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Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineer

EIN 95-2142678 · Bellingham, WA

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood89 out of 100GovernanceStrong100 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

SPIE is an international nonprofit technical society dedicated to advancing scientific research and engineering applications of optical, photonic, imaging and optoelectronic technologies through its meetings, education programs and publications.

Income
$64.4 million
Spending
$54.7 million
Spent on programs
58%
Reserves
24.9 months of spending
Largest source of income
fees for its services, 80%
Employees
193
Volunteers
9,500
Highest pay
$878,839, chief executive officer

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Good: 89 out of 100.

  • Reserves

    35 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 24.9 months of spending.

  • Debt

    16 of 20

    It owes 23% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    15 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 15% of income.

  • Income trend

    15 of 15

    Income rose 8% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    8 of 15

    58% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 100 out of 100.

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    20 of 20 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (4)
  1. $20.0 million spent. Technical Events - SPIE organized technical/scientific and engineering meetings with approximately 36,000 attendees. Included in the content of these Technical Events are basic research, research technology methods and applications. Many of our technical events also include Exhibits and a Career Center. There were about 300 conferences held in 2025 where scientists presented their research findings and collaborated on their work. In addition to the conferences offered at the 2025 Technical Events, there were also more than 100 in-person educational courses.
  2. $6.6 million spent. Publications - SPIE helps the scientist authors publish their work via Publications and Journals. The technical publications include: books, Journals, conference proceedings, and online products. Proceedings of SPIE conferences are technical publications that educate the engineering community about current technology, research and applications. Online website links allow access to products and services used by scientists and engineers. Approximately 5,500 hardcopy books were shipped in 2025. SPIE is also the publisher of over 15 technical journals: Advanced Photonics, Advanced Photonics Nexus, Advanced Quantum Photonics, Biophotonics Discovery, Journal of Applied Remote Sensing, Journal of Astronomical, Telescopes, Instruments, and Systems, Journal of Biomedical Optics, Journal of Medical Imaging, Journal of Micro/Nanopatterning, Materials and Metrology, Journal of Nanophotonics, Journal of Optical Microsystems, Journal of Photonics for Energy, Neurophotonics, Optical Engineering, and Photonics Insights. SPIE is also a Co-publisher of Journal of Electronic Imaging with Society for Imaging Science and Technology. Total circulation of journals during 2025 was about 25,000 online subscriptions.
  3. $3.1 million spent. Education - SPIE awarded education scholarships and grants to support education outreach. More than 10,000 Women in Optics notebooks were printed and distributed in 2025. The SPIE Education department held career advancement events, including in-person workshops, and networking and mentoring socials, serving over 750 attendees. SPIE also presented in-person short courses at events, in-company training sessions, and issued Certificates of Completion. SPIE also held instructional webinars and offers on-demand online courses.
  4. $2.1 million spent. Membership - In 2025 SPIE provided support to attend conferences to student authors, and activity grants for student chapter groups. As part of our membership program, SPIE also provides reduced dues for students and members from developing nations.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since July 1971.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.