Starting a nonprofit in Nebraska

Incorporation

Filing

Articles of Incorporation (Domestic Nonprofit Corporation) — no state-supplied template; you draft your own

Agency

Nebraska Secretary of State

State fee

$25 — never marked up by us

Processing

1–3 business days online; about a week by mail

Expedite

Not offered

Watch out

• The statutory fee is $10 plus $5 per page — a typical 3-page filing runs about $25.
• Nebraska provides NO standard articles form at all, so nothing prompts you to add the IRS-required 501(c)(3) purpose and dissolution clauses — DIY filers routinely omit them.
• Nebraska requires publishing a notice of incorporation for three successive weeks in a legal newspaper near the registered office — an easy step to miss.
• You must state whether the corporation is a public benefit, mutual benefit, or religious corporation and whether it will have members.

Ongoing compliance

Registered agent

Must have a Nebraska street address; the corporation cannot serve as its own registered agent.

Charitable registration

Nebraska has no general charitable solicitation registration requirement.

Annual report

Biennial report, due by April 1 of odd-numbered years — $25 (approximate; small portal fee applies online)

State tax exemption

Corporate income tax exemption follows the IRS determination letter. Nebraska sales tax exemption is NOT automatic for 501(c)(3)s — only specific categories of organizations qualify; apply to the Nebraska Department of Revenue (Form 4).