Registration requirement for a public charitable trust
Keshav Ramaprasad
(Querist) 13 January 2014
This query is : Resolved
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am a trustee of a Public Charitable Trust registered with Income Tax and has obtained 12AA certificate in the year 1999 and is also recognised u/s 80G.
Consequently the trust has been accepting donations from the public and granting 80G certificates. The trust is also audited by a recogonised CA firm annually and assessed by the ITO.
The trust has no immovable assets and has only bank FDs and Government bonds as its corpus fund.
The question is whether registration with the Commissioner of Charities or any other statutory body is required?
The original trust deed was drawn by a an Audit firm and the I-T's 12AA certificate was also obtained by it. The firm never found it necessary to have the trust registered. And it maintains the same position when inquired recently.
I shall welcome your considered opinion so that the matter may be put to rest.
I wish to add that this matter has cropped up because of KYC query from the trust's bank.
Thank you and with warm regards
Ramaprasad
T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate
(Expert) 14 January 2014
It is not mandatory to register the Trust since certificate has already been obtained. Your auditor is right in his opinion, but if you feel that it may registered, you can go ahead with registering the same.
krishna mohan
(Expert) 15 January 2014
I concur with the views of expert T. Kalaiselvan. You may find out from the banker whether it is stipulated by RBI as bankers act according to instructions from RBI and if so consult your CA accordingly.
