[Update – We are delighted to have over 65 people/organizations attend the webinar “Successfully Funding First Nations Communities in Canada in Compliance with CRA Guidance” Here is an archived version of the presentation: https://ocsa.webex.com/ocsa/lsr.php?AT=pb&SP=TC&rID=8543797&act=pb&rKey=7ae8d62d96563d62 Also here is a shortlink…
The first class action lawsuit involving what CRA terms an “abusive charity gifting tax scheme” has settled at a Settlement and Class Counsel Fee Approval Hearing that was held on January 17, 2012 in Toronto. The material for that hearing…
Ken Berger, the President & Chief Executive Officer, of the US charity watch dog group Charity Navigator will speaking at the CLIP conference “Being Good at Doing Good” on the subject of “The Battle for Transparency in the Non-Profit Sector”.…
Lois G. Lerner, the Director of the Exempt Organizations Division of the Internal Revenue Service will be speaking at the Charity Law Information Program (CLIP) Conference “Being Good at Doing Good” in Toronto, which is taking place on February 13…
The Toronto Star’s Investigative Reporter Kevin Donovan, who frequently covers the charitable sector, will be presenting at the Charity Law Information Program (CLIP) conference “Being Good at Doing Good”. Increasingly the media has been focusing on charities and certain hot…
There has been a little political firestorm last week over US foundations funding of certain Canadian environmental charities. So how much revenue actually comes to Canada from foreign countries including the US? The answer seems to be about $831 million. …
Charities can lose their registered charity status if they do more than 10% political work. In fact this would be rare. CRA generally takes an “education first” approach and depending on the seriousness of the non-compliance and the charity’s willingness…
Yes charities can transfer funds to other organizations for allowable political activities and depending on whether the other organization is a qualified donee (eg. a registered charity) or not makes a difference. Also the recent 2012 Budget will impact on…
The simple answer for most charities is 10% of resources (which includes money, volunteers etc). However, smaller charities may be able to spend more and charities that have not done political in previous years may be able to spend more…
An activity by a registered charity could be charitable if you are helping people “make an informed and critical choice” and it could be propaganda if you are trying to indoctrinate people into a particular viewpoint. Here is an excerpt…
In some case CRA accepts that communication to the public or public awareness campaigns may be considered charitable and not political. Here is an excerpt from CRA Guidance on Political Activities – CPS-022 7. When is communication a charitable activity?…
As with all charity activities it is important that charities maintain adequate books and records of their political activities. Such books and records should be maintained in Canada and preferably in either English or French. Here is an excerpt from…
Here is some of the definitions and terminology used by CRA in discussing political activities by Canadian charities. Here is an excerpt from CRA Guidance on Political Activities – CPS-022 “Appendix I — Definitions Advocacy — Advocacy is demonstrated support…
On December 21, 2011 the Department of Finance announced a consultation on “updating Canada’s regime for combating money laundering and terrorist financing.” They also put out a consultation paper, “Strengthening Canada’s Anti-Money Laundering and Anti?Terrorist Financing Regime,” which contains a…
In a Globe and Mail article entitled “Foes of Northern Gateway pipeline fear revocation of charitable status” there is a discussion of recent issues raised about foreign funding on Canadian charities and political activities of Canadian charities. On the political…
Here are some upcoming Charity Law Information Program (CLIP) seminars which I will be presenting across Canada. The format will be a morning discussing the 2011 Budget provisions for charities, some information on the new Federal Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act,…
Here are copies of the letters from the Charities Directorate of the CRA to the Canadian Foundation for Tamil Refugee Rehabilitation. The Canadian Foundation for Tamil Refugee Rehabilitation was revoked for cause. It was accused of supporting groups that operate…
[HERE IS THE UPDATED 2018 BLUMBERGS' RECEIPTING KIT] The Charity Law Information Program (CLIP) has just released the Receipting Kit for Canadian Registered Charities. The kit is 25 pages long and provides an overview of what a registered charity needs…
Here is a copy of a recent presentation on CRA’s Foreign Activity Guidance. See further information on resources on foreign activities.
Minister of International Cooperation, Bev Oda, announced on December 23, 2011 the results of the Call for Proposals process of the Partnerships with Canadian branch. 53 organizations received about $142 million in total commitments. Here is a note from the…
The CRA has revised its Pamphlet “Gifts and Income Tax P113(E) Rev. 11” to reflect recent budget changes including reducing the incentives for packaged flow through donation schemes and other provisions from the 2011 Federal Budget. Here is the revised…
There are a few hundred foreign universities (ie. universities outside of Canada) that can issue Canadian official donation receipts and are therefore “qualified donees” similar to registered charities. The list of these universities was hidden on page 1550 of a…
The CRA will be preparing a list of “Municipal and public bodies performing a function of government in Canada”. These “Municipal and public bodies performing a function of government in Canada” are qualified donees and can issue official donation receipts…
Canadian municipalities can issue official donation receipts similar to registered charities. Sometimes it is not clear whether a group is considered to be a municipality. In the past you would have to call CRA or write to them to verify…