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I have been called forward to apply for charity registration – when can I expect a decision to be made on my application?
If you have been contacted by the Commission to apply for charity registration, your application should be submitted as normal and before the submission deadline.
At present, more than 90% of registration applications receive a decision within six months of providing all of the information required in order for the Commission to take a decision.
Under the new legislation, certain decisions may be delegated to staff in the future, including decisions on charity registration, speeding up processing times. However, until a Scheme of Delegation is approved by the Department for Communities decisions will continue to be taken at Commissioner level. For such a Scheme to come into existence, it must first be drafted, consulted on and agreed with the Department for Communities.
Will you be able to fast track my application as a result of the Act?
The Commission has always had a system to facilitate a fast track application for registration and we intend to continue to do so. If there are circumstances which mean you need the Commission to call your organisation forward to apply for registration early you can advise the Commission under the special circumstances section of the Expression of intent form. You can also contact the Commission by emailing directly to registration@charitycommissionni.org.uk.
You should tell us why not being a registered charity is causing you to be disadvantaged over and above any other organisation awaiting registration.
I am already a registered charity – what does the new law mean for me?
If you successfully registered as a charity with the Commission then your registration remains in place and is valid.
You must continue to meet your legal annual reporting obligations, submitting your accounts and reports to the Commission by the set deadline (see Annual reporting by charities).
Will the registration application process change?
The Commission recognises that some organisations have been waiting for a long time to submit their application for registration. We are currently revisiting our processes to see if we can make this process shorter, while retaining the integrity of the assessment process.
Our registration process is very robust and we undertake a range of checks to ensure the organisation meets the legal requirements to be a charity. When assessing an application, we will apply the principles of charity law to make a decision as to whether the organisation meets the definition of a charity.
Although not as a result of the new legislation taking effect, the Commission is currently revising its online application form for registration. This will be introduced in Spring 2022 and be accompanied by revised guidance which will cover the changes.