As a follow up to the Charities Registration and Regulations Act 2019 becoming Manx law last year, the substantive provisions of the Act, as well as the Charities Regulations 2020 will come into force on 1 April 2020. The implementation of the Act will impact on all Manx registered charities.
To date, the Attorney General's Chambers has published a series of Charities Bulletins and held a well attended seminar for charity trustees to explain the impact on charities, both existing and new..
With effect from 1 April 2020, the Attorney General will become the Charities Registrar, meaning that the register will then be administered by staff in the Attorney General's Chambers, rather than in the Central Registry.
Attorney General, John Quinn QC MLC commented:
'We live in a very charitably-minded community but we do need to ensure that the charities are regulated and administered accordingly. There are clear duties for trustees and charities which should make everyone's expectation easier to deal with.'
He continued
'While there is a need to apply the Act and work within the new regulations it is important that personal contact, which we know is valuable to both to the charities sector and to the general public is maintained.'
The Attorney General is very keen to continue to assist Manx charities so they have a clear understanding of the necessary governance issues and also to ensure that they are kept abreast of any changes or matters which arise which are of general interest to the charities sector.
Charities Bulletins will continue to be published on the charities information pages on the Attorney General's Chambers' website, once the current restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic are lifted, further seminars will be arranged, the dates of which will also be published on the website
Work is underway to publish all pertinent documents, including application and notification forms along with suggested templates for accounts and reports for use by smaller charities, on this website.
Any charity already on the register on 1 April 2020 which does not have a written governing document will have to adopt one by 1 April 2022. All charities affected by this will be contacted over the next few months.
For enquiries please contact the Charities Registration Officer, Wendy Joughin via charities@gov.im or telephone +44 1624 687318.
