Reporting requirements

Do I need to submit an annual return?

Fundraisers that are exempt from the requirement to hold an authority to fundraise are not required to submit an annual return. 

Authority holders are not required to lodge an annual return separately with NSW Fair Trading if they are ACNC-registered and comply with the reporting requirements of the ACNC. The ACNC will share information with NSW through a data sharing arrangement.

All authority holders that are not registered with the ACNC must lodge an annual return with NSW Fair Trading within six months of the end of each financial year. It must be lodged even if no fundraising appeals have been held or if no income has been received by the authority holder.

It is important to be aware that the requirements of the Act do not interfere with or override other reporting requirements under other legislations such as the Associations Incorporations Act (NSW) or the Corporations Act (Cth).

What do I need to include in an annual return?

The following information must be included in an annual return:

• details of the authority holder (including the authority holder’s name, registered address, phone number, website (if applicable) and email address 
• incorporated status 
• information about fundraising activities, charitable purposes, and key beneficiaries 
• traders’ details
• an annual financial statement 
• an auditor’s report (if not exempt from auditing requirement under section 25) 
• a declaration and statement of compliance

What information is in the annual financial statement?

The information included in the annual financial statement depends on the level of fundraising income for the financial year. All financial statements must be prepared in accordance with Australian Accounting Standards.

Where gross fundraising appeals income is less than $100,000 the financial statement must include:

• An income statement that summarises the income and expenditure of each fundraising appeal conducted in a financial year,
• A balance sheet that summarises all assets and liabilities resulting from the conduct of fundraising appeals at the end of the financial year,
• A statement of cash flows.

Where gross fundraising appeals income is greater than $100,000 but less than $250,000 the annual financial statements must also include Notes to the financial accounts. The Notes should specify:

• The accounting principles and methods adopted in the preparation of financial statements
• Details of any material matter or occurrence, including those of an adverse nature such as an operating loss from a fundraising appeal conducted in the financial year.
• A statement that describes the manner in which the net surplus or deficit obtained from a fundraising appeal in the financial year as applied.
• The aggregate gross income and aggregate direct expenditure incurred in all fundraising appeals conducted jointly with traders in the financial year.

Where gross fundraising appeals income is greater than $250,000 the annual financial statements must also include an independent Audit Report on the financial statements.

Declaration and Statement of Compliance 

The annual return must contain a Statement of Compliance authorised by the President or principal officer or some other responsible member of the governing body stating that:

• the authority holder has taken reasonable steps to comply with the Act, Regulations and the conditions of the authority
• the financial statements comply with the Act and the Regulations
• the organisation is able to pay all of the organisation’s debts as and when the debts become due and payable
• the contents of the financial statement are true and fair
• the organisation has appropriate and effective internal controls

Authority holders that are registered with the ACNC are not required to submit a Statement of Compliance directly to NSW Fair Trading if they include it in their Annual Information Statements lodged with the ACNC.

If the authority holder is a company incorporated under the Corporations Act, this declaration is required in addition to the directors’ declaration required under Section 295 of the Corporations Act.

Do I need to have accounts audited?

Under the Act, all authority holders must have all accounts associated with the receipt and expenditure of the proceeds of a fundraising appeal audited annually. The audit must be conducted by a Registered Company Auditor, authorised audit company or a person having other qualifications and experience acceptable to us and be in line with the relevant requirements of the Australian Auditing Standards.

However, an authority holder is exempt from this requirement if they do not receive more than $250,000 gross income from fundraising appeals in any financial year. In these circumstances the financial accounts must be prepared by a person having qualifications or experience acceptable to us.

Significant diversity exists with authority holders in their activities and operations, size, and legal structures. Authority holders can operate under a variety of legal structures - including, a company limited by guarantee, a trust, an incorporated or unincorporated association, Royal Charter - each of which may impose specific financial reporting and auditing requirements.  The authority holder’s governing instrument or constitution may also impose financial requirements.

Authority holders should note that they do not necessarily have to arrange for a separate auditor’s report if one that meets the requirements for an audit under the Act has already been prepared in compliance with another law.

Auditor and accountant qualifications

The audit must be conducted by a Registered Company Auditor, authorised audit company or a person having other qualifications or experience acceptable to us and be in line with the relevant requirements of the Australian Auditing Standards.

An acceptable auditor would be a current member of either CPA Australia (CPA), The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia & New Zealand (CAANZ) or Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) and holds a current public practice certificate issued by one of those bodies. 

The auditor must be objective, impartial, and free of any conflict of interest in performing their duties.

An authority holder is exempt from this requirement if they do not receive more than $250,000 gross income from  fundraising appeals in any financial year.
If the fundraising income is between $100,001 and $250,000, the authority holder must engage an accountant with formal accounting qualifications to prepare its annual financial statements.

If the fundraising income is less than $100,000, the authority holder can engage an accountant who has no formal accounting training but who possesses other qualifications and experience we assess as suitable to prepare its annual financial statements.

What changes do I need to tell Fair Trading about?

An authority holder must notify Fair Trading as soon as possible, and within 28 days, if any of the following circumstances arise:

• the authority holder’s name or address has changed,
• the charitable purpose for which the appeal is being or is to be conducted has changed,
• the authority holder’s ACNC registration has been revoked or an ACNC responsible entity has been suspended or removed,
• you become aware that information or a document provided in an annual return was misleading or deceptive in a material particular, 
• the authority holder becomes insolvent, is placed in liquidation or under external administration or is wound up,
• a member of the governing body of the authority holder, is convicted of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty for which the maximum penalty on conviction is imprisonment for not less than 3 months,
• the incorporation status of the authority holder changes,
• a branch of the authority holder (that is not an authority holder in their own right) ceases to be under the responsibility of, and the direction and control of, the governing body of the authority holder,
• a branch of the authority holder ceases to operate,
• the name, address or telephone number of the authority holder’s auditor changes,
• the authority holder decides to cease conducting a fundraising appeal,
• the particulars of a trader jointly conducting a fundraising appeal with the authority holder are changed,
• the authority holder engages a new trader in relation to a fundraising appeal,
• a material error is identified in an annual financial statement accompanying an annual return lodged by the authority holder.

The changes referred to in a, b, h, j, I, l and above can be notified to NSW Fair Trading by using a change of details form.

All remaining matters must be referred to Fair Trading in writing to charity.inquiry@customerservice.gov.au