Legal & Compliance FAQ

Do we need to set up a bank account?

Nope. We will hold your funds for you! If you are eligible, joining is fast and easy.

Do we need to file taxes?

You do not need to register anything for tax purposes for the collective.

The benefit of being fiscally hosted by Open Source Collective (OSC) is that we take care of taxes on your behalf for any funds raised for your project worldwide.

Collectives do not have a separate legal existence from Open Source Collective and thus should not submit tax forms to the IRS. Your financial activities are included in our annual filings.

The exception would be personal taxes.

Individuals who issue 'invoices' and receive income from Open Source Collective (or one of its hosted collectives) will be asked to submit a W9 or W8 (depending on what country you are in) and will be issued a 1099. If this applies to you, you will automatically be sent a notification. We take care of filing these with the IRS at the end of the year along with the total amount of money that individual was paid throughout the year. The individual will receive a notice from the IRS for any taxes due to the US because this is where OSC is based as a business.

If you have questions about your own personal tax situation, we recommend reaching out to a tax professional.

Will OSC own our intellectual property?

Per our Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement, you retain ownership of all your collective's intellectual property. If you would like us to hold non-monetary assets, such as trademarks, please reach out.

Can we receive international contributions or pay out international expenses?

Yes. But be aware that all of OSC’s transactions are denominated in USD and will then be exchanged into other currencies as part of the transaction.

Can you host groups that are based outside of the United States?

Yes!