The long-delayed Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act, 2010 (“ONCA”) has officially come into force today, October 19, 2021. ONCA provides a modern legislative framework for Ontario’s not-for-profit corporations and charities.
ONCA generally now applies automatically to all existing non-profit corporations incorporated under Part III of the Corporations Act (Ontario) and these non-profits will now have a 3-year transition period to bring their constating documents (i.e. letters patent, by-laws, etc.) into conformity with the new ONCA.
Although 3 years sounds like a lot of time, many nonprofits and registered charities will need between 6 months to 1 year to decide on the changes that are desirable and with over 50,000 non-profits and charities making these changes in Ontario, there could be significant delays with the Ontario government, as well as with the CRA. We suggest that organizations start considering the changes sooner rather than later to avoid problems later.
Another alternative would be to move your corporation to the federal Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act (the “CNCA”), which is a modern act and preferable for some organizations. There are advantages and disadvantages to transitioning under ONCA or under CNCA.
If your organization needs any assistance with transitioning under ONCA or CNCA and you wish to retain our law firm, please contact us.