If you need guidance on how to get an extension for your annual return, postponing your annual general meeting, or revising your rules to allow you to meet or make decisions remotely, please take a look at our website. We have also updated our website with information and links to guidance on the COVID-19 Protection Framework (traffic light system) which came into effect on 3 December.

If you were able to join us for our first fully digital Annual Meeting hui on 29 October, thank you for coming along. It was fantastic to have so many charities connect in from all over the country. If you couldn’t make it to the meeting, we have a write up about it below including links to the recordings and Q&As.

In this newsletter we have a special section on financial reporting to update you on new reporting requirements for Tier 1 and Tier 2 charities, and financial thresholds changing in the new year. 

We also cover the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) annual reporting awards, which is a great opportunity to showcase best-practice reporting. I recommend submitting your report and having a look at past winners to see examples of charities using reporting to tell their story.

For our Sector Showcase this month, we’re keeping it local. Arohanui Strings hails from Lower Hutt, Wellington, and they’re part of a global movement of Sistema-inspired education – a musical training model that empowers children to overcome the disadvantages of poverty and inequality through musical inclusion. Read about their brilliant mahi (work) below.

Although my time in this role has been brief, my personal highlight was getting to chat with some of you in the annual meeting break-out rooms. Your questions and comments really helped me and helped us to better understand what’s top of mind for you and provided us with a range of suggestions on how we can better support registered charities.

Thank you for honestly challenging and inspiring us, and for sharing your stories. The team certainly share your commitment and enthusiasm, and we hope that our work regulating and supporting the sector contributes to everyone’s success.

The Charities Services team thank you for continuing to play an important role in Aotearoa’s response to the pandemic. The resilience of charities is instrumental to the wellbeing of our communities – Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa (our thanks and appreciation).

Finally, Christmas is just around the corner. While this means a breather for many of us, we know that for some of you work is just ramping up. I hope that you are all able to take some time out this raumati (summer) to recharge and enjoy a well-deserved break.

Until next year, Meri Kirihimete and kia noho haumaru (Merry Christmas and be safe)

Mike Stone
General Manager, Kaiwhakahaere Matua

IN THE SPOTLIGHT 

Our office is closed over holiday break

Charities Services’ office will close for the holiday break at 12 pm, Thursday 23 December 2021, and resume normal business hours from Monday 10 January 2022. 

Charities will still be able access their online account at any time to file their annual return or update information. The public will also be able to access the Charities Register to get up-to-date information about charities.

If you have any issues over the break, email info@charities.govt.nz and we'll respond when we return.

Charities Services Annual Meeting

Some of our panelists during the Q&A (L-R Andrew Newbery, Joe Buchanan, Maria Robertson, Mike Stone).

On 29 October, we held our first fully digital Annual Meeting. This meeting is a chance for registered charities to hear from us, ask the hard questions and to celebrate the diversity of the charitable sector.

We also launched Charities Services’ 2020/2021 Annual Review that goes into detail about our work over the last year, our goals for the upcoming year, and a snapshot of the charities sector.  

You can find the recording of the Annual Meeting, Q&As and the Annual Review on our website. 

Meet Teana Macdonald from Wellington City Mission

Teana Macdonald, a volunteer from the Wellington City Mission

Sunday 5 December was International Volunteer Day – a day that recognises, supports and celebrates the spirit of volunteering.

We know that better engagement with younger volunteers is a priority for a lot of charities, so we reached out to Teana Macdonald from the Wellington City Mission, the winner of Volunteer Wellington’s International Volunteer Managers Day competition last month. We found out how she got involved in volunteering, how it’s contributed to her life, and her tips for others thinking about doing the same. Read the interview on our Sector Showcase page.

SECTOR SHOWCASE

Arohanui Strings

Arohanui Strings Sistema Hutt Valley

Arohanui Strings is a registered charity whose mission is to create social change through the power of music. Hailing from Lower Hutt, Wellington, they are part of a visionary global movement of Sistema-inspired education – a musical training model that empowers children to overcome the disadvantages of poverty and inequality through musical inclusion. Read about Arohanui Strings and their mahi on our Sector Showcase page. 

NEWS OF INTEREST

My Vaccine Pass now available from participating pharmacies

Over 400 COVID vaccinating pharmacies across the motu (islands) are now providing vaccine passes for their customers.

To get your pass, head to a participating chemist with your NHI number (don’t worry if you don’t have it). No further formal ID is required. They will ask you to confirm your full name, date of birth and physical address.

Pharmacy staff will generate the vaccine pass directly from the COVID Immunisation Register, and will email the pass to you or print it out.

For more information about the COVID-19 Protection Framework, including how you can operate as a charity in the different traffic lights, check out the detailed guidance.

Hui E! Sector Hauora survey findings

Just before Aotearoa went into its second nationwide lockdown in August 2021, Hui E! Community Aotearoa surveyed more than 600 tangata whenua, community and voluntary organisations to see how they were coping with challenges of COVID-19.

Some key findings include demand for services rising, and pandemic pressures creating further strain on budgets, staffing and service delivery. Read more about the survey and findings here.­­

Thanks Wairakei Primary School!

Charities Services was thrilled to present to two classes of senior students at Wairakei Primary School in Taupo. Their teacher got in touch via our Zoom clinics and asked if we could speak to the students about charities in Aotearoa.

The students have been studying charities this term and had all picked one to look at in more detail.

We had a great Zoom meeting and discussed mahi aroha (voluntary work). the history of charity law, the four heads of charity and had an interesting and engaging question and answer session at the end.

Thanks Wairakei Primary School – we loved meeting you! 

If you’d like us to present to your group or class, email us at info@charities.govt.nz and we might be able to join you.

The Mind the Gap Campaign

'Mind the Gap' is campaigning for an Aotearoa where everyone is paid fairly for their work, where pay discrimination based on ethnicity, gender or ability no longer exists.

Funded by the Clare Foundation, and supported by the NZ Human Rights Commission and other allied organisations, the campaign is calling on employers and individuals to ‘sign up’ to report their pay gaps on New Zealand's first public pay gap registry. The Registry aims to encourage all organisations to commit to pay gap reporting, and support a more equitable Aotearoa.

The Registry will launch in March 2022. Visit mindthegap.nz for more information.

Myth Busting: Is setting up a new charitable group the best way to help your community?

When we’re out and about, we often hear myths about what charities can and can't do. Our myth busting series is a regular feature on our website where we address some misconceptions and bust some myths about the obligations of charities.

This month, we’re looking at whether you need to set up a new charitable group in order to help your community, or whether there are other options for new groups. You can read the myth-busting feature on our website.

FINANCIAL REPORTING UPDATES

Reporting thresholds are changing

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment recently reviewed the financial reporting thresholds in relation to inflation. They have made adjustments that may impact your charity.

From 1 January 2022, the following changes will come into effect:

•   The threshold for Tier 4 (the External Reporting Board’s simple format cash reporting standard) moves from $125,000 to $140,000 operating payments.

•   The threshold for a required audit goes from $1 million to $1.1 million total operating expenditure.

•   The threshold for a required review goes from $500,000 to $550,000 total operating expenditure.

We explain how this works in more detail on our website and what it may mean for your charity.

Tier 1 and Tier 2 Service Performance Reporting 

All Tier 1 and Tier 2 charities will soon have to report non-financial information alongside their financial statements when filing with Charities Services. The XRB’s new standard PBE FRS 48 comes into effect on 1 January 2022.

You might be familiar with service performance information from Tier 3 and Tier 4 reporting, but these new requirements will look slightly different.

You still need to show how your activities line up with your organisation’s overall mission statement and reason for existing, but you won’t be locked into the strict format of outcomes and outputs.

However you choose to present the information, make sure you include:

•   What you’ve done to work towards your broader aims and objectives
•   Context for what those aims and objectives are
•   What decisions you’ve made to get here.

An important part of any PBE report is being able to show growth and change, so make sure you include your comparisons.

This is an opportunity to tell the story of your charity, and present a fuller picture of exactly what you’ve done with the resources available to you.

Charity Reporting Awards

Has your charity done a great job on your financial reporting? Your efforts could be recognised in the 2022 New Zealand Charity Reporting Awards!

To enter, send through your financial statements (Tier 1 & 2) or your performance report (Tier 3 & 4) to charityreportingawards@charteredaccountantsanz.com. The report you enter must be the same as the report filed with Charities Services and available on the Charities Register for your most recent financial year.

Entries close on Friday 19 February 2021.

For any questions, please contact Maike Scherer from Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand at maike.scherer@charteredaccountantsanz.com. 

You can find out more about the Charity Reporting Awards here.

UPDATES FROM WIDER GOVERNMENT

Compliance relief for entities incorporated with the Companies Office has been reinstated

The Government has reinstated the temporary compliance relief measures contained in the COVID-19 Response Act 2020.

This temporary legislation allows charities to make certain changes to their rules and do some things electronically. This means that if you are affected by COVID-19 res­­trictions and need to temporarily conduct business, hold a vote remotely, or defer an audit, you can do so up until 30 April 2022, even if this is not normally permitted by your rules.

You can view more information on the New Zealand Companies Office website.

Updates from Inland Revenue

If your organisation is looking to change its entity type (for example, going from an Incorporated Society to a Trust) you may need a new IR number. Contact Inland Revenue’s (IR) charities team for more information. 

If your committee members, executive office holders, or trustees change at any time, you will also need to update your records with IR.

myIR Secure Online Services 

Using a myIR secure online account is fastest way for IR to respond to your queries. Once you're registered, you can also manage all your accounts (including GST and employer obligations), make payments, track refunds, file tax returns and more. 

RESOURCES