Socio Research & Reform Foundation

What happen when a NGO receives the FCRA amount in its NON FC accounts?

How it can be send back to the Donor ?

Regards

Neeraj Kumar Sinha

Dear Members,

Greetings to ALL!

My query is about receipt of individual donations from NRE account to a NGO which does not have FCRA certification…

What can be done if donations of Rs. 2,500 – 10,000 are received in NGO’s account?

I am sure this query must have been answered several times before…please pardon me for asking the same question again…

With kind regards,

Asif

As you may be aware that FCRA Dept had issued a Notice dated 18th July 2016 requiring all ‎organisations to update their Utilisation Accounts on FCRA website. Now the Department has ‎published a list of FCRA registered NGOs who have not updated their bank details till now. ‎

As per this list about 5845 FCRA Registered organizations have not yet updated their banks ‎details. In fact surprisingly this includes 2077 organization where even Designated Bank details ‎are not available with the FCRA department. ‎

We strongly recommend that please go and check these lists and if you find your organisation’s ‎name is also their please ensure that it is immediately updated.‎

‎____________________________________
Socio Research & Reform Foundation (NGO)
‎512 A, Deepshikha, 8 Rajendra Place, New Delhi – 110008
e-mail: socio-research@sma.net.in; ‎
website: http://www.srr-foundation.org

Dear SRRF Dialogue Members,

I have one NGO in which they open sub-utilisation accounts for their various projects and intimate the same within time as prescribed in the Act & Rules.

My query is whether NGO can start utilising funds from such intimated accounts after intimation or need to wait for the approval of sub-utilisation account from MHA

Your swift response is awaited along with some cited information as NGO had one mail from MHA which says that NGO should wait for approval

—
Thanks & regards
CS Swati Singhal Arora
Senior Associate
Legislegal

Dear Dialogue member

Greetings!

is intimation to FC dept. is required for opening a sub designated FC account?

Sakshi Sharma

Dear Members,

Our NGO has received a foreign donation directly into our Utliisation account, instead of the FCRA Main account. How can this be corrected?

Regards,

Sujatha Krishnaswamy

In a major reprieve for Lawyers Collective, a non-profit run by former ‎additional solicitor general Indira Jaising, Bombay High Court issued an ‎interim order recently, restraining the charity commissioner from attaching ‎the organisation’s assets and accounts.‎

Justice MS Sonak observed that while FCRA Act gave the Union government ‎power to “regulate or even prevent associations from accepting foreign ‎funds,” it did not permit the government to “stifle the very functioning of ‎individuals or associations.”‎

The court directed that the domestic and non-FCRA bank accounts of the ‎organisation be de-freezed on the condition that the NGO file quarterly ‎reports detailing the use of these funds.‎

In November last year, MHA had permanently cancelled the organisation’s ‎FCRA registration, alleging the misuse of foreign funds. The ministry had ‎directed that the NGO’s bank accounts be frozen and its assets attached. The ‎MHA had issued similar orders for Greenpeace India, and activist Teesta ‎Setalvad’s NGOs — Sabrang Trust and Citizens for Justice and Peace.‎

Lawyers Collective approached the Bombay high court through senior ‎advocates Aspi Chinoy and Jamshed Mistry, arguing that the MHA order — ‎that draws upon sections 22 and 15 of the FCRA — was erroneous and that ‎the sections had been misinterpreted. Advocate Chinoy argued that FCRA ‎provisions permitted the disposal of assets only with regard to defunct ‎organisations. He added that Lawyers Collective was an existing entity that ‎conducted extensive legal research in the fields of health and social justice. ‎He said the organisation had come to a standstill as the MHA had prohibited ‎it from accessing its own domestic accounts.‎

Justice Sonak observed that some of the allegations levelled by MHA were ‎‎“quite vague”. He added that since the appeal would be taken up for a final ‎hearing to decide upon the legality of the MHA’s decision, in the meantime, ‎it would not be appropriate for the NGO’s functioning to be halted.‎

____________________________________
Socio Research & Reform Foundation (NGO)
512 A, Deepshikha, 8 Rajendra Place, New Delhi – 110008
e-mail: socio-research@sma.net.in; website: http://www.srr-foundation.org

Dear Sir,

As per the latest budget, Sec 80G exemption would not be provided to cash donations exceeding Rs. 2000.

Would like confirmation that this is per annum per donor? Otherwise, there would people giving multiple donations of Rs. 2000 each..

Regards,

Sujatha

Dear Group Members,

Greetings!

Can we transfer FCRA fund from one FCRA bank account to another FCRA bank account?

By mistake, donor sent the fund to an NGO. The fund is now in FCRA bank account of the NGO. This NGO is ready to transfer the fund to the NGO to whom the fund belongs to.

We are in touch with some auditors. Some auditors are saying, fund can be transferred from one FC bank account to another FC bank account. Some auditors are saying it can not be. Prior permission is required from Home Ministry.

Please advice.

Thanks & regards,

Ajaya Paik

As several active SRRF Dialogue members would be aware that Dept has ‎been asking organizations who have not filed online return for FY 2014-15 ‎or FY 2015-16 to do so immediately. However problem is that there was no ‎window open on the FCRA Online portal to file these returns. Now the Dept ‎realizing the problem, has now come up with a window through which ‎organization can file their FCRA returns for previous periods. ‎

To do this, access FCRA Online services on following link by giving your ‎user name & password. A list of organizations which have not filed returns ‎alongwith the year/s will appear. You will need to calculate penalty amount, ‎for which even penalty calculator is given. ‎

https://fcraonline.nic.in/fc_public_login.aspx?Resp_Id=4‎

After penalties as calculated are paid online you can file your returns online. ‎

Be warned that there seem to be plenty of bugs in this and when you sit you ‎on this, get a nice hot cup of coffee and lots of patience. ‎
_____________________________________________
Socio Research & Reform Foundation (NGO)
512 A, Deepshikha, 8 Rajendra Place, New Delhi – 110008
e-mail: socio-research@sma.net.in