Free guides
Every guide below is complete — no truncated teasers. They are the same research the kit is built from, written as reading instead of doing. When you're ready to do it — generate the documents, follow the walkthroughs — that's the kit.
Every eligibility test for the short form, the fees ($275 vs. $600), the 27-month rule, and the cost of guessing wrong.
Free toolSix questions, the IRS's own criteria, and a verdict with its reasoning shown. Two minutes, no email required.
GuideFree from the IRS in one sitting — and the five mistakes (nominees, expired sessions, wrong order) that lock founders out.
The two clauses your articles must contain, quoted from the IRS — and why applications get sent back without them.
GuideWhy the EZ is closed to all three, the church mandatory exception, and the special rules that replace the simple path.
GuideSometimes the right move is not to incorporate at all. How sponsorship works, and when it beats forming your own.
Register before you fundraise: the 38 states + DC that require it, the 3 limited cases, and the 9 that don't.
GuideThree missed filings and the exemption is gone. The four Rev. Proc. 2014-11 paths back — and the deadline that decides.
State pages16 states verified page-by-page: office, form, real fee, the clause situation, and each state's traps.
State filing fees for the articles themselves, checked against official state sources in October 2026. Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Colorado carry a fee note instead of a number — we could not verify the current fee on an official state page, and we don't print fees we can't verify.
The Formation Kit turns these guides into finished documents and filed applications: the generator, the field-by-field walkthroughs, the full solicitation map, the reinstatement pack, and the first-year compliance calendar.
Get the Formation Kit — $49 one-time
Self-help education and templates. Not legal advice, and we file nothing for you — you file, we guide.