December 29, 2020
New Ontario Business Registry will one day become active and you should sign up now to get reminders and information
The Ontario Ministry of Government Services is launching a new Ontario Business Registry at some point over the next year or two. This Registry will…
December 21, 2020
Philanthropy and Digital Civil Society: Blueprint by Lucy Bernholz – a very useful critique of the NPO sector in the US
For those interested in understanding the complexity of US non-profits, much of which is similar in Canada, you might find the Philanthropy and…
December 21, 2020
CRA reminds charities of importance of filing T3010 Registered Charity Information Return by December 31, 2020
I received the following today from CRA reminding charities to file their T3010 if it was due between March 18, 2020 and December 31, 2020: …
December 20, 2020
Statistics Canada launches crowd sourced questionnaire on diversity in the non-profit and charity sector.
Statistics Canada launched a crowd-sourced questionnaire on diversity in the non-profit and charity sector. I encourage groups to complete the…
December 20, 2020
Another version of CRA’s guidance on advancement of religion released in an access to information request
We have been blogging about CRA's draft guidance "Advancement of religion and charitable registration" in 2009, 2017 and 2018. Essentially CRA has…
December 20, 2020
CRA Ministerial Welcome Package – excerpts dealing with charities
We recently received a copy of the CRA Ministerial Welcome Package which is dated November 2019. There are a number of references to charities…
December 20, 2020
Why does CRA ask about charitable “activities” and not just about charitable “purposes”
In a recent CRA document, we obtained that was released through access to information, it provides a good explanation of why CRA cares about…
December 20, 2020
CRA document “Purposes Not Being Furthered” dealing with charity applications without adequate information on activities
About 4000 groups apply each year to the Charities Directorate of CRA to receive registered charitable status and about 46% obtain that status. The…
December 20, 2020
Report “Unfunded: Black Communities Overlooked by Canadian Philanthropy” released – shows miniscule funding of Black groups
A recent report entitled "Unfunded: Black Communities Overlooked by Canadian Philanthropy" is a wakeup call that Foundations and Charities are not…
December 16, 2020
CRA introduces simplified process for employees claiming expenses while working from home
The CRA recently introduced a simplified process to allow employees in certain cases to claim home office expenses. About 1/2 of charities in…
December 12, 2020
Mark Blumberg’s testimony to the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics (ETHI) on CSSG/WE Charity Scandal
On Friday, December 11, 2020 I gave testimony to the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics (ETHI) on the CSSG and We…
December 5, 2020
CRA revokes as a result of audit first 2 charities in over a year
The CRA has revoked its first two registered charities in over a year. Actually, over 13 months not one charity has been revoked. Some think that…
November 30, 2020
CRA updates guidance CG-027, Public policy dialogue and development activities by charities – only minor changes
The CRA has updated their guidance CG-027, Public policy dialogue and development activities by charities. There were only minor changes to the…
November 30, 2020
CRA updates and releases new charity guidances
CRA released several new updates and guidances for registered charities on Friday. This includes a new guidance on the advancement of education…
November 30, 2020
Some are calling for changes to Canadian charity rules for foreign activities
I wish I did not have to write this article about the Canadian rules around international philanthropy and foreign activities but unfortunately, a…
November 27, 2020
Despite WE Charity Scandal and 5 months of intense coverage the Federal government is reducing transparency on the charitable sector
If you have followed the WE Charity scandal one of the major concerns is the lack of transparency with Canadian registered charities. That is not…
November 27, 2020
T3010 deadline is December 31, 2020 – but get your forms in as soon as possible
As we have discussed extensively, as a result of COVID the CRA has extended the deadline for filing the T3010s that were or will be due from March…
November 27, 2020
CRA’s New Education Guidance – CG-030, Advancement of education and charitable registration
CRA issued a few new guidances today, including a guidance on the advancement of education: CG-030, Advancement of education and charitable…
November 27, 2020
CRA’s New Guidance – CG-029, Relief of Poverty and Charitable Registration
Today, CRA released it's new Guidance, CG-029, Relief of poverty and charitable registration. This relatively short guidance provides some useful…
November 27, 2020
CRA releases foreign activity guidance after multi-year delays as well as guidance on intermediaries working in Canada
CRA released today the updated guidance CG-002, Canadian registered charities carrying on activities outside Canada. Essentially, this guidance…
November 27, 2020
Updated T3010 Form
Earlier this month, CRA update the T3010 form found here. With the CRA's COVID-19 extension for the T3010 Annual Return, many charities must file…
November 18, 2020
Mark Blumberg to present as part of a panel at the AFP GTA Congress 2020 on “WE have a Problem”
Here is a description of the presentation on November 24, 2020: Lunch ’N Learn Panel: WE Have a Problem Jaya Mootoo , Ann…
November 18, 2020
Mark Blumberg to present to CIMA Canada Conference on “Dealing with Ethical Dilemmas: at Work and Beyond”
Mark will be presenting on November 19, 2020 at the CIMA Canada Conference on "Dealing with Ethical Dilemmas: at Work and Beyond". CIMA is the…
November 9, 2020
CRA’s Reminder to File T3010 by December 31, 2020
CRA recently sent out a newsletter reminder that charities with a T3010 (Registered Charity Information Return) filing due between March 18, 2020 and…