The Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005: Introduction & Overview
Summary of main provisions of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005.
|
|
OSCR: what is it and what is it there for?
The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) is the body in Scotland for granting charitable status and regulating charities.
|
|
OSCR: Monitoring Charities
In future all charities registered in Scotland will have to submit an ‘annual return’ and accounts to OSCR. Charities with an income over £25,000 will also have to submit a more detailed ‘monitoring return’.
|
|
Scottish Charity Register
To be a charity in Scotland you must appear on the new Scottish Charity Register. All current charities will be automatically placed on the Register. In future if an organisation does not appear on the Register it cannot refer to itself as a charity in Scotland. There are some exceptions to this rule for charities registered outside Scotland.
|
|
Becoming a Charity in Scotland Part 1: Charitable Purposes and Public Benefit
To be a charity in Scotland you must pass the 'charity test'. You must have one or more of the sixteen charitable purposes, provide public benefit and, in most cases, be independent of central government. This page sets out the detail of the charity test.
|
|
Becoming a Charity in Scotland Part 2: The Application Process
There is a formal application process for becoming a charity in Scotland. This page explains what the law says about this process and provides a link to the application forms on the website of the Office of the Scottish Charity Regualtor (OSCR).
|
|
Changes to a Charity: OSCR’s consent and notifying OSCR
There are a number of things that a charity cannot do without OSCR’s permission and/or of which they must inform OSCR; and over which OSCR has powers of direction. For example, OSCR has powers to direct a charity to change its name in certain circumstances.
|
|
References to Charitable Status
There are new rules about how a charity may refer to its charitable status.
|
|
UK Charities and Foreign Charities in Scotland: Exceptions to Registration and more...!
There are provisions in the Act that affect UK Charities and Foreign Charities in Scotland. They set out when these bodies need to be registered with OSCR. If they do need to be registered they will be subject to regulation by OSCR.
|
|
Removal from the Scottish Charity Register and Protecting the Assets of a Charity
OSCR can remove a charity from the Register (i.e. strip it of its charitable status). OSCR has powers to make sure the assets of such charities continue to be used for charitable purposes.
|
|
OSCR: Inquiries and Information - Part 1 (Scope)
OSCR has a range of powers with respect to gathering information, conducting inquiries and punishing wrongdoing. This page notes the broad scope of these powers and who they can be applied to.
|
|
OSCR: Inquiries and Information - Part 2 (Disclosure)
OSCR has a range of powers with respect to gathering information, conducting inquiries and punishing wrongdoing. This page details the circumstances in which OSCR is allowed to share and disclose information it recieves.
|
|
OSCR: Inquiries and Information - Part 3 (Suspensions, Directions and Reports)
OSCR has a range of powers with respect to gathering information, conducting inquiries and punishing wrongdoing. This page sets out what punitive action OSCR can take and in what circumstances.
|
|
OSCR: Inquiries and Information - Part 4 (Powers of the Court of Session)
OSCR has a range of powers with respect to gathering information, conducting inquiries and punishing wrongdoing. However, there is a point at which action must be taken via the Court of Session. This page sets out the powers that this Court has under the new law.
|
|
Charity Reorganisation Schemes
There are rules governing charities that want to make fundamental changes to themselves. Applications must be made to OSCR.
|
|
Charity Accounts and Financial Reporting for Voluntary Organisations
This page provides information on the production of accounts for voluntary organisations, particularly charity accounts.
|
|
Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO)
It is currently anticipated that the SCIO legal form will be available from 2010. It is designed to provide the protection of limited liability without the bureaucracy of being a company limited by guarantee, which is irrelevant for most charities. OSCR will administer the registration of and regulate SCIOs.
|
|
Religious Charities
Certain charities will be eligible to apply to be ‘Designated Religious Charities’ which will exempt them from certain rules and from some of OSCR’s regulation.
|
|
Duties of Charity Trustees
Trustees are under general duties to act in the interests of the charity, make sure it does what it was set up to do, act with care and diligence, avoid conflicts of interest make sure they and their charity comply with the Act. Breach of duty is considered ‘misconduct’ on the basis of which OSCR (and ultimately the Court) may take a number of actions. However, breach of duty is not a criminal offence.
|
|
Remuneration (Payment) of Charity Trustees
In general it is not permitted to pay charity trustees of a charity registered in Scotland, however there are a number of complex rules under which it is permitted and there is scope for some exceptions.
|
|