Nonprofit Impact Interns: Current Facts

Last checked: October 30, 2026. Rules about interns, pay, volunteers, minors and schools differ by state and change over time. The three Nonprofit Impact Interns guides leave the figures and current positions here, and each line below links to the page it was checked against. If the source page and this page disagree, the source page wins. Where a federal position is still being proposed or has recently changed, the lines below say so.

General information, not legal, tax or accounting advice. Have your own attorney or tax adviser review any agreement before you use it.

DOL Fact Sheet #71 and the primary beneficiary test (FOR-PROFIT employers)

Fact Sheet #71 on dol.gov is marked "Updated January 2018". It describes the seven-factor primary beneficiary test for interns at for-profit employers. No notice of withdrawal or change appears on it as of October 30, 2026. Source: dol.gov
The seven factors: (1) clear understanding no pay is expected, (2) training similar to an educational environment, (3) tie to a formal education program via coursework or credit, (4) accommodation of the academic calendar, (5) limited to the period of beneficial learning, (6) work complements rather than displaces paid employees, (7) no entitlement to a paid job at the end. No single factor is decisive. Source: dol.gov
FAB 2018-2 (Jan 5, 2018) adopted the primary beneficiary test for WHD enforcement and rescinded the 2010 six-part test in the old Fact Sheet #71 and Field Operations Handbook section 10b11. Source: dol.gov
The WHD Field Assistance Bulletin list (checked October 30, 2026) still shows FAB 2018-2 with no withdrawal mark. The only 2025-2026 FABs are 2025-1 (independent contractors, May 1, 2025), 2025-2, 2025-3, 2025-4 and 2026-1 (withdrawal of certain opinion letters, 80/20 related-duties guidance; listed date Oct 19, 2026). None concerns interns. Source: dol.gov
The 2018 approach reflects federal appellate case law (the "primary beneficiary" test). FAB 2018-2 says WHD adopted it to match the courts. Courts, not WHD, decide private lawsuits. Source: dol.gov
Fact Sheet #71 says the FLSA requires for-profit employers to pay employees for their work. Source: dol.gov

Nonprofit/public-sector and volunteer rules

Fact Sheet #71 says unpaid internships for public sector and nonprofit charitable organizations, where the intern volunteers without expectation of compensation, are generally permissible. Its footnote says WHD recognizes an exception for individuals who volunteer freely, without anticipation of compensation, for religious, charitable, civic or humanitarian purposes to nonprofit organizations. Source: dol.gov
Fact Sheet #14A (rev. Aug 2015): individuals may volunteer for religious, charitable, civic, humanitarian or similar nonprofits as public service without FLSA coverage if no compensation is contemplated or received. Source: dol.gov
Fact Sheet #14A: volunteers generally may not volunteer in a nonprofit's ordinary commercial activities (for example a gift shop), and paid employees of a nonprofit cannot volunteer to provide the same type of services they are employed to provide. Volunteers usually serve part-time and do not displace regular employees. Source: dol.gov
DOL eLaws volunteers page: employees may not volunteer services to for-profit private-sector employers. Public agencies may use volunteers; private-sector people may volunteer in the public sector. Source: webapps.dol.gov
Statute: FLSA excludes from "employee" individuals who volunteer for a state or local public agency if they receive only expenses, reasonable benefits or a nominal fee and the work is not the type they are employed to do there; and food-bank volunteers (humanitarian, private nonprofit). The statute's express volunteer provision covers public agencies, not private nonprofits generally. Source: law.cornell.edu
New York DOL FAQ for nonprofits: volunteers have no contract of hire or promise of pay other than expense reimbursement; may not replace or augment paid staff; a stipend to offset expenses should not be based on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly rate; nonprofit must operate strictly for charitable, educational or religious purposes. Source: dol.ny.gov
WHD Opinion Letter FLSA2026-12 (Sept 7, 2026): applies the volunteer framework to private nonprofits; volunteers may receive expense reimbursement, reasonable benefits or a nominal fee; nonprofit employees cannot volunteer to do the same type of work for the same employer; employees cannot waive FLSA rights by "volunteering". It does not mention internships. Source: dol.gov

Employee versus independent contractor

The 2024 DOL final rule (published Jan 10, 2024; effective Mar 11, 2024) is the rule text in 29 CFR part 795; it rescinded the 2021 rule. Source: dol.gov
FAB 2025-1 (May 1, 2025): from that date WHD stopped applying the 2024 rule's analysis in FLSA investigations (where no payment had yet been made) and uses July 2008 Fact Sheet #13 as informed by Opinion Letter FLSA2019-6. The 2024 rule remains in effect for private lawsuits until further action. Source: dol.gov
Proposed rule (NPRM) published Feb 27, 2026 at 91 FR 9932 would replace the part 795 analysis with a version of the 2021 rule (core factors: control, opportunity for profit or loss). Comments closed April 28, 2026. It is a proposal only. Source: federalregister.gov
As of October 30, 2026 no final IC rule was found: a Federal Register query for newest WHD "independent contractor" documents returned the Feb 27, 2026 proposed rule and the 2024 final rule, plus an April 23, 2026 joint employer proposal. Status: 2024 rule is the codified text; WHD enforcement uses 2008 Fact Sheet #13 / FLSA2019-6; a 2026 final rule has not been issued. Source: federalregister.gov
Fact Sheet #13 (revised March 2024, with a 2026 NPRM note) lists six economic reality factors (opportunity for profit/loss, investments, permanence, control, integral to the business, skill and initiative); title, 1099 or signed contract does not decide status. It refers readers to FAB 2025-1 for the current enforcement position. Source: dol.gov
IRS common-law test: three categories, behavioral control, financial control, and type of relationship; no single factor decides. Page last reviewed 19-May-2026. Source: irs.gov
IRS consequences: employer may owe employment taxes if it treats an employee as a contractor without reasonable basis (IRC 3509); Form SS-8 for an IRS determination; Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (Form 8952); worker may use Form 8919. Source: irs.gov
DOL says misclassified workers may lose minimum wage and overtime protections and other benefits. The page did not itemize back wages or penalties. Source: dol.gov

Federal minimum wage and student/learner certificates

Federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, effective July 24, 2009; it changes only by act of Congress. Higher state or local minimums apply where they exist. Source: dol.gov
Full-time student certificates (FLSA 14(b)): employers in retail/service, agriculture, and institutions of higher education may pay full-time students not less than 85 percent of minimum wage ($6.17) only after DOL issues a certificate; forms WH-200, WH-201, WH-202. Source: dol.gov
Student-learner program: high-school students 16+ in vocational education may be paid 75 percent of minimum under a certificate (per DOL FAQ). Relevance to a nonprofit internship is low; mention only as "not a workaround". Source: dol.gov

Academic credit and the DOL view

Fact Sheet #71 treats academic credit only as one factor (factor 3: tied to a formal education program through coursework or credit); credit does not by itself make an unpaid internship lawful or unlawful. This is the for-profit test. Source: dol.gov
EEOC informal letter (Dec 8, 2011): academic credit and practical experience have not been treated by courts as "significant remuneration" for Title VII employee status. Source: eeoc.gov
Federal Student Aid Handbook 2026-27: students may earn academic credit and be paid FWS wages for jobs such as internships; they cannot be paid less because they receive credit. Source: fsapartners.ed.gov

Workers' compensation (state-specific)

New York: WCB says coverage is required for student interns, paid or unpaid, at for-profit, nonprofit or government hosts, depending on factors like financial benefit (e.g., tuition credit) and control. Exception: interns in a teaching or non-manual role at an IRS-designated religious, charitable or educational institution are exempt from mandatory coverage but may be covered voluntarily; manual tasks (filing, cleaning, moving furniture) fall outside the exception. Page undated. Source: wcb.ny.gov
California: Labor Code 3363.6(a) deems a volunteer for a private nonprofit an employee for workers' comp when the nonprofit's board designates and authorizes the volunteer, in writing, before the injury. Section 3351 (2025 edition) defines employee as a person in service under an appointment or contract of hire or apprenticeship. Source: law.justia.com
Florida: s.440.02 defines employee as a person receiving remuneration; excludes persons who serve in private nonprofit agencies and receive no compensation other than expenses (within stated rates). Private non-construction employers need four or more employees for coverage (s.440.02(20)(b)2). Source: leg.state.fl.us
Where to look up your state: the WHD directory of state labor offices (updated Jan 1, 2026), then your state's workers' compensation agency or insurance carrier. Source: dol.gov

Title VII and anti-harassment for unpaid interns (varies by state)

Federal: for Title VII, coverage of an unpaid volunteer or intern generally turns on "significant remuneration" (e.g., pension, group life insurance, workers' comp, access to certification); academic credit and experience have not counted; an unpaid intern may still be an employee if the work is required for or regularly leads to paid employment with the same institution. Applicants to training programs are separately protected. Informal 2011 EEOC letter, not a Commission opinion. Source: eeoc.gov
California FEHA Gov. Code 12940(j)(1) prohibits harassment of an employee, applicant, unpaid intern or volunteer. Source: law.justia.com
New York Executive Law 296-c bars discrimination against interns and covers harassment of interns (subs. 2(a) and 3). Viewed revision dated 2023-08-25. Source: nysenate.gov

Child labor, high-school internships

Fact Sheet #43 (rev. Dec 2016): 14- and 15-year-olds may work outside school hours in non-hazardous jobs; limits: 3 hours on a school day, 18 hours in a school week, 8 hours on a non-school day, 40 hours in a non-school week, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (9 p.m. June 1 to Labor Day). Under 14 generally barred from FLSA-covered non-agricultural jobs. Federal law sets no hour limits for 16 and 17. Source: dol.gov
17 Hazardous Occupations Orders ban listed work for anyone under 18 (e.g., driving on public roads with limits, power-driven hoists and forklifts, roofing, demolition, excavation, balers and compactors). Source: dol.gov
When federal and state youth-employment laws both apply, the stricter applies. Many states require work permits and limit hours for 16 and 17-year-olds. DOL state table (current as of July 15, 2025) shows states differ widely; it says nothing on permits. Source: dol.gov
School-based exceptions: Work Experience and Career Exploration Program (14 to 15, approved through State Education Departments; up to 3 hours on a school day and 23 in a school week; school-hours work allowed) and Work-Study Programs (14 to 15 in college-prep curricula; up to 18 hours per week in school weeks). Both need state or Administrator approval. These are programs run by schools, not a host option on its own. Source: dol.gov

FERPA basics

FERPA (20 U.S.C. 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) gives parents, and at age 18 or postsecondary enrollment the "eligible student", rights to access and amend education records and to control disclosure of personally identifiable information. Source: studentprivacy.ed.gov
"Education records" are records directly related to a student and maintained by the institution or a party acting for it. Employee records are excluded, but records about students employed because of student status are education records. Source: law.cornell.edu
Written consent to disclose personally identifiable information must be signed and dated and specify the records, the purpose, and the recipient or class of recipients, unless a 99.31 exception applies. Electronic signatures can qualify. Source: law.cornell.edu

Federal Work-Study (FWS) and nonprofit placements

Schools must use at least 7 percent of their combined FWS allocations to pay students in community service jobs, including at least one reading tutoring or family literacy project (34 CFR 675.18(g)). Source: law.cornell.edu
FSA Handbook 2026-27: community service jobs can be on or off campus; private for-profit employers do not qualify as community service employers. Off-campus jobs with public agencies or private nonprofits must be in the public interest; a written agreement with the school is required. The claim that FWS requires "off-campus community service" is NOT accurate: community service may be on or off campus. Source: law.cornell.edu
Federal share of FWS wages is generally up to 75 percent; 100 percent for specified activities (reading or math tutoring of young children, family literacy, civic education and participation) and at some eligible schools; up to 90 percent in limited cases for nonprofit or public employers. The nonprofit pays the remainder. Source: law.cornell.edu
FWS employers must pay at least the federal minimum wage (higher state/local rates also apply) and cannot use the subminimum training wage; FWS jobs must not displace employees. Source: law.cornell.edu
34 CFR 675.22 defines "public interest" for private nonprofit FWS employers and lists excluded work (limited-membership organizations, political activity, lobbying). Source: law.cornell.edu

IRS: stipend taxation basics (ask a tax adviser)

Scholarship or fellowship money is tax-free only for a degree candidate at an eligible institution and only to the extent used for required tuition, fees, books, supplies and equipment. Amounts for room, board, travel or optional items are taxable. Source: irs.gov
Payments for teaching, research or other services required as a condition of the award are taxable, even if all degree candidates must perform them (limited exceptions). So a stipend paid for intern work is generally taxable pay, not a scholarship. Source: irs.gov

Insurance concepts

Coverage for harm caused by volunteers should be incorporated into the nonprofit's liability insurance; ask your insurance adviser whether current policies cover volunteer-caused harm (Nonprofit Risk Management Center, modified Aug 11, 2026). Source: nonprofitrisk.org
Volunteer accident policies mainly pay a volunteer's medical expenses after an injury, often with modest limits; they do not protect the organization if sued and generally do not cover injuries the volunteer causes to others. Source: nonprofitrisk.org
Participant/volunteer accident coverage pays on a no-fault basis; general liability covers the organization's negligence and depends on fault; the page says general liability must be in place first. (Insurance trade/agency site; do not quote product names.) Source: insurancefornonprofits.org
Workers' compensation is separate from both (see the workers' compensation section above). Source: insurancefornonprofits.org

Funding an internship through a grant or restricted gift

IRS: a private foundation's grant to a public charity that pays an individual is not treated as a grant to an individual if it funds a project the charity undertakes and controls, and the charity controls selection of the individuals (selection need not be completely independent of the foundation). Source: irs.gov
IRS: donors need a written acknowledgment from the charity for gifts of $250 or more that states whether goods or services were provided in return. Source: irs.gov

Nonprofit formation facts

501(c)(3) requires an organization to be organized and operated exclusively for exempt purposes; no private inurement; no substantial lobbying; no political campaign activity. Page updated 28-Jun-2026. Source: irs.gov
Organizing document must limit purposes to 501(c)(3) purposes and permanently dedicate assets (dissolution clause); state law may sometimes satisfy the dedication requirement. Source: irs.gov
Applying: 501(c)(3) applicants use Form 1023-EZ or Form 1023; Form 1023 must be filed electronically at Pay.gov (page updated 21-Jul-2026). Source: irs.gov
Form 1023-EZ is still in use (instructions revised 01/2025); filed electronically only; LLCs cannot use it; eligibility is determined by the Eligibility Worksheet and any "Yes" means file Form 1023. Source: irs.gov
Current user fees: Form 1023 is $600; Form 1023-EZ is $275 (page updated 09-Oct-2026; subject to change). Source: irs.gov
Board duties: care, loyalty, obedience (BoardSource, updated July 11, 2025). Source: boardsource.org
Annual return thresholds (forms for 2025, page updated 28-Jun-2026): Form 990-N if gross receipts normally $50,000 or less; Form 990-EZ or 990 if gross receipts under $200,000 and total assets under $500,000; Form 990 if gross receipts $200,000 or more or assets $500,000 or more; private foundations file 990-PF. Churches and some others are excepted. Source: irs.gov

Consulting specialties and credentials

CPA: licensed by a state board of accountancy; education, exam and experience required; you must meet the requirements of the state where you practice. NASBA page modified 5-Aug-2026. Source: nasba.org
Attest services (audits, reviews) and compilations: Virginia Board of Accountancy guidance (Dec 2019): only a firm can provide attest services; a CPA acting as a volunteer worker still needs a firm license, peer review enrollment and standards compliance for attest or compilation. Illustrates that licensed-practice rules reach volunteer work; other states differ. Source: boa.virginia.gov
Paid tax return preparers need an IRS PTIN; preparers include CPAs, enrolled agents, attorneys and others without a credential. Page 21-Aug-2026. Source: irs.gov
Attorney: practicing law is limited to licensed members of a state bar; unauthorized practice of law is regulated by each state (North Carolina State Bar example). Source: ncbar.gov

This page belongs to the free guides Hosting a Nonprofit Impact Intern, Your Nonprofit Internship and Running Nonprofit Impact Interns on Campus from All In One Nonprofit. Questions or a correction: [email protected].