Check information about a charity
Genuine charity collectors should be easy to identify and there are ways that you can check.
Spot a genuine collector
Genuine street and door-to-door charity collectors should:
- wear prominent identification, such as an armlet or badge
- issue receipts (unless a collection box is used, or the donation is given in exchange for a promotional item such as a badge, emblem, pen or artificial flower)
- be able to produce a current written authority from the association for which they claim to be collecting
- be 15 or older, or be accompanied by an adult
- door knock only between 9am and 5pm.
If you don’t think a collector is genuine, do not make a donation.
You should note down:
- a description of the collector
- their vehicle's registration number.
Report a suspicious collector.
Check a charity or association
You can search this online public register for free to find out if:
- a charity is authorised to fundraise in Queensland
- an association is incorporated in Queensland.
You can also search this register to find out:
- an association’s name
- their registration number
- their postcode.
Full register
We can provide you with a list of all registered charities. Fees apply
Check if a charity has been removed from the register
You can check if a charity has been removed from the charities removed register in the last month.
Check an organisation has applied to be a charity
You can check if an organisation has applied to be registered as a charity from the current application notices register in the last month.
Examining documents
Charities must lodge certain documents with us. Some of these are available to the public for a fee.
You can either view or get copies of these documents from a charity’s file:
- audited financial statements
- constitution
- governing body membership.
You need to pay a fee for us to retrieve a charity’s file. We will need 10 business days to get the file for you.
You can do this:
We will let you know when the charity’s file has arrived, and what documents are in it.
You can view the entire file for no further cost in our Brisbane office.
If you want copies of documents from the file, we can email, post or fax them to you. Fees apply.