This article summarises key information that registered charities should be aware of as they prepare to lodge their annual documents with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC).
Annual Information Statement
The ACNC has launched the 2022 Annual Information Statement Hub.
All registered charities are required to lodge an Annual Information Statement (AIS). The AIS is an online form that asks a range of questions about a charity’s operations and finances over a 12-month period. For charities with a reporting period of 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022, the 2022 AIS must be lodged by 31 January 2023.
Failure to submit your charity’s AIS by the due date will result in it appearing as ‘overdue’ on the charity register, while failure to submit an AIS for two or more years may result in the ACNC moving towards revoking your charity’s registration.
Changes to charity size thresholds
Charity size thresholds have changed for the reporting periods covered by the 2022 AIS and beyond. The following table summarises those changes.
| Charity Size | Previous annual revenue thresholds | Current annual revenue thresholds | ACNC reporting requirement |
|---|
| Small | Less than $250,000 | Less than $500,000 | – Must complete the AIS
– Preparing and lodging financial reports is optional |
| Medium | $250,000 to less than $1 million | $500,000 to less than $3 million | – Must complete the AIS
– Must prepare and lodge financial reports
– Financial reports can be reviewed or audited |
| Large | $1 million or more | $3 million or more | – Must complete the AIS
– Must prepare and lodge financial reports
– Financial reports must be audited |
As a result of these changes:
- charities with annual revenue between $250,000 and $500,000 will now be considered small charities and will no longer be required to lodge financial reports with the ACNC; and
- charities with annual revenue between $1 million and $3 million will now be considered medium charities and will no longer be required to have their financial reports audited.
Registered charities that are incorporated associations must continue to:
- comply with the reporting obligations in their state or territory of incorporation; and
- adhere to the financial reporting thresholds that apply for the purpose of those reporting obligations.
For further information about these changes, see our related article and the ACNC website.
Reporting related party transactions
All charities (except basic religious charities) will be required to report related party transactions in the 2023 AIS and beyond. This means that charities will need to document related party transactions from the start of their 2023 reporting period (which, for many charities, is 1 July 2022).
Medium and large charities will also need to disclose related party transactions in their financial reports in accordance with the Australian Accounting Standards (AASB 124).
For further information about this requirement, see our related article and the ACNC website.
Reporting remuneration to responsible persons
Medium charities that prepare general purpose financial statements and large charities are required to report key management personnel remuneration in the AIS. Basic religious charities are exempt from this requirement.
For the purpose of this requirement:
- key management personnel include a charity’s responsible people (such as board members, committee members and trustees) and senior staff members (such as the chief executive officer, chief financial officer and chief operating officer); and
- remuneration includes all forms of consideration in exchange for services rendered to a charity.
For further information about this requirement, see our related article and the ACNC website.
ACNC online learning program
The ACNC recently launched an online learning program comprised of eight courses covering the regulatory landscape of registered charities in Australia and the duties and responsibilities of responsible people (such as board members, committee members and trustees). It is targeted towards responsible people and people in leadership roles within charities of all levels of experience.
The program is available free of charge on the ACNC website. The ACNC intends to release an additional four courses by the end of this year.
How we can help
Our For Purpose team helps charities from the ground up, from support to applying for registration to helping charities understand and meet their regulatory requirements.
Contact us
Please contact us for more detailed and tailored help.
Subscribe to our email updates and receive our articles directly in your inbox.