From next year, all Jersey non-profit organisations (NPOs) will need to be registered with the Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC).
NPOs which may be vulnerable to exploitation by criminals will need to provide further information on the scope of the work they do.
These new requirements aim to prevent money raised for charitable purposes from falling into the wrong hands, and are being made to comply with the advice given by FATF, the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog.
What does this mean for Jersey charities?
While Jersey is fortunate not to have any domestic terrorism, there is always a risk that someone will seek to take advantage of island entities to divert funds from their intended purposes. Globally, we have seen that charities have been targeted and the changes to the Island’s laws are designed to prevent this.
The vast majority of charities operating in Jersey will be unaffected by the new requirements The new legislation has been drafted with two aims:
- To prevent terrorist financing and
- to have minimal impact on those in the NPO sector (which includes charities), allowing them to continue their work as they have, in some cases, for decades.
The new requirements form part of the changes to the NPOs Law, which can be read here.
Details about NPOs can be found on jerseyfsc.org which should provide information of whether the changes will impact your charity.
Consultation paper
At the same time, Jersey’s Government have issued the second Consultation paper for Non-Profit Organisations and is seeking your feedback by 18th November.
Still have questions?
To help answer any questions that you may have, the Association of Jersey Charities are holding a ‘lunch and learn’ event at St Paul’s Centre on 7th November from 12.00 to 13.30.
The Government of Jersey, Jersey Financial Services Commission and the Office of the Charity Commissioner who have been involved in these changes will be on hand to answer any questions you may have. Confirm your attendance here.
