The worldwide network of Church of Scientology organizations consists of numerous entities and corporations, located in the United States as well as in other countries. All these organizations are interrelated and connected through an internal hierarchy called the "Command Channels of Scientology". At the top are Religious Technology Center, Church of Spiritual Technology, and Church of Scientology International, who own and license the Scientology trademarks and service marks to the other organizations within the network. These management organizations are staffed solely by Sea Org personnel. Within the upper Church management echelon are several corporations with specific functions of publication, distribution, administration, and finances. Examples are the Scientology-owned publishing house Bridge Publications, and World Institute of Scientology Enterprises which promotes and sells Scientology "secular" services to businesses and entrepreneurs. Below the Scientology management levels are Scientology service organizations ("Churches"), which deliver Scientology services to its members, and so-called secular organizations which seek to introduce L. Ron Hubbard's "Scientology Technology" into various sectors of society such as Citizens Commission on Human Rights, an organization that seeks to abolish any form of psychiatry. Below these levels are volunteer organizations run by Scientologists such as local chapters of The Way to Happiness campaign, and Clear Expansion Committees which have as their goal the clearing of their local communities and helping to establish a Scientology world. In a response to questions by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with regards to its application for tax exempt status, the Church of Scientology International provided to the IRS a list of Scientology corporations and entities, categorized by their functions and activities.

Principal organizations

Management organizations

Trademark service organizations

Financial trusts

Financial service organizations

Publishing houses and media

Secular and social management entities

Service organizations

Membership organizations

The term "Church of Scientology"

The "Church of Scientology" is a term commonly used as an overarching label for the conglomerate of interrelated Scientology corporations. There is no corporate entity named "Church of Scientology". In the 1950s, there were two short-lived organizations by that name: According to the Church of Scientology International in a response to the IRS in 1991: "Technically, there is no single entity known as the 'Church of Scientology', but for convenience, we sometimes refer to the Scientology international ecclesiastical hierarchy of churches — including ecclesiastical support and related social betterment organizations — as the 'Church of Scientology' or the 'Church'." In a 1992 legal case between Scientology and the IRS, this list was compiled: "After the church was 'simplified' [in the 1980s], the record suggests that at least the following organizations constitute the church of Scientology: Founding Church of Scientology; Church of Scientology International; Religious Technology Center [including the Authorization, Verification and Correction Unit]; Church of Spiritual Technology; 129 Missions of Scientology, governed by Scientology Missions International; Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre International; 141 Class IV churches [local organizations such as the Church of Scientology of Portland or the Church of Scientology of San Francisco]; Continental Liaison Offices [known as CLOs]; Saint Hill Organizations; Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization; Flag Land Base; Flag Estates Org; Flag Command Bureaux [including Compilations Unit, LRH Artist, International Training School, New World Corps, Strategic Book Marketing Unit]; International Hubbard Ecclesiastic League of Pastors [known as IHELP]; Sea Organization Officer Council; the American Saint Hill Organization; Advanced Organization Los Angeles; Golden Era Studios; Watchdog Committee; the Commodore's Messenger Organization International; the Executive Director International; the Senior Executive Strata; the International Network of Computer Organized Management; World Institute of Scientology Enterprises; Golden Era Productions; Office of Special Affairs International; Bridge Publications; LRH Public Relations International; Household Unit; Inspector General Network [comprising the Trademark Integrity Division and the Qualifications Division]; the United States Scientology Films Trust; International Scientology Films Trust; Author Services Inc., Cancorp, Religious Research Foundation; International Association of Scientologists; Church of Scientology Religious Trust."

Founding Church of Scientology, Washington, D.C.

The Founding Church of Scientology of Washington, D.C. (FCDC) was incorporated in 1955 under the name The Founding Church of Man's Religion of Washington, D.C., as a "parent church for the propagation of the religious faith known as Scientology". The name was often shortened to "Founding Church" or "Founding Church DC", and abbreviated FCDC. In the 1960s, FCDC had offices in Washington, D.C. at 1810, 1812, and 1827 19th Street NW, and 1907 and 2125 S Street NW. Its purpose was "To disseminate Scientology. To advance and protect its membership. To hold the lines and data of Scientology clean and clear. To educate and process people toward the goal of a civilized age on Earth second to none. To survive on all dynamics. Subsidiary organizations included the Distribution Center, Inc., the Academy of Scientology, and Hubbard Guidance Center. FCDC was the site of a 1963 raid by the FDA in which all the e-meters on the premises, and related publications, were confiscated. The resulting lawsuits covered several years, and resulted in a 1970s order limiting the use of e-meters and mandating certain labeling. (See .) FCDC was also the site of a 1977 raid by the FBI over Scientology's spying on government agencies. This resulted in the criminal conviction of eleven Scientologists in 1979, including L. Ron Hubbard's wife. (See Operation Snow White.) In 1994, the Church of Scientology purchased the Fraser Mansion at 1701 20th Street NW for their new "Founding Church of Scientology Washington D.C." In 2009, the new FCDC relocated to 1424 16th Street NW, while the Fraser Mansion was repurposed for Scientology's National Affairs Office. In 2003, Heritage Properties International, a subordinate organization to Church of Spiritual Technology and formerly named Heritage Management Company Ltd., purchased the building at 1812 19th Street NW, and turned it into a Scientology museum named L. Ron Hubbard House. It is also referred to as the historic Founding Church of Scientology.