Register a charitable association |
To register as a charitable association, it must:
- be an association of three or more people
- have a constitution that contains a non-profit clause stating that the association must use its income and property to promote its objectives and not distribute it among members nor pay dividends to members.
Three ways to register
- Register the organisation as a charity. To be registered as a charity, the organisation´s objectives must be fully charitable as defined in the Collections Act 1966.
- Apply for a sanction to fundraise for a community purpose. Where an organisation´s purposes are not fully charitable or are for purposes which benefit the community, we may grant a sanction to the organisation to enable it to fundraise.
- Apply for a short term sanction. We can issue sanctions that authorise an organisation or a group of individuals to conduct a one-off charitable appeal. A constitutional document is not required if it is intended that the funds will be dispersed shortly after raising them.
Being an incorporated association is not a prerequisite for registration as a charity or the granting of a sanction. Unincorporated associations, such as charitable trusts, can also apply.
Note: The following are not required to be registered to conduct public appeals within Queensland-
- Declared Religious Denominations
- Parents and Citizens Associations
- Hospital Foundations
Register the organisation as a charity or apply for a sanction as a community purpose association
To register as a charity you will need to complete Collections Form 1 - Application for registration (PDF, 212 KB)
Note: Your organisation must advertise for objections before registering it as a charity. See advertise for objections. Organisations applying for a sanction are not required to advertise for objections.
To apply for a sanction as a community purpose association you will need to complete Collections Form 5 - Application for sanction (PDF, 218 KB)
The following documents must be attached to an application to register the organisation as a charity or for an application for a sanction as a community purpose association:
- attach a copy of the organisation's constitution certified by two governing body members
- attach a copy of the resolution or minutes where the organisation resolved to apply for registration certified by two governing body members
- attach a copy of the organisation's most recent balance sheet or a statement of its financial affairs
- attach the central body's written consent (if an organisation's branch applies)
- lodge the entire application (see the forms for lodgement options)
- a statement that the association is aware that it must have its financial records audited each year.
There is no fee to lodge these applications.
To apply for authorisation to conduct short term appeals, see fundraise without forming a charity.
Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC)
The Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) is the independent Commonwealth regulator of charities for Commonwealth concessions such as income tax exemption, GST concessions and to be a deductible gift recipient and commenced operation on 3 December 2012. Visit the ACNC website to see what the reform means for your organisation.
Related links |
Collections Act 1966 (Office of the Queensland Parliamentary Counsel website) |
Last reviewed 25/03/2013 |
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