Have you received a text from the Commission?

The Commission is this week issuing text message alerts to 3,003 trustees of registered charities due to submit their annual reporting information by the end of January 2019.

As at 22 January 2019, 850 of the over 1,850 registered charities due to submit their accounts and reports to the Commission by 31 January 2019 had done so, with around 1,000 charities still to submit – and the deadline is fast approaching

The Commission has issued the text messages to highlight to the trustees that their charity's deadline is pending, and to encourage them to ensure the correct accounts and reports are submitted on time - or risk their charity going into default.

If you have received a text message but think the charity's accounts and reports have already been submitted, we would advise you to check the charity's entry on the public register of charities. Once the required annual reporting information is submitted, the accounts and reports will be published on the charity's register entry.

If a charity submits on time, their register entry will be marked in green as up-to-date. However, the entry will automatically be highlighted in red if a charity is in default (failed to provide information within the 10 months) or has submitted documentation late.

Some individuals are a trustee on a number of charities and it may be that it is a different charity, of which you are also a trustee, that is due to submit accounts and reports. So, for example, charity x has submitted accounts and reports but charity has not. if you are a trustee of several charities please check which charity may be due to submit accounts and reports. Alternatively, it may be that the person who has agreed to submit the accounts and reports, has not done so yet. Please check with the person responsible for submitting the required that they actually did so.

A range of online annual reporting guidance is available here to support charities in submitting their accounts and reports to the Commission.

The alerts were issued to the telephone number for trustees as supplied to the Commission and has been used to provide information in connection with their legal obligations as a charity trustee. This is in accordance with our Privacy notice, which is available to read here.

ENDS