How to Apply if You Are Not an IRS 501(c) (3) Organization

Note: this information will be required at the stage in the application process where a Full Proposal is requested from you.  It is not required as part of a letter of inquiry.

As a private foundation, we are not allowed to use fiscal agents in the process of grant making.  For those organizations that do not have 501(c) (3) status with the Internal Revenue Service, there are three alternatives:

Expenditure Responsibility is only slightly different from the approach we take with other grant requests.  This process effectively places responsibility for determining the charitable status of funded activities on us (rather than the IRS), but it also allows us to make grants directly to organizations such as yours without going through intermediaries.

In addition to the proposal requirements listed on the common grant application, expenditure responsibility requires us to obtain the following:

• A copy of your organization's charter or official statement of purpose. This helps us to define the charitable nature of your work.
• We also ask for letters of support from organizations that have worked with you in the past and/or provided funding to your organization. While these are already part of the common grant application, as part of the expenditure responsibility process we use them to recommend your managerial and programmatic capabilities.
  
• If your organization is located outside of the United States, include proof of your government's recognition of your charitable status in your country.

If you receive a grant from the Foundation, you will be asked to keep Public Welfare Foundation funds in a separate account along with other funds received for the same work.  At the end of each year, we report directly to the IRS on the progress of your grant.

Sponsored Grants

A sponsor is an organization that has agreed to work with you because in doing so, it furthers its own charitable purpose.  For those organizations applying to us with a sponsor, we require:

• A copy of the sponsor's 501(c) (3) letter.
• A copy of the agreement between sponsor and you, in which the responsibilities of each organization are outlined. Click here to go to the sample agreement.
• A copy of the sponsor's most recent financial statement

3. 501(c) (3) Equivalency
 
This option only applies to organizations located outside of the United States. Through this process you are asked to submit an affidavit demonstrating that the nature of your work would be recognized as charitable and thereby tax-exempt by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
 
The IRS deals only with U.S. organizations, however, so it has established formal guidelines for foundations to follow in making grants to organizations outside of the U.S.  Note that expenditure responsibility (explained above) is also an option for international grantmaking.  The advantage of establishing equivalency is that once an affidavit has been prepared for one foundation, you can use essentially the same information (kept up to date) with other foundations. Click here to go to the affidavit form.