Corporate Plan 2024-25

The ACNC is established under the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Act 2012 (ACNC Act) as the national regulator of charities.

The ACNC has been established to:

• maintain, protect and enhance public trust and confidence in the Australian not‑for-profit sector
• support and sustain a robust, vibrant, independent and innovative not‑for‑profit sector
• promote the reduction of unnecessary regulatory obligations on the sector.

The statutory functions and regulatory powers of the ACNC Commissioner are set out in the ACNC Act, the Charities Act 2013 and accompanying regulations.

The purpose of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission is to promote public trust and confidence in Australian charities. We will achieve this through the following key activity and measurement of our performance.

1. Maintaining a free and accurate register of Australian charities (the Charity Register)

Performance measures

1.1 Percentage of time that the Charity Register is available (excluding scheduled maintenance).

1.2 Percentage of new eligible charities registered within 15 business days of ACNC receiving all information necessary to make a decision.

Organisational capability

We cannot achieve our purpose without our staff.

Our employee value proposition, culture and commitment to continuous improvement help us to deliver 3 key areas of capability:

Workforce

The ACNC uses back-office services from the ATO, but we maintain our own corporate governance, finance, people and culture functions.

This balance helps provide financial efficiency while maintaining our independence. Our ACNC culture is one where people belong, are supported and connected, and aspire to continuously evolve.

Technology and digital innovation

The ACNC was established as a ‘digital by default’ agency with systems that enable charities to manage their interactions online via the Charity Portal.

The Charity Register is only available online, and we share charity data with government agencies via secure processes, principally through the Charity Passport.

We are committed to ensuring that our digital capability is innovative and fit‑for‑purpose. This supports strategic decision-making and ensures we use our resources effectively.

We are also committed to providing modern and tailored IT services to make it easier for charities to comply with their obligations.

We will continue to strengthen our IT capability through the execution of a multi‑year technology plan to identify and take advantage of opportunities and overcome challenges and gaps.

Data analysis and analytics

We hold a large amount of Australian charity data. We are committed to sharing our data and insights as widely as possible to help inform stakeholders about the charity sector.

We use our data to identify risks, insights, and trends. Our data helps us develop targeted guidance for the sector and ensures we use a risk‑based approach to protect the public, and maintain trust and confidence in Australia’s charities.

Our data helps to shape our policy submissions, helping to ensure that all levels of government understand the impact of the proposed reforms on Australia’s charities.

We share our data with government agencies and the broader public, reducing unnecessary regulatory burden on charities by removing the need for other regulators to ask for duplicated information. Where appropriate, we also share our data with other government agencies where there is a risk to public trust and confidence.

Environment

Our operating environment shapes our ability to promote public trust and confidence in charities.

Local and global issues faced by charities can affect their ability to meet their legislative obligations to the ACNC. A range of government policies and reforms (including Australian Public Sector reforms) may also affect our ability to achieve our purpose.

Self-assessing income tax exempt reforms for the not‑for-profit sector

From 1 July 2024, around 157,000 not-for-profits (NFPs) will be required to submit an annual return to the ATO to maintain income tax exemption. We expect to receive a significant volume of enquiries from NFPs due to this reform. Some NFPs will require ACNC registration to maintain income tax exemption.

The number of organisations that will require ACNC registration is unknown, but this reform may affect our ability to register new charities in a timely manner. For example, if only 5% of these NFPs apply for ACNC registration, this will represent 2 to 3 years worth of registration work for the ACNC.

We are committed to working with the ATO to assist NFPs affected by this measure. We will promote our self-assessment tool, helping NFPs to identify whether they are charitable. We are also working with NFP peak bodies to ensure new applications are ’grouped’ to help streamline their assessment and, with support from the ATO, have engaged some additional staff.

Potential reforms that the ACNC may need to implement

The ACNC may need to implement reforms associated with:

• the Productivity Commission’s inquiry into Philanthropy
• the Department of Social Services’ Blueprint Expert Reference Group.

We are committed to sharing our data and insights to ensure that the impacts of potential reforms are clearly understood. We will work with government (including Treasury) to implement any reforms. We will support affected charities by providing guidance and sharing information, including with our consultation and advisory forums.

Australian Public Service (APS) reforms and the Data and Digital Government Strategy

APS reforms and the Australian Government’s Data and Digital Government Strategy are likely to affect our staff and the delivery of our services.

We will maintain a fit-for-purpose workforce plan that ensures we recruit people with the right skills. We will leverage new technology while ensuring that appropriate guardrails are adhered to. This will allow us to deliver better outcomes to the charity sector and public.

Continued cost-of-living pressures affecting charities

Charities continue to be affected by higher costs of goods and services, which can place strains on charity income and expenses. Donations and volunteering may also decrease as a result of personal financial pressures.

Charities will continue to be affected by:

• increasing demand among people experiencing vulnerability, who turn to charities for help when impacted by cost-of-living pressures
• increasing operating costs, including insurance premium increases and higher employee expenses associated with a tight labour market and the need to retain existing employees
• recruiting, supporting, and retaining volunteers when the number of volunteers remains below pre-COVID levels.

Charities need to manage these pressures alongside their obligations to funders (including government), members and beneficiaries.

We help the public and charities by continuing to promote the Charity Register, ensuring there is an easy method to find a registered charity in Australia. Charities can use the Charity Register to find like‑minded organisations to work with. We also support charities by minimising any unnecessary regulatory burden, allowing them to focus on helping those in need.

Cybersecurity and privacy risks facing the charity sector

As well as the cost of protecting data and information, cybersecurity and privacy risks can present challenges, particularly for the small volunteer‑run organisations that make up around half of Australia’s registered charities.

Charities, including those that are small, often hold personal information on beneficiaries and donors, and it is important for charities to protect themselves from cyber-risks and manage cybersecurity incidents.

We will update our guidance based on our cybersecurity compliance reviews to help charities to improve their governance.

We will continue to support charities by encouraging them to be cyber-aware and share useful guidance.

The cumulative impact and pace of regulatory reform and initiatives on charities

The concurrent regulatory reforms occurring across all levels of government impact the charity sector. The number and pace of these reforms have a significant impact on charities, half of which are volunteer run.

When regulatory changes are being developed by other agencies, we proactively share data and provide insights on the nature of the charity sector to help minimise red tape for registered charities. We will also share updates and guidance to help charities to understand new obligations.

Cooperation

We are committed to working with stakeholders to deliver on our vision and purpose.

Cooperation with these organisations helps us ensure we are a better practice regulator in line with the government’s 3 best practice principles.

Regulator performance

Regulator reporting

As the independent Commonwealth regulator of charities, the ACNC is responsible for registering new charities, as well as administering the national regulatory framework for around 60,000 existing charities.

The ACNC does not regulate the broader not-for-profit sector. Charities are a subset of the not-for-profit sector.

Our key activity is to maintain a free and accurate register of Australian charities (the Charity Register), which includes registering new charities in a timely manner.

We are committed to:

• maintaining the integrity of the Charity Register through our reviews of charity entitlement of DGR endorsed charities, monitoring and enforcement activities and data integrity work (such as removing those who persistently fail to meet their reporting obligations via our double defaulter process)
• helping charities to understand and meet their obligations through information, guidance, advice and other support
• informing public policy makers, researchers, and the media about the work of the charity sector through submissions, reports, advice and other support
• working with all levels of government to share our data to reduce regulatory burden and highlight the impact that reforms will have on charities.

Our Regulatory Approach Statement outlines the ACNC’s approach to regulating charities. Most of our effort is focused on education. This reflects the fact that over half of charities are operated by volunteers and that 31% of charities operate with revenue under $50,000. Most people involved in charities are honest, act in good faith and try to do the right thing. We will not hesitate to act where there is a risk of harm to the public or serious wrongdoing.

We have embedded the Australian Government’s 3 best practice principles into everything we do.

1 treasury.gov.au/the-department/accountability-reporting/statements-of-expectations/statements-of-intent

Risk management

The ACNC adopts the ATO’s Enterprise Risk Management Framework and risk tolerance.

We are:

• willing to accept higher levels of risk where there is a clear opportunity to realise benefits and where risks can be controlled to acceptable levels
• less willing to accept risk where it is not clear that benefits will be realised or where risks are unable to be controlled to acceptable levels.

Enterprise risks that affect our ability to achieve our vision and purpose are listed below, along with our strategies to contain these risks within acceptable levels.

The ACNC Advisory Board is established under section 135-15 of the ACNC Act.

The board meets quarterly to support and advise the ACNC Commissioner.

Board members are appointed by the Assistant Minister responsible for the ACNC.

The board:

• includes up to 8 ‘general members’ with expertise in the not-for-profit sector, law, taxation or accounting
• can include ‘ex officio’ members appointed to the board because they hold a specified office.

The Chair of the Advisory Board provides an update after each meeting.

Details of current board members and meeting summary updates are available at acnc.gov.au.

Rationale for measure: The Charity Register is used by a range of stakeholders including the public, volunteers, donors, charities, government agencies, the media, and researchers. This measure looks at our effectiveness in ensuring the Charity Register is available with as little interruption as possible. It excludes scheduled maintenance (for example, where we may need to apply security updates).

Rationale for target: Due to the provision of back‑office services by the ATO, the availability of the Charity Register can be affected by ACNC or ATO‑specific issues. This has informed the development of our target.

Comparison to 2023–24: In 2023–24, this measure included ‘uptime’ for the Charity Portal. While the Charity Portal is important, it is not available to the public. Access is limited to charities and their authorised representatives who use the Charity Portal to update the Charity Register. From 2024–25, we will simplify this measure to focus on the Charity Register (which is publicly available).

Methodology: The number of minutes that the Charity Register is available divided by the total number of minutes in the financial year, less time scheduled for maintenance.

Rationale for measure: The Charity Register only contains details of registered Australian Charities. This measure looks at our efficiency in registering new charities, ensuring that the Charity Register is updated and accurate.

Rationale for target: The target has been informed by historical performance.

Comparison to 2023–24: No changes.

Methodology: The number of new eligible charities registered within 15 business days of the ACNC receiving all information necessary to make a decision divided by the total number of eligible charities registered.