Charity term legally extended

The common law meaning of charity has been extended to allow certain child care, self-help groups and closed or contemplative religious orders to be considered as charities for the purposes of all Commonwealth legislation.

The Extension of Charitable Purposes Bill passed through the Federal Senate on June 25 and the amendments have come into effect.

Under common law a fund or institution generally needs to satisfy three broad criteria in order to be considered a charity: that it is non-profit, has a dominant charitable purpose and that its dominant charitable purpose is for the public benefit.

Some institutions or funds that the Government considered should be treated as charities were either uncertain about or had difficulty satisfying different aspects of this criteria.

As a result, the bill allows those groups to meet various aspects of the criteria.