How to describe activities
To be registered, your organization must only carry out activities that further charitable purposes.
When describing activities, you must provide detailed, credible, and real plansFootnote 1 that reflect how your organization will operate. Also, you must describe how each activity furthers your organization's purposes.
Before you start
Select the applicable option:
If you're applying for registration as a charity
You must describe your organization's activities in the Purposes and activities section of your application.
Focus mainly on:
- all current activities
- any proposed activities you plan to carry out within 12 months of registration.
If you don't provide enough information or can't demonstrate that your resources will be used exclusively to further your charitable purposes and comply with the requirements of the Income Tax Act, we may deny your application.Footnote 2
If you're already registered and want to change your activities
Review the information below and send us your revised activities online through your CRA account.
What information to provide
When describing your activities, provide the following information for each activity:
- Activity name
- Indicate the name of the activity.
- Overview
Provide the following information:
- what you want to achieve through this activity (for example, operating a food bank for individuals who are experiencing poverty)
- which charitable purpose this activity furthers
- Implementation
Provide the following information:
- how the activity will be carried out
- involvement of employees and volunteers
- any fees charged
- anticipated expenditures for this activity
- other logistics (transportation, facilities, etc.)
- Working with other organizations
Provide the following information, as applicable:
- clearly explain the role of each organization involved, including your own. Your explanation should make it evident where your responsibilities begin and end, and where those of the other organizations begin and end
- if you carry out your own activities through intermediaries, describe how you maintain direction and control
- if you provide grants to non-qualified donees, explain how you meet accountability requirements
- if you make gifts to qualified donees, provide their legal names and business numbers (if known)
Provide any written agreements (current or proposed), if applicable.
For more information: How your charity can work with others
- Beneficiaries
Indicate who will benefit from the activity and explain how these beneficiaries are selected. They must be a sufficient segment of the community.
For more information: Guidelines for registering a charity: Meeting the public benefit test
- Location
- Specify the physical address, town or city, and country where the activity will take place.
- Timeline
Provide the following information:
- when the activity started or when you plan to carry it out
- frequency and length of the activity
- Supporting documentation
To help us determine whether your activities are charitable, provide any relevant supporting documentation such as:
- minutes of meetings
- newspaper articles
- website information
- videos
- fundraising materials
- pamphlets
- brochures
- any other documents or media
Example of how to describe an activity
Activity name: Classes on employment life skills
The Northern Education Society is focused on providing job-skills training to individuals in isolated Northern communities, in an effort to relieve poverty.
The Society will host a two-hour class every Monday and Wednesday evening, at the Northern Community Centre. Classes will consist of lesson plans focusing on life skills to assist participants to obtain and to maintain employment, such as effective time management and budgeting. Participants will also have access to the centre’s computers and will be introduced to Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook, to learn computer skills. Examples of course material are attached. Each class will be facilitated by two volunteer instructors who currently work in the education field.
The classes will be offered to anyone in the community at no charge, but will be limited to 10 participants per session. The training will be advertised throughout the community, and participants will be selected on a first-come, first-serve basis.
In addition, each Tuesday and Thursday evening, volunteers will be available at the Northern Community Centre to provide one-on-one assistance with resume building and job interview preparation. The Society will focus on recruiting volunteers who have experience in human resources and/or management, and this service will be available to residents of the community at no charge.