Charities Act 2005

  • not the latest version

Reprint as at 1 April 2008

Charities Act 2005

Public Act2005 No 39
Date of assent20 April 2005
Note

Changes authorised by section 17C of the Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989 have been made in this eprint.

A general outline of these changes is set out in the notes at the end of this eprint, together with other explanatory material about this eprint.

This Act is administered by the Ministry of Social Development and the Department of Internal Affairs.

Contents

1 Title

2 Commencement

Part 1
Charities Commission

Preliminary matters

3 Purpose

4 Interpretation

5 Meaning of charitable purpose and effect of ancillary non-charitable purpose

6 Registration of trustees of trusts

7 Act binds the Crown

Establishment of Commission

8 Commission established

Nature of Commission

9 Commission is Crown entity

Commission's functions

10 Commission's functions

Membership of Commission

11 Membership of Commission

Annual meeting

12 Commission must hold annual meeting

Part 2
Charitable entities

Subpart 1—Register of charitable entities

Registration requirements

13 Essential requirements

14 Commission may act on basis of reasonable assumptions in relation to charitable trusts

15 Name of entity

16 Qualifications of officers of charitable entities

Applications for registration

17 Application for registration

18 Commission to consider application

19 Commission to register entity or decline application

20 Commission may backdate registration of entity as charitable entity

Register of charitable entities established

21 Register of charitable entities

22 Purpose of register

23 Commission is registrar of register

24 Contents of register

25 Commission may allow information and documents to be omitted or removed from register and may restrict public access to information and documents

26 Amendments to register

Searches of register

27 Search of register

28 Search purposes

29 When search constitutes interference with privacy of individual

Supply of register information and documents

30 Commission may supply register information or documents for purposes of Inland Revenue Acts

Deregistration of charitable entities

31 Deregistration of charitable entity from register

32 Grounds for removal from register

33 Notice of intention to remove from register

34 Objection to removal from register

35 Duties of Commission if objection received

36 Commission to observe rules of natural justice

Subpart 2—Duties, inquiries, appeals, and other miscellaneous matters relating to charitable entities

Holding out offences

37 No holding out unless registered under this Act

38 Offence to contravene section 37

Duty of telephone and Internet collectors

39 Duty of telephone and Internet collectors to disclose registration number on request

Duty to notify changes

40 Duty to notify changes to Commission

Duty to prepare annual returns

41 Duty to prepare annual return

42 Regulations concerning content of annual returns

Exemptions

43 Commission may grant exemptions

Commission may treat entity and affiliated or closely related entities as single entity

44 Commission may treat entity and affiliated or closely related entities as single entity

45 Parent entity may request means of compliance with duties

46 Commission may treat parent entity and 1 or more other entities as forming part of single entity on certain terms and conditions

47 Effect of registration of single entity as charitable entity

48 Commission may revoke entity's status as forming part of single entity

49 Commission to observe rules of natural justice

Inquiries into charitable entities and other persons

50 Inquiries into charitable entities and other persons

51 Duty to assist

52 Offences

53 Commission may supply inquiry information or documents

Warning notices and publication of details of breach, serious wrongdoing, and other matters

54 Commission may give warning notices

55 Commission may publish details of possible breach, possible serious wrongdoing, and other matters

Provisions relating to how notices are given and served for purposes of various sections

56 Notices

57 Service of notices

Administrative penalties

58 Commission may require payment of administrative penalty

Appeals against decisions of Commission

59 Right of appeal

60 High Court may make interim order pending determination of appeal

61 Determination of appeal

Part 3
Miscellaneous matters and amendments to other Acts

Subpart 1—Miscellaneous matters relating to Commission

Reporting obligations

62 Reporting obligations in respect of financial year commencing on 1 July 2005

Bank accounts

63 Crown Entities Act 2004 provisions concerning bank accounts apply to Commission

Subpart 2—Amendments to Income Tax Act 2004

64 Income Tax Act 2004 called principal Act in this subpart

65 Charities: non-business income

66 Charities: business income

67 Charitable bequests

68 Definitions

Subpart 3—Amendments to Tax Administration Act 1994

69 Tax Administration Act 1994 called principal Act in this subpart

70 Interpretation

71 Officers to maintain secrecy

Subpart 4—Amendment to Estate and Gift Duties Act 1968

72 Exemption for gifts to charities and certain bodies

Subpart 5—Miscellaneous provisions

73 Regulations

74 Prosecution of offences

75 No obligation on Commission or any other person to supervise

76 Amendments to other Acts

Schedule
Amendments to other Acts

Reprint notes

The Parliament of New Zealand enacts as follows: