THE Charities Act, which was passed by the House of Representatives in October, was Thursday passed by the Upper House without amendments.

The provision, which will apply to charities already operating or intending to operate in the island, introduces regulations for the benevolent organisations and for the establishment of a legal and institutional framework to govern these entities.

Justice Minister Senator Mark Golding, in piloting the provision, noted that presently there is no single place to register charities.

The Charities Act now allows for the appointment of a person or body as the Charities Authority, which will be responsible for maintaining a register of all registered charitable organisations. The Act also sets out a definition for charities The registrar, among other things, is charged with taking steps to ensure that charitable organisations are not misused for criminal purposes.

In addition, the bill requires persons desirous of obtaining relief under specified acts such as the Income Tax Act, the GCT Act, and the Property Tax Act to apply to the authority for charitable status.

In May this year, the House passed the Charitable Organisations (Tax Harmonisation) (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013, making provisions for harmonising the treatment of charitable organisations for the purpose of taxation.

The legislation which harmonised the various tax statutes provided standard definitions for the terms “approved charitable organisation” and “charitable purposes” for tax use. It also amended the Customs Act, the General Consumption Act, the Income Tax Act, the Property Tax Act, the Stamp Duty Act, and the Transfer Tax Act.