Charity Regulation

The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland has now commenced compulsory registration of charities.  We provide the sector with the most up to date information on the key changes in charity regulation.  For the latest on new charity regulations and a history of recent charity law reform in NI, please see our dedicated charity regulation webpage

31 Jan - Charity annual reporting deadline

15 Jan 2020Denise Copeland Governance and Charity AdviceCharity Regulation

If your registered charity's financial year is 1 April - 31 March then you will have a deadline of 31 January in which to submit your annual monitoring return to the Charity Commission.  

31 Oct - Charity annual reporting deadline

21 Oct 2019Denise Copeland Charity Regulation, Governance and Charity AdviceCharity Regulation, accounting, Governance

If your registered charity's financial year is 1 January - 31 December then you will have a deadline of 31 October in which to submit your annual monitoring return to the Charity Commission.   

Consultation on changes to the application for registration and the Annual Return Regulations 2019

25 Sep 2019Denise Copeland Charity RegulationCharity Regulation, accountability

The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland is currently consulting on proposed changes that it would like to make to both the application for charity registration and the annual monitoring return. 

Charity Commission delays charity registration for some

5 Sep 2019Denise Copeland Charity RegulationCharity commission, Charity Regulation, Sector Issues; Funding

The Charity Commission is currently not registering all charitable organisations that have submitted an application due to a High Court ruling which was handed down on 16th May.   

NICVA’s Trustees’ Annual Reporting Conference

20 Jun 2019Denise Copeland Governance and Charity AdviceGovernance, Charity Regulation, accountability

This year’s Trustees’ conference, held on 4 June 2019, was all about the Trustee Annual Report (TAR).  

Charities ‘in default’

20 Feb 2019Denise Copeland Governance and Charity Advice, Charity Regulationaccounting, Charity Regulation, Charity commission

There are currently 474 charities classified as being ‘in default’ on the charity register. 

NICVA response to Charity Commission's strategic plan

9 Nov 2018Denise Copeland Charity RegulationCharity Regulation

The Commission is developing a new strategic plan to guide its work from 2019-2022.  It's consultation is open until 5pm on Monday 12 November 2018.  

Is your charity annual monitoring return due?

18 Oct 2018Denise Copeland Governance and Charity AdviceCharity Regulation, Governance

The Charity Commission has issued text alerts to trustees and updated its guidance on how to complete the annual monitoring return with helpful screenshots of the online return.  

Good governance and charity reporting

13 Apr 2018Denise Copeland Governance and Charity AdviceGovernance, Charity Regulation

The Developing Governance Group has arranged two further good governance and charity reporting seminars with the Charity Commission and local support networks in both Omagh and Newry. 

Cross-border working is rewarding – when you know how

13 Feb 2018Neil Wilson Charity RegulationBrexit, Charity commission, Charity Regulation

A sell-out conference for charities working both North and South of the border heard from several speakers who outlined the specific challenges they faced and how they met them.