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Resources for Institutions

Build Your Membership

When You Join the NARM Network

The benefits of a NARM Association membership are invaluable! As a member of the North American Reciprocal Museum (NARM) Association®, your NARM qualified members will become part of an international network of cultural institutions with an unprecedented level of access to hundreds of new cultural institutions. In addition, there are numerous benefits for your institution:

  • Each member institution receives an individual profile on the NARM website that can be customized by adding hours of operation, photos, a direct link to social media pages, and a direct link to membership pages.
  • Each member institution receives complimentary brochures to help explain the reciprocal membership program and help move members to a higher level of membership.
  • Free promotions of exhibitions are available daily on the website blog and on the NARM social media pages: Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
  • NARM partners with TRIPinfo.com, the leading online reference for Leisure Group Trips planners (50,000+visits/month) to promote NARM member organizations on TRIPinfo. Each NARM Association member organization receives a listing on applicable Attractions pages as an added benefit of membership.  In addition, members whose local Visitors Bureau has a display ad campaign on TRIPinfo Digital Platform receive a Featured Text Ad + BOOK + NARM buttons free (a $600/year value)!  Find out more here: Extra NARM Member Benefit!
  • NARM partners with ArtGeek to list NARM member art organizations!
  • NARM continuously explores promotional opportunities through business partnerships and through other related organizations such as the Historic Naval Ship Association, the Association of Art Museum Curators, and the National Art Education Association.

There are so many wonderful benefits of a NARM Association membership, and you don’t have to just take our word for it!

Read about more of the benefits of a reciprocal membership program on the CUSEUM blog. The article is based on interviews conducted with various associations and their participants.

Read Blog Post

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Institution FAQs

How do I order more stickers/brochures?

Please contact us through the Sticker Request Form (see tabs listed on the left) to order more stickers or brochures.

How can I update my institution’s profile on the NARM website?

First, you will need to “Claim” your NARM profile. If you have lost the login information you may request a reset using the Contact Us form (see tabs listed on the left).

How can we add a restriction to the NARM reciprocal benefits we would like to offer NARM qualified visitors?

Any institution may add one of the following restrictions:
*NARM privileges may be restricted for concerts/lectures/special exhibitions and ticketed events.
**NARM privileges do not extend to members with a home institution within a 15-mile radius.
***NARM privileges do not extend to members with a home institution within a 15-mile radius and may be restricted for concerts/lectures/special exhibitions and ticketed events.
^NARM privileges are not extended to members of institutions that restrict to this institution.

If you would like to add the 15-mile restriction, we just ask that you inform any other institution in the restricted area that does not already have that restriction.  This allows them to decide if they would also like to add the restriction.

Once you have informed the other institution, you may simply email [email protected] that you have done so and specify which restriction you would like to have added. The restriction will be added with the nearest Quarterly updates which occur in mid-March, mid-June, mid-September, and mid-December.

Can our ‘Lifetime’ members receive NARM benefits?

Lifetime members are allowed to receive NARM benefits if they have contributed $5,000 or more to your institution – the equivalent of 50 years x $100. The expiration date on their membership card should note “Expiration: Lifetime member” or “Expiration: [date of membership+ 50 years]”.

Can a corporation receive NARM-level benefits? What about a library that pays for a NARM level membership — can they receive NARM level benefits and then give that card out as a ‘pass’ to their members?

The answers lie in what is in the spirit of the NARM guidelines and what would be fair to all NARM institutions. The value of a $1,000 membership in NARM terms would be 10 x $100 level memberships, therefore, a corporation that pays $1,000 or more may receive 10 membership cards at that level, or two NARM level cards can be issued to ‘ABC Corporation’ that may be shared 10 times during the year. Treating a NARM level membership card as a ‘pass,’ freely shared with anyone in a corporation or library, however, does not follow the NARM guidelines: “The NARM Association program is for member institutions to offer their individual members who pay $100 US (or equivalent) or more per year for their membership to their institution. Memberships sold at a discounted price below $100 do not qualify for NARM benefits.”

What are the tax reporting requirements for members using the NARM reciprocal benefits?

Read the tax reporting advice in the IRS Reporting Requirements tab (see tabs listed on the left).

NARM Member Institution IRS Reporting Requirements

According to the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Pub 1771, a written disclosure statement is required for membership benefits provided in exchange for an annual payment of $76 or more (page 6).

While NARM benefits are offered at the $100 level and above, a disclosure statement is not required “where there is no donative element involved in a particular transaction, such as in a typical museum gift shop sale” (page 6).

Based on the advice of Deputy General Counsel at the Smithsonian Institute during the 2011 AMMC conference:

Insubstantial /Frequently used benefits, such as unlimited admissions (NARM), can be difficult to value and a disclosure statement is not required.

View the IRS Publication 1771 Charitable Contributions Substantiation and Disclosure Requirement on the IRS website.

Get in Touch

We want to hear from you!

Guidelines for NARM Institutional Membership

  • Pay a yearly membership fee of $200
  • Provide the following minimum reciprocal benefits to qualifying North American Reciprocal Museum (NARM) Association® members:
    • Your members’ admission price and your members’ shop discount at a physical location, if your institution has both an admission fee for non-members and a shop,
    • Your members’ admission price if your institution does not have a shop,
    • Your members’ shop discount at a physical location if your institution does not charge an admission fee for non-members.
  • Provide correct NARM identification on qualified members’ cards
  • …read more in the link below
Download the Full Guidelines

Enrollment Form

Ready to Join Us?

If you meet our membership requirements and would like to apply for NARM Association membership, please fill out the enrollment form below. We will contact you with more information after your enrollment inquiry has been processed.

  • Institution Details

  • Please upload a photograph of the exterior of your main building so that we may post an image on the NARM map on the website and introduce you to the NARM community with the next NARM Quarterly online magazine.
    Accepted file types: jpg, jpeg, png, gif.
  • Select all that apply.
  • The Institution's physical address (mailing address is entered later)
  • (for general inquiries)

  • Your Contact Information

    This information is for internal purposes and will not be publicly shown on your institution's profile. We will use it to reach out to you about configuring your profile should we need to.

Sticker Request Form

Please complete this form to order more NARM Association stickers or brochures.

To sign up for the NARM Quarterly newsletter, click here:

http://eepurl.com/c0Tixv