About Charities And IPCs

What Are Charities?

Charities are organisations which :

• Operate on a not-for-profit basis;

• Are set up exclusively for charitable purposes; and

• Carry out activities to achieve these purposes which benefit the public.

As long as your organisation is set up as above, it must apply to be registered within 3 months of its establishment.  

What Constitutes Charitable Purposes?

We recognise the following as charitable purposes :

• Relief of poverty;
• Advancement of education;
• Advancement of religion; or
• Other purposes beneficial to the community, which include commonly recognised ones such as :
• Promotion of health;
• Advancement of citizenship or community development;
• Advancement of arts, heritage or science;
• Advancement of environmental protection or improvement;
• Relief of those in need by reason of youth, age, ill-health, disability, financial hardship or other disadvantages;
• Advancement of animal welfare; and

• Advancement of sport, where the sport promotes health through physical skill and exertion.

Benefits of Registering As Charities

All registered charities will enjoy automatic income tax exemption. For properties which are used for exclusively charitable purposes, property tax may be exempted in full or partially upon application and review by the Comptroller of Property Tax.

For more information, please refer to the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) website.  

What Are Institutions of A Public Character (IPCs)?

Institutions of a Public Character (IPCs) are exempt or registered charities which are able to issue tax deductible receipts for qualifying donations to donors. In other words, donors are able to claim tax relief from their assessable income based on the amount donated, at prevailing deduction rate.

As this makes IPCs generally more appealing to donors in attracting donations, these organisations are rightfully held to a higher standard, both in terms of regulatory compliance as well as governance.