From 1st January 2018
The Charity Commission has amended the Annual Return requirements for this year.
The Annual Return must be completed by charities with an annual income of £10,000 and submitted within 10 months of their financial year end. The good news is that the Annual Return has been streamlined, removing around 15 questions, and the proposals to include questions about gift aid and the use of rate relief have been dropped.
Online Reporting of Changes
It is no longer a requirement to include changes to your details and trustees in your Annual Return. Instead charities must update their details online throughout the year as they happen.
Report on Staff Pay
In response to public concerns, the 2018 returns will ask for information about pay to members of staff. Charities will be asked to provide information about the total remuneration received by their staff members, including salary, bonuses, pension contributions, private health care and other benefits in kind.
Individuals receiving packages of £60,000 a year upwards will be made public, in a banded style (bands of £10,000 up to £150,000, then in bands of £50,000).
Information about their highest paid employee will be requested, but this information will be held for regulatory purposes only and not made public.
Income from outside the UK
For the first time information about income from outside the UK will be collected and there is also a new requirement for reporting on methods of transferring money overseas. This reporting is voluntary for 2018 but will mandatory from 2019.
DonnellyBentley are charity specialists who can help you with your charity accounts and Annual Return.
