For registered charities that operate as a company, some of your reporting obligations which were previously made to ASIC should now be made to the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC). If your charity is subsequently deregistered with the ACNC, your charity’s obligation as a company will resume with ASIC.
To find out if your company is registered as a charity with the ACNC, go to www.acnc.gov.au to check the “ACNC Register – Find a Charity”. You will need the company’s ABN to do this. The company’s ABN can be found at www.abr.business.gov.au.
Changes to the Reporting obligations of companies registered as a charity with the ACNC
If your company is registered as a charity with the ACNC:
- Changes to a public company’s constitution no longer need to be lodged with ASIC but rather with the ACNC.
- Your company is no longer required to send a copy of its constitution to members who request a copy on the basis that during 2013 it is anticipated that information will be made available on the ACNC Register .to include a charity’s purposes, its registration date, responsible persons details and the charity’s governing rules.
- Changes to your company’s registered office and principal place of business need to be made through the ACNC and not through ASIC. The ACNC will advise ASIC of the changes.
- Notification of the appointment, resignation or retirement of directors and secretaries need to be provided to the ACNC.
- ASIC will no longer send an annual statement each year to the company and annual reviews fees are no longer payable by the company.
Any other obligations of your company under the Corporations Act 2001 will continue to apply until further changes are introduced in July 2013.
Summary of the Changes
- Apply to register a company – ASIC
- Apply to register a charity – ACNC
- Apply to change name of company to omit the word ‘Limited’ – ASIC
- Apply to change name of company – ASIC
- Notify changes to company details including: Registered office address and principal place of business, officeholders (director, secretary) and changes to the constitution – ACNC
- Request to revoke registration of a charity/cease to be entitled to be registered as a charity – ACNC
- Notify external administration of a company – ASIC
- Apply to deregister a company – ASIC
For further information, please contact the author.
This article is posted in Adelaide, South Australia by Tri-meridian Corporate & Commercial Law and is intended to be used as a guide only. It is not, and is not intended to be, advice on any specific matter. We do not accept responsibility for any acts or omissions resulting from reliance upon the content of this article. Before acting on the basis of any material in this article, we recommend that you consult your professional adviser.
