Professional Fundraisers for Charitable Purposes

Charities use various professional fundraisers to solicit donations. Professional fundraisers may include commercial fundraisers, fundraising counsels, and commercial coventurers. There are mandatory registration requirements and contract requirements for commercial fundraisers and fundraising counsels that must be adhered to both by the charities and their respective fundraising professionals. Please note that certain terms must be included in the contract. A model contract is available.

Historically, use of professional fundraisers has meant higher costs for charities. Significant resources can be spent on campaigns or events due to the reimbursement of expenses and fundraising fees paid by charities. Most of the charities that are registered with the Registry of Charities and Fundraisers do not employ professional fundraisers.

A commercial fundraiser can be a person or organization who is paid by a charity to solicit money or property on the charity's behalf. The commercial fundraiser may solicit donations through various means, such as: direct mail, telephone, email or internet platform, auction at charity events, event ticket sales, vehicle donation, or thrift store operation.

Commercial Fundraiser Forms, Frequently Asked Questions and Laws & Regulations

A fundraising counsel can be a person or organization who is hired by a charity to plan, manage, advise, counsel, consult, or prepare materials to solicit donations for charitable purposes. Unlike the commercial fundraiser, a fundraising counsel does not solicit donations from the public, and does not receive or exercise any control over the solicited funds or property. Instead, the donations go directly to the charity.

Fundraising Counsels Forms, Frequently Asked Questions and Laws & Regulations

A commercial coventurer can be a person or organization who, for profit, is primarily engaged in a business other than in connection with raising funds for charitable purposes. A commercial coventurer represents to the public that the purchase or use of its goods or services will benefit a charitable organization.

Commercial Coventurer Forms, Frequently Asked Questions and Laws & Regulations

The Attorney General’s Office prepares an annual summary report derived from the financial disclosure documents filed by commercial fundraisers and commercial coventurers. These reports include statistics for donations of both cash and used personal goods. The reports are available on the Registry Reports page.