Open Collective
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A place to grow and thrive

A place to grow and thrive illustration

A place to grow and thrive

Think of your community, project, or initiative as a plant, and a fiscal host as a lovingly tended garden. The host maintains an environment where your unique bush, vine, or tree can get watered, grow, and bloom.

What is a fiscal host?

A fiscal host is an organization that welcomes others to operate through their structure, so projects can use the host’s legal entity and bank account instead of setting up their own. The host provides administrative services, oversight, and support.

*Fiscal hosting is also called fiscal sponsorship, fund-holding, or auspicing in different places around the world.

What are the benefits?

Organizing takes work. Fiscal hosts are here to help.

Collect money

Tax-exempt or charity status

Some fiscal hosts are registered charities or nonprofits, who are able to provide tax benefits to donors and qualify for philanthropic grants. Signing up with a fiscal host who already has this status in your country gives you immediate access.

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Focus on your mission

Fiscal hosts take care of a lot of the tedious and painful administrative tasks involved in running an organization. The host becomes your legal entity, handling taxes, invoicing, and accountingβ€”so you can spend your time engaging supporters, building your community, and achieving your main mission.

Money management
Money management

Money management

Using your personal bank account can complicate your taxes, and it locks out other team members. A fiscal host holds money on your behalf in its bank account, tracking everything transparently on Open Collective. Everyone can have access to see the budget and to tools for fundraising and requesting payouts.

How can a fiscal host help?

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Accept and spend funds

Accept and spend funds immediately

You can often get approved very quickly, even instantly, ready to receive and disburse funds and get operational. Compared with traditional fiscal sponsorship or setting up your own entity, activating with a fiscal host is super streamlined.

Accept and spend funds immediately

You can often get approved very quickly, even instantly, ready to receive and disburse funds and get operational. Compared with traditional fiscal sponsorship or setting up your own entity, activating with a fiscal host is super streamlined.

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Ongoing sustainability

Designed for ongoing sustainability

If your project doesn’t have an expiration date, neither should your funding. A standard crowdfunding campaign is over once it’s over. A single grant is spent once it’s spent. But fiscal hosting helps you combine different income streams and form ongoing relationships with funders.

Designed for ongoing sustainability

If your project doesn’t have an expiration date, neither should your funding. A standard crowdfunding campaign is over once it’s over. A single grant is spent once it’s spent. But fiscal hosting helps you combine different income streams and form ongoing relationships with funders.

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Networking & solidarity

Networking & solidarity

A fiscal host is by definition a community of projects with something in common. They can provide services to their community as a whole, and enable connections between projects. Whether it’s about joining budgets or joining voices, join a host that’s more than the sum of its parts.

Networking & solidarity

A fiscal host is by definition a community of projects with something in common. They can provide services to their community as a whole, and enable connections between projects. Whether it’s about joining budgets or joining voices, join a host that’s more than the sum of its parts.

automaticReporting icon
Reporting & transparency

Automatic reporting & transparency

No need to spend hours creating reports for funders. The Open Collective platform has automated quantitative reporting built in. Just sent the funder a link to your page! There are great tools for qualitative reporting too, like posting blogs and newsletters, which also serve to keep your wider community engaged and up to date.

Automatic reporting & transparency

No need to spend hours creating reports for funders. The Open Collective platform has automated quantitative reporting built in. Just sent the funder a link to your page! There are great tools for qualitative reporting too, like posting blogs and newsletters, which also serve to keep your wider community engaged and up to date.

organizeFinance icon
Your finances in one place

Organize your finances, all in one place

No more messy spreadsheets! Income from credit card transactions, bank transfers, PayPal, even ticket sales, grants, and sponsorships are all tracked automatically in one transparent budget. With a robust yet user-friendly system for submitting and approving expenses, tracking outgoing funds is a breeze, too.

Organize your finances, all in one place

No more messy spreadsheets! Income from credit card transactions, bank transfers, PayPal, even ticket sales, grants, and sponsorships are all tracked automatically in one transparent budget. With a robust yet user-friendly system for submitting and approving expenses, tracking outgoing funds is a breeze, too.

acceptAndSpendFunds icon
Accept and spend funds

Accept and spend funds immediately

You can often get approved very quickly, even instantly, ready to receive and disburse funds and get operational. Compared with traditional fiscal sponsorship or setting up your own entity, activating with a fiscal host is super streamlined.

Accept and spend funds immediately

You can often get approved very quickly, even instantly, ready to receive and disburse funds and get operational. Compared with traditional fiscal sponsorship or setting up your own entity, activating with a fiscal host is super streamlined.

Who is fiscal hosting for illustration

Who is fiscal hosting for?

There are multiple cases where fiscal hosting can be valuable for a project.

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Emergent community responses

To current events, like a pandemic, who need to get operational immediately.

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Grant recipients or applicants

Who need a place to receive the funds and hold them as they are spent down.

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Time-limited projects

Where it doesn't make sense to set up a whole new organization only to wind it up six months later.

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An unincorporated group

Like a meetup, needing to fundraise, collect membership dues, or sign a contract with a venue or sponsor.

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A crowdfunding campaign

Seeking a place to hold the money and a way to offer accountability to their backers.

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Young activists and change-makers

Who may lack the experience to manage their own legal entity.

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A newly-forming charity

Who wants to enable tax-deductible donations and philanthropic grants, without waiting to get charity status themselves.

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A distributed collaboration

Like an open source software project, which isn’t owned by anyone and wants resources held in common.

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Funder coalitions

Of foundations or other funders, joining to support an impact area, who need money to sit in a neutral space.

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Companies giving back

Can work with a nonprofit fiscal host to separate funds from the commercial side and coordinate grants and sponsorships.

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Companies giving back

Who may be restricted to funding registered charities, seeking to partner with a fiscal host in order reach less formal communities.

community illustration

Emergent community responses

To current events, like a pandemic, who need to get operational immediately.

grantRecipients illustration

Grant recipients or applicants

Who need a place to receive the funds and hold them as they are spent down.

timeLimited illustration

Time-limited projects

Where it doesn't make sense to set up a whole new organization only to wind it up six months later.

unincorporatedGroup illustration

An unincorporated group

Like a meetup, needing to fundraise, collect membership dues, or sign a contract with a venue or sponsor.

crowdFunding illustration

A crowdfunding campaign

Seeking a place to hold the money and a way to offer accountability to their backers.

youngActivists illustration

Young activists and change-makers

Who may lack the experience to manage their own legal entity.

newlyFormingCharity illustration

A newly-forming charity

Who wants to enable tax-deductible donations and philanthropic grants, without waiting to get charity status themselves.

distributeCollaboration illustration

A distributed collaboration

Like an open source software project, which isn’t owned by anyone and wants resources held in common.

founderCoalition illustration

Funder coalitions

Of foundations or other funders, joining to support an impact area, who need money to sit in a neutral space.

companiesGivingBack illustration

Companies giving back

Can work with a nonprofit fiscal host to separate funds from the commercial side and coordinate grants and sponsorships.

grantMakingInstitution illustration

Companies giving back

Who may be restricted to funding registered charities, seeking to partner with a fiscal host in order reach less formal communities.

Apply to a Fiscal Host

Organizations around the world are using Open Collective to host multiple projects, groups and communities. Find out more about them! Or you can create your own fiscal host.

Finding the right fiscal host for you

Some key things to consider when looking for the right fit

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Mission alignment

Fiscal hosts usually have specific topics or areas they are designed to serve. When it comes to the application process, their acceptance criteria will fit in that scope.

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Location

Which country a fiscal host is based in will determine the currency you your money will be accounted in, and where you are located in a legal sense, e.g., if you are applying for an EU grant, you might need a fiscal host based in the EU.

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Legal structure

Do you want your host to be a charity, a company, a cooperative, or something else? E.g. a charity structure can enable tax-deductible donations, but may also have more restrictions on allowed activities.

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Services offered

Some Fiscal Hosts are very light-touch, while others provide significant support or programming and options like employment and insurance. Fiscal Hosts with a specific focus, such as open source projects or climate movement groups, may offer services specifically tailored to that community.

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Fees

Fiscal hosts often charge a fee for the service they provide. Some hosts keep fees low and offer a lightweight service, while others have higher fees and provide more support. Some fiscal hosts don’t charge fees at all.

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Operations

There are a few different models of fiscal sponsorship (depending on country as well). Check to see that you are using the one that is best for your project. Also look into the sponsor’s company culture & history of expertise in the field to ensure your fiscal sponsorship relationship aligns with your needs.

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Mission alignment

Fiscal hosts usually have specific topics or areas they are designed to serve. When it comes to the application process, their acceptance criteria will fit in that scope.

Icon

Location

Which country a fiscal host is based in will determine the currency you your money will be accounted in, and where you are located in a legal sense, e.g., if you are applying for an EU grant, you might need a fiscal host based in the EU.

Icon

Legal structure

Do you want your host to be a charity, a company, a cooperative, or something else? E.g. a charity structure can enable tax-deductible donations, but may also have more restrictions on allowed activities.

Icon

Services offered

Some Fiscal Hosts are very light-touch, while others provide significant support or programming and options like employment and insurance. Fiscal Hosts with a specific focus, such as open source projects or climate movement groups, may offer services specifically tailored to that community.

Icon

Fees

Fiscal hosts often charge a fee for the service they provide. Some hosts keep fees low and offer a lightweight service, while others have higher fees and provide more support. Some fiscal hosts don’t charge fees at all.

Icon

Operations

There are a few different models of fiscal sponsorship (depending on country as well). Check to see that you are using the one that is best for your project. Also look into the sponsor’s company culture & history of expertise in the field to ensure your fiscal sponsorship relationship aligns with your needs.

Join the movement

Collective finances. Collective technology. Collective power.