Consents for charitable companies

If your charity is a charitable company, certain changes to your governing document must be approved by the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland before they can happen. These are called regulated alterations.

There are three regulated alterations:

1. any change to the statement of the objects (purposes) of the charity
2. any change to what happens to the charity's property on winding up
3. any change which authorises the charity's funds or property to be used to benefit the directors or members, or organisations connected with them.

The Commission must also approve certain financial transactions, especially if they involve:

• directors of a charity’s subsidiary company
• use of charity assets that could benefit trustees or connected people

These transactions can’t legally go ahead without written permission. See the Commission's Consents for charitable companies guidance (in the sidebar) for more information. Applications for consent can be made made via the online form below.