Using and understanding the register of charities
The register of charities is a growing public resource which anyone, anywhere in the world, may use to find out key information about charities registered in Northern Ireland. It contains individual entries including a charity’s name, contact address, charitable purposes and certain financial information. The information on the register of charities is made available as part of the governments Open data initiative.
We started to register charities in December 2013 and continue to add to it. You can find out how many charities are currently registered by visiting the register of charities. The guidance below sets out what other information is available on the register and how to conduct a range of searches using the general search function or applying a range of filters. The guidance also provides information for a range of stakeholders on how to download information from the register on individual charities, a collection of charities or all registered charities.
Please note that we have recently introduced a traffic light display indicating if a charity has submitted their accounts and reports to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland on time. For more information on the traffic light display, visit: traffic light display for charity accounts and reports. We plan to update the guidance to reflect these changes over the coming months.
If you are using this guidance and need any clarification, please contact the Commission at admin@charitycommissionni.org.uk
