Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Donations

Hello, I have a website I own

My questions is this

On my contacts page I had a blurb that stated if you wished to donate to cover the cost of upkeep of this site please use this paypal account or e-mail me for a mailing address.

Is this legal or do I need to be a non-profit to do this.

I was sent a nasty e-mail claiming I was stealing because I do not havea 501c3 license. But I am not running the site as a organization but under a standard website.

If you understand my questions could you please help with an answer. Thank you


Asked on 2/21/07, 11:41 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Miller Robert L. Miller & Associates, A Law Corporation

Re: Re: Donations

Thank you for your question, and for the opportunity to both help and advise you further.

You can ask for donations to keep a site running. What you can't do, however, is advertise your site as non-profit, or not-for-profit, or a charity, if you have not been given 501(c)(3) status by the IRS - that may be fraud.

IRS 501(c)(3) status only has to do with the nature of your corporation as an agency exempt from paying taxes, which is granted certain organizations based upon their purpose and qualifications. Contributions to those organizations are tax deductible to the persons donating.

I hope this helps, but if you have additional information, have other questions, or would like legal representation, please feel free to email me directly at [email protected]. It's my pleasure to help you in any way that I can, and thanks again.

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Answered on 2/23/07, 6:24 pm


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