which of that applies depends on where you are. Tell us, and we will say what is open to you in Michigan and in what order.
Either route reaches a person who reads it and answers, usually the same day. There is no charge for working out what fits you. We are not attorneys and not CPAs, and nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Methodology and Legal-Information Disclaimer
This guide is compiled from official state statutes, agency instructions, forms, and government guidance. Some entries are marked Verification in Progress where additional confirmation is underway. This material provides general information and does not replace legal, tax, or accounting advice.
Spotted an outdated fee, deadline, or citation? A dedicated correction-reporting channel for this guide is not live yet — check back soon.