Register as a Charity

Midwest Corporate Services Limited have assisted many organisations in gaining Charitable Status & Charitable Exemption over the years. This year we are concentrating in assisting Charities in complying with the Charities Governance Code as 2021 will be the first year that Charities will be expected to Comply or Explain in relation to their compliance of the Charities Governance Code in their Annual Report. Whether you are looking to setup a new charity or organise compliance with the Charities Governance Code, our experienced staff are on hand to assist you every step of the way.

Benefits of Charitable Status

Charitable Status is of great benefit to voluntary and community organisations. It offers standing and credibility in the community and highlights the organisations commitment to transparency and accountability. The organisation will be in a better position to attract statutory funding and will be in a position to apply to the Revenue Commissioners for charitable exempt status and the associated benefits.

Application for Charitable Status

MWCS can assist you in preparing your Charitable Status application for you Irish Company. Ordinarily, the company would firstly be incorporated as a Company limited by Guarantee CLG before you begin your application for Charitable Status. CLG companies are suitable for non-profit organisations as they have no shareholders, do not pay dividends and all profits made are reinvested into the company. A charity is an organisation whose aims are exclusively charitable, its purpose must be of public benefit and their purpose falls under one of the following headings:

The relief of Poverty
The Advancement of Education
The Advancement of Religion
Other purposes of a Charitable Nature Beneficial to the Community

If your organisation meets the above criteria and intends to operate within the Republic of Ireland then we can assist you in your application.

Minimum requirements for new CLG Companies applying for Charitable Status

You must have a minimum of 3 unrelated directors
You must have a secretary, which can also be one of the Directors
There must be a minimum of 3 members, which can also be one of the Directors
Certain clauses may need to be added to the Constitution

Application for Charitable Status Exemption

Once the Charities Regulatory Authority has granted charitable status to your charity, we can now assist you in your application for charitable tax exemption.

Charities Governance Code

This code was announced in November 2018 by the Charities Regulator. All Charities operating in Ireland are expected to meet the core standards of the six principles of this code. 2021 will be the first year that charities are expected to report on their compliance with this code. Charities will be required to declare their compliance status on the same date they file their Annual Report. This provides the opportunity to complete the process of implementing the Charities Governance Code right up to the date of filing their Annual Report in 2021. Compliance with the code is on a comply or explain basis. The Charities Regulator will publicly display whether or not a charity is in compliance. We can assist you in getting your charity ready to comply with his code. Ultimately, the responsibility of compliance rests with the charity’s trustees.