Information for Charities when using For-Profit Fundraising Businesses

Information for charities who use for-profit fundraising businesses, select from the options below.

 

• Telephone or Door to Door Solicitation Restrictions
• Requirement to be Registered with the Canada Revenue Agency
• How to become a registered charity under the Income Tax Act
• Exemptions (section 3)
• Fund-raising Agreements with Charities (section 26 regulation 13)
• Request for Accounting by the Charity (section 28)
• Agreements Contrary to Public Interest (section 27)
• Donor Lists (section 25)
• Information to be Provided to the Registrar Prior to a Campaign Starting

 

Telephone or Door to Door Solicitation Restrictions

Charities and/or fund-raising businesses acting on behalf of a charity are not allowed to make telephone or door-to-door solicitations except between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.

Requirement to be Registered with the Canada Revenue Agency

Charities who wish to provide charitable tax deductible receipts for donations must be registered with the Canada Revenue Agency. While these charities are not required to licensed with the Consumer Protection Division, if engaging a for-profit charitable fund-raising business, the charity is to ensure that the for-profit charitable fund-raising businesses acting on behalf of the charity is licensed with the Consumer Protection Division.

The above requirement includes the scenario when a charity contracts with and remunerates a fund-raising organization to coordinate or manage the charity’s volunteers in a solicitation drive. In such cases the fund-raising organization must be licensed as a charitable fund-raising business, even if it does not manage or receive the receipted donations. The sale of a “food” items, goods or services on behalf of a charity by a paid fund-raising business also requires that the associated fund-raising business be licensed.

 

How to become a registered charity 

To be registered as a charity under the Income Tax Act, an organization must show that it meets all the requirements of the Act and the common law relating to charitable registration. Therefore, an organization must be established exclusively for charitable purposes and it must devote all of its resources to activities carried on to further its charitable purposes. 

For more information on what you need to know before applying for charitable status at the Canada Revenue Agency, and what you need to consider before establishing yourself as a legal entity, go to Apply to become a registered charity. 

Important update from the CRA: New e-services available for charities June 1, 2019

Starting in June 2019, the CRA will offer charities the following new e-services through the CRA's My Business Account portal:

• Organizations will be able to apply for charitable status online.
• Registered charities will be able to file their T3010 Registered Charity Information Return online. 
• Registered charities will be able to request updates to their account information online (for example, changes to the charity’s legal name or fiscal period) and submit supporting documents to the CRA electronically. 

To learn more about these service improvements and how you can prepare for them, go to Charities IT Modernization Project (CHAMP).

Comment devenir un organisme de bienfaisance enregistré

Pour être enregistré à titre d’organisme de bienfaisance en vertu de la Loi de l’impôt sur le revenu, un organisme doit démontrer qu’il satisfait à toutes les exigences de la Loi et de la common law en ce qui a trait à l’enregistrement à titre d’organisme de bienfaisance. Par conséquent, un organisme doit être constitué exclusivement à des fins de bienfaisance et doit consacrer l’ensemble de ses ressources à des activités visant à réaliser ses fins. 

Pour obtenir de plus amples renseignements sur ce que vous devez savoir avant de présenter une demande d’enregistrement à titre d’organisme de bienfaisance à l’Agence du revenu du Canada, et ce que vous devez prendre en considération avant de vous constituer en tant qu’entité juridique, consultez Demander à devenir un organisme de bienfaisance enregistré. 

Mise à jour importante de l’Agence : nouveaux services électroniques offerts aux organismes de bienfaisance à partir du 1er juin 2019

À compter de juin 2019, l’Agence offrira aux organismes de bienfaisance les nouveaux services électroniques suivants sur son portail Mon dossier d’entreprise :

• Les organismes seront en mesure de présenter une demande de statut d’organisme de bienfaisance en ligne.
• Les organismes de bienfaisance enregistrés seront en mesure de produire leur T3010 Déclaration de renseignements des organismes de bienfaisance enregistrés en ligne. 
• Les organismes de bienfaisance enregistrés seront en mesure de demander des mises à jour à leur compte en ligne (p. ex., changements apportés à la dénomination sociale ou à l’exercice de l’organisme de bienfaisance) et de transmettre à l’Agence les documents à l’appui par voie électronique. 

Pour en apprendre davantage sur les améliorations apportées aux services et sur la façon dont vous pouvez vous y préparer, consultez Projet de modernisation des systèmes de TI des organismes de bienfaisance (PROMO).
 

Exemptions (section 3)

The Charitable Fund-raising Businesses Act does not apply to a lottery scheme, authorized by section 207 of the Criminal Code, that is lawfully conducted by a charitable organization.

Fund-raising Agreements with Charities (section 26 regulation 13)

All fund-raising businesses and the charities they represent must enter into written fund-raising agreements with each other. Copies of the agreements between the parties and solicitation scripts to be used must be provided to the Registrar of Charities, the Consumer Protection Division, at least 30 days before any solicitations begin.

The terms of the agreement must include:

• the duties and responsibilities of the parties, and the manner in which the agreement may be terminated;
• a description of any goods or services being sold and the specific sale price;
• an estimate of the amount of contributions to be received and the expenses of the fund-raising;
• a clause indicating that should the fund-raising businesses billings (for the campaign) to the charity be greater than the gross charitable receipts of the campaign, those billings will be discounted so that the billings will not exceed the contribution received; and
• the methods to be used in soliciting.

 

Request for Accounting by the Charity (section 28)

Charities entering into agreements with fund-raising businesses are allowed to request accountings by the business, and the Registrar and the Court of Queen's Bench may demand such accountings.

 

Agreements Contrary to Public Interest (section 27)

The Charitable Fund-raising Businesses Act provides that charities may apply to the Court to have agreements cancelled as contrary to the public interest, including contracts made before this Act came into force.

 

Donor Lists (section 25)

Any donor lists related to a solicitation drive remains the property of and under control of the charity, a clause in the contract (with the charity) contrary to that provision will not be accepted.

 

Information to be Provided to the Registrar Prior to a Campaign Starting 

Fund-raising businesses must provide the Registrar of Charities (at the Consumer Protection Division) with the following information at least 30 days before commencing a campaign:

• the name, address, telephone number, and, if applicable, the e-mail address of a contact person for the licensee with respect to the campaign;
• the name, address, telephone number, and, if applicable, the e-mail address and website address of the charitable organization on whose behalf solicitations are to be made;
• the charitable purpose for which contributions will be used;
• the jurisdiction in which contributions will be used;
• a list of locations in Saskatchewan where the campaign is to be carried out;
• the length of the campaign;
• a reasonable sample of:
  • the identification card to be worn by representatives who will be making door-to-door solicitations;
  • any publication or other information that will be provided to persons being solicited; and
  • any telephone script that will be used in making solicitations.