Whether you want to save the whales, or if you want to defend the rights of women or work for children, the legal form you need for this is that of an NGO. And although it may seem difficult to create one of these non-profit associations, it is much simpler than it seems, although the bureaucratic process can be cumbersome. With this guide we clarify the steps necessary for your project to come to fruition.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: Define the NGO
Step 1. Define your ideology and locate your organization
Whatever your objective as an association or as an NGO, it is obvious that you will need an ideology: some proposals, ideas and objectives that allow you to organize your association and define its lines of work. It is obvious that the ideology of a cultural association will not be the same as that of an animalistic association. Therefore, once you have determined the objective and your ideology, it is necessary to locate your association within a specific sector: women, health, culture, sports, education, etc. If you have doubts between two sectors it is always better to choose the general one. In fact, this location is important because it will be the reference you will have when making arrangements and obtaining grants. Therefore, the more general the better.
Step 2. Prepare the statutes of your NGO
Once you have the ideology and objectives of the association ready, it is time to draw up the statutes. These statutes establish the operating rules of the NGO, its objectives, the different existing representative positions (president, secretary, etc.), as well as other elements of interest. Such statutes must comply with the provisions of Organic Law 1/2002, so it is advisable to use a base model that the Ministry of the Interior offers to the interested parties, and on making the necessary modifications.
Step 3. Create the founding act
Once you have the bylaws ready, it is time to create the founding act. This document is the one that gives life, administratively, to the association, so you must be careful in its completion. The founding act includes, among others, the data of the founding partners and the first positions of representation of the NGO (president, secretary, etc.) and the acceptance of the statutes as elements that govern the operation of the NGO. Both the statutes and the founding act must be signed on all pages by the founding partners to proceed to their subsequent registration with the administration.
Part 2 of 2: Register the NGO
Step 1. Register the association
Although the association already exists from the moment the founding act is signed, for legal purposes it is necessary to register the association. To do so, it is necessary to provide both the copy of the statutes that we have already signed, as well as the founding act, and the identity documents of the signatories. This documentation must be submitted to the Government or Justice Delegation of the autonomous community of the autonomous community where the association has its headquarters and must be accompanied by the application form that that administration has established.
If the NGO or association that you intend to register is going to carry out activities at the national level, for all of Spain, the registration must also be carried out before the Ministry of the Interior, sending the required documentation to the General Technical Secretariat of the Ministry of the Interior, National Registry of Associations located at Calle Amador de los Ríos, 7, Madrid 28010 or via the Internet at the following address: Procedures for associations
Step 2. Register the association in your municipality
If your municipality has a municipal registry of associations, it is advisable to also register in it to be able to participate in the aspects corresponding to the object in which your NGO works. You can find out if this municipal registry exists by consulting those responsible for citizen participation in your town hall.
Step 3. Obtain the CIF of the NGO in finance
Since associations and NGOs, as independent entities, have expenses and receive income, it is necessary for the association to have its own VAT number. For this, it is necessary to go to the nearest tax office and fill in form 036, also providing a copy of the statutes and the founding act. The hacienda will give you a provisional CIF, having to return for the definitive one once the statutes and the founding act have been endorsed. With this CIF, however, you can now start operating, open checking accounts and record income and expenses.
Step 4. Establish your tax regime
At the time of filling in document 036, you will also determine the tax regime of your NGO. Due to their nature, these associations are exempt from paying corporate tax provided that their income is used to achieve the objectives set. But it is necessary to indicate such an exemption within the document, so do not forget to indicate it.
Step 5. Register as a volunteer entity
All NGOs and associations have volunteers in their ranks. For these volunteers to be legally recognized, the association must be registered as a volunteer entity. To do so, it is necessary to go to the registry of volunteer entities, to which we will go as we did for the association registry, to the corresponding body of our community, either in Justice or Government. If you plan to operate in several autonomous communities, it is necessary that you register in each autonomous registry where you go to work.
Step 6. Fulfill your obligations
Once you have completed all these processes, your NGO will already be legally authorized to operate. However, for it to remain legal, you should not forget about your obligations such as keeping a duly updated membership book, keeping the association's accounting and submitting your VAT returns (if applicable) or companies, keeping the volunteer book, etc.
Advice
- Do not forget that both the statutes and the original founding act must be returned to you by the administration duly stamped and endorsed, and must be kept as a reference.
- If the board of directors, the registered office or any other aspect of the association changes, do not forget to notify the different administrations.
- If you plan to legally hire staff, it will be necessary for the NGO to also register with social security, to be able to enter into legal contracts.
- Each regional, provincial or municipal body can request various documents each year to keep the registry active. Keep them in mind so as not to lose the validity of the registration.