The Charities Regulator endeavours to provide guidance and advice relating to all aspects of our work.
The organisation was established under the Charities Act 2009 and we have included a copy of that document here for reference.
If you are considering applying for charitable status, we have produced and published a suite of guidance documents to help with the consideration and submission of your application. These documents also provide advice about governance and best practice.
General
Governance
Charities Governance Code Toolkit - Guidance Notes and Templates
Charity trustees are responsible for the governance of their charity and should make sure that the six principles of the Charities Governance Code are being applied. In order to assist and provide practical support to charity trustees in their efforts, the Charities Regulator is committed to developing a suite of guidance documents and templates. To download a document, click on the document title below to access it.
Trustees
Finance
Model Constitutions & Clauses
'MyAccount' (Charity Registration IT System) - User Guides
Charity Services Unit
The below Charity Services Unit user guides are relevant only to charities and other persons who wish to submit an application pursuant to the Charities Acts 1961 and 1973 (as amended) through our online portal, MyAccount. On the left of the MyAccount home screen, click ‘Charity Services’ and select your application type to begin. Most applications generate a PDF form of a statutory declaration based on the information submitted online, which can be amended and must be signed and uploaded to submit your application. These applications are often submitted by professional advisors on behalf of charities. It is advisable for applicants to take independent legal advice before submitting an application.
Please note that the mechanism for the Appointment of New Trustees to charitable property described below in general applies only to certain charities who cannot make an appointment of trustees to real property held for charitable purposes without applying to the Charities Regulator. If you wish to simply update the Register of Charities maintained by the Charities Regulator regarding the recent appointment and retirement of charity trustees to your charity, please complete a Maintain Trustees form through MyAccount and upload the declaration available on MyAccount.
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1. Appointment of New Trustees
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2. Application for Disposition of Charity Property
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3. Cy-Près Application
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4. Opinion or Advice
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5. Approval of Compromise
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6. Charitable Bequest Forms
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7. Alteration of Schemes
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8. Vesting Charitable Leasehold Property Free from Onerous Covenants where the Lessor or his Successor is Unknown or Cannot be Traced
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9. Consent to a Disposition of Charity Lands pursuant to the Residential Institutions Redress Act 2002 or Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act 2012