There are approximately 6,300 private foundations in Canada. Private foundations have been growing at a higher rate than any other type of Canadian registered charity. They have assets of around $100 Billion. Although there are some differences between a private foundation in comparison to charitable organizations and public foundations; over the last two decades, those differences have diminished.
That being said, it is quite common in our practice to hear that there is confusion and misunderstanding relating to the operation of a private foundation and the rules that govern it.
Most of the confusion relating to the compliance requirements and the regulation of private foundations is a lack of knowledge or out-of-date information and not attempts at deliberate malfeasance. Our firm works with many private foundations to assist them to understand the regulatory framework and also the flexibilities that are available in the operations of private foundations.
Here is our article Fallacies about Canadian private foundations in 2022 which discusses some of the top fallacies about private foundations.