What is a registered charity?
A registered charity is an organisation set up only for charitable purposes. lt carries out activities to achieve these charitable purposes and is registered with the Commissioner of Charities as a charity under the Charities Act (Cap. 37).
What is an approved Institution of a Public Character (IPC)?
An approved IPC is an organisation approved by the Commissioner of Charities to receive tax-deductible donations (i.e. donors are given tax deduction for donations made to these organisations)
You can search if an organisation is a registered Charity / IPC at the top right hand corner of the Charity Portal.
Where is the office of the Commissioner of Charities?
The office of the Commissioner of Charities was transferred from IRAS to the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports on 1 September 2006.
For more information about the Charity Registration, Administration, IPC application and Fund Raising, please visit Charity Portal.
Will there be any income tax on registered charities?
Before the Year of Assessment 2008, all registered charities are required to spend at least 80% of their annual receipts on charitable objects in Singapore within two years in order to be free from paying income tax.
With effect from the Year of Assessment 2008, all registered charities will enjoy automatic income tax exemption without having the need to meet the 80% spending rule. In other words, they do not need to file income tax returns effective from the Year of Assessment 2008.