THE DONOR DESK · NORTH DAKOTA

Checking a charity in North Dakota.

Which public records North Dakota keeps about a charity that asks you for money, in the state's own words. The agency the research names is the North Dakota Secretary of State. 7 official sources back this page. Last checked 2026-08-09.

Free to read. No account needed. Nothing on this page is a rating or an endorsement of any organization.

What this state records about charities that ask you for money

Registration is a filing requirement, not a rating. States exempt whole categories of organization from it, so an organization that does not appear in a state record is not necessarily doing anything wrong, and one that does appear has not been endorsed.

Register the charitable organization before solicitation, after the entity/name registration is active, and pay $25

SOURCE VERIFIED

Before solicitation, file the Charitable Organization Registration Statement. Current SOS workflow requires the underlying name/entity registration first, uses FirstStop, and charges $25.

How often
Initial; maintained by annual reporting
Filed with
North Dakota Secretary of State
Form or portal
FirstStop — Charitable Organization Registration Statement.

Applies to: A charitable organization subject to chapter 50-22 that will solicit in North Dakota.

Exceptions

  • SOS webpage language about 'operate and solicit' should not be expanded into a prohibition on unrelated non-solicitation operations beyond what the statute supports.

Source: North Dakota Century Code Chapter 50-22 — CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS SOLICITING CONTRIBUTIONS — North Dakota Legislative Council and 2 more official sources below.

Last verified

What financial detail the state requires at what size

This is what the organization has to produce for the state, which tells you what already exists to ask for. It is not a statement that any particular organization is above or below these thresholds.

Chapter 50-22 requires a financial statement but does not impose an automatic CPA audit/review threshold on an ordinary charity

SOURCE VERIFIED

The annual financial statement must be GAAP-based and include statutory components. Unless otherwise required, it need not be certified. No automatic revenue/expense threshold in the current chapter independently requires a CPA audit, review, or compilation.

How often
Annual
Filed with
North Dakota Secretary of State
Form or portal
Charitable Organization Annual Report.

Applies to: Ordinary charities subject to chapter 50-22 reporting.

Exceptions

  • Agency examination authority and federal Single Audit/grant rules remain separate.

Source: North Dakota Century Code Chapter 50-22 — CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS SOLICITING CONTRIBUTIONS — North Dakota Legislative Council and 2 more official sources below.

Last verified

Whether the organization is still current with the state

Every nonprofit corporation owes its state this filing to stay in good standing, and the state keeps the result as a public record. It is separate from any charity registration above, and being current says nothing about how an organization spends what you give it.

File the nonprofit corporate annual report on or before February 1 and pay $10

SOURCE VERIFIED

File the chapter 10-33 annual report each year on or before February 1; current fee is $10.

How often
Annual
Filed with
North Dakota Secretary of State
Form or portal
FirstStop — Nonprofit Annual Report.

Applies to: Domestic and qualified foreign nonprofit corporations.

Exceptions

  • The statute's 'before February second' and SOS 'on or before February 1' are the same deadline posture.

Source: North Dakota Century Code Chapter 10-33 — NONPROFIT CORPORATIONS — North Dakota Legislative Council and 3 more official sources below.

Last verified

Who keeps these records in North Dakota

These are the offices the North Dakota research itself names for the filings above. An office that keeps a record is also the place to take a question or a concern about one.

  • North Dakota Secretary of State
  • North Dakota Office of Attorney General

What this page does not tell you

Whether your gift is deductible

That is federal, not state, and it depends on the organization's federal status and on your own tax situation. See the federal record rules and check the organization in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search.

Whether a particular organization has complied

This page carries North Dakota's rules, not any organization's filing history. The offices above hold the records for the organization you are asking about.

Which state's rules apply to your gift

Your state of residence, the organization's home state, and the state it solicits in can all differ. This page is about North Dakota.

What this organization promised you

Restrictions on your gift, refund terms, recurring-payment terms and the acknowledgment you receive come from the organization itself. Ask it, and keep what it sends.

BEFORE YOU GIVE

Make the checklist
for your gift.

The federal side of a donation does not change by state: what to confirm before paying, and which record to keep afterward. Build a list around the gift you are actually making.

Open the giving checklist

If you run this organization

The rules above are three of the requirements North Dakota puts on a nonprofit. The full guide covers formation, governance, reporting, tax and employment, from the same official sources.

North Dakota nonprofit compliance guide ↗

Linking to this donor page from your own donation page or donor FAQ is welcome. It does not replace your organization's required notices, policies or donation acknowledgments.

Official sources

7 official sources back the entries on this page. Every one is a government statute, regulation, agency instruction, form or portal.

Agency or authoritySourceAccessedURL
North Dakota Secretary of State Charitable Organizations https://www.sos.nd.gov/business/nonprofit-services/charitable-organizations
North Dakota Secretary of State Charitable Organizations Annual Report Change https://www.sos.nd.gov/news/charitable-organizations-annual-report-change
North Dakota Secretary of State FirstStop Portal https://firststop.sos.nd.gov/
North Dakota Secretary of State Maintain a Nonprofit https://www.sos.nd.gov/business/nonprofit-services/maintain-nonprofit
North Dakota Secretary of State Nonprofit Organization Resource Guide https://www.sos.nd.gov/sites/www/files/documents/business/nonprofit-guide.pdf
North Dakota Legislative Council North Dakota Century Code Chapter 10-33 — NONPROFIT CORPORATIONS https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t10c33.pdf
North Dakota Legislative Council North Dakota Century Code Chapter 50-22 — CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS SOLICITING CONTRIBUTIONS https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t50c22.pdf