International Day of Charity – a Time for Reflection
Sunday the 5th of September marks the international day of charity. The date was chosen to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Mother Teresa and is celebrated internationally to raise awareness about charity related activities. What better time to recognise the work of charities than in the midst of a prolonged pandemic.
At Tisher Liner FC Law, we have a dedicated team of charity law experts who work with dozens of charities on a daily basis. On this international day of charity, we’d like to take this opportunity to recognise some of the tireless and invaluable work that has been performed over the last 18 months by a number of our clients in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We have had numerous clients come up with ingenious out-of-the-box ideas to offer targeted assistance to communities in need.
We have assisted charities to establish tax-deductible necessitous circumstances funds. These DGR endorsed funds are used to collect tax-deductible donations and to then provide material relief to individuals in situations of financial necessity in Australia. The charities we have worked with have successfully been able to provide protection and assistance to members of their communities through offering financial assistance that allows these individuals to gain access to crucial day-to-day goods and services.
On a similar note, we have also assisted to establish a large number of tax-deductible public benevolent institution who are providing urgently needed welfare relief to beneficiaries in need. These public benevolent institutions have been created for a range of purposes directly responsive to the COVID-19 crisis including offering financial assistance and skilled training to the unemployed, providing meals to individuals and families in need, obtaining crisis support and care for beneficiaries in need and the provision of support services to individuals who may be suffering from mental illnesses and other psychological disorders. We have been proud to assist charities operating locally in their communities, Australia wide and overseas as well.
Importantly, registered public benevolent institutions are able to be established in Australia to attract tax-deductible donations, and with the right mechanisms in place and carefully drafted policies, procedures, protocols and agreements, can provide money or resources to offer assistance to communities abroad. A number of our charities have been instrumental in recent times in providing material assistance to those most affected by the pandemic.
We have been proud to assist the establishment of a number of tax-deductible harm prevention charities, who conduct activities to promote the prevention or the control of behaviour that is harmful or abusive to human beings. These charities have been performing work on the front lines to prevent loneliness, substance abuse, emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, suicide, self-harm and harmful gambling.
We take this opportunity to recognise as well the work of a number of our charity clients who are registered health promotion charities, whose principal purpose is to promote the prevention or the control of diseases. Our clients have been taking innovative steps and have been performing ground-breaking research into a range of diseases and medical conditions.
We also note that despite the recent lockdowns, a number of our charity clients who are registered with DGR status on the Register of Cultural Organisation, have been providing invaluable services to their communities through the promotion of cultural events and activities.
Lastly, in what has quickly become an emerging area of our charity law practice, we have been very fortunate to work with and assist a large number of charities who are seeking to advance the natural environment in Australia and overseas. A number of our charities clients have obtained DGR endorsement through being registered on the Register of Environmental Organisations and are dedicated towards having a lasting impact on our environment for future generations to come.
We trust that you have appreciated this brief overview of just some of the many fantastic charities that we have been working with. If you are interested in establishing a charity or if you already work with a charity and would like to chat, then please feel free to get in touch with a member of our charity law team.