Alternatives to Charitable Status

Your desire to contribute to community is shared by many others, with 85,000 charities in Canada, there is intense competition for both resources and attention. In addition to the day-to-day running of a charity, there are annual regulatory requirements that you will need to fulfill for the Canada Revenue Agency, such as annual filing, record keeping, meeting spending requirements and maintenance of your charitable receipts. So, even when you obtain charitable status, your work has only just begun.

The charitable and non-profit sector is among the fastest growing sectors within the Canadian economy and shows no signs of slowing down. It is a highly competitive environment to attract financial resources and volunteers requiring a significant investment of your time, energy and resources to succeed. To best position yourself for success you should consider some of the following questions before proceeding:

• Are you able to clearly articulate, in a manner that is compelling, what the problem or need within the community that you seek to address?



• Is your organization truly unique? Are there any other organizations conducting activities similar to what it is you propose? CentrePoint has developed a locator tool within this site to show what charities are working within your community and what activities they carry out. Have a look to see who is already doing what across Canada and find out how to connect with them.



• Do you have a minimum of three members of the community who share your commitment to the cause and are willing join with you to form an organization?



• Do you know how you will resource your organization?



• Are you aware of your legal and regulatory obligations for operating a non-profit organization in your province and potentially a federally registered charity?

If you are unsure about any one of these questions, you should probably seek other avenues of addressing your cause. Have you tried donating or volunteering with already existing organizations? Make some calls and conduct your research before moving too far forward.