Endorsed charities that are eligible
To be eligible for a refund of franking credits, an entity must meet all of the following requirements:
- have an Australian business number (ABN)
- satisfy the residency requirement
- be a charity endorsed by us as exempt from income tax.
An income tax exempt fund, under repealed item 4.1 of section 50-20 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 that was endorsed on or before 31 December 2013 is treated as an endorsed charity that is exempt from income tax.
Deductible gift recipients that are eligible
To be eligible for a refund of franking credits, a deductible gift recipient (DGR) must meet all of the following requirements:
- have an Australian business number (ABN)
- satisfy the residency requirement
- the entity must be endorsed by us as a DGR in its own right or be a DGR listed by name in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.
A DGR must be endorsed in its own right. It is not sufficient if your DGR is only endorsed in relation to a fund, authority or institution that it operates, such as a school building fund.
Check if your organisation is eligible
Look up your ABN on the Australian Business Register (ABR) website at abn.business.gov.au. Check if your organisation is:
- a DGR
- endorsed as a charity exempt from income tax.
Next step:
Residency requirements
Endorsed charities and endorsed deductible gift recipients must meet the residency requirements. At all times during the income year for which organisation is applying for a refund, it must meet both of the following:
- it has a physical presence in Australia
- to the extent that it has a physical presence in Australia, it incurs its expenditure and pursues its objectives principally in Australia.
Developing country relief funds
An entity is eligible for a refund of franking credits if it is a public fund declared by the Treasurer to be a developing country relief fund. It must not be prescribed by regulation as an entity ineligible for the concession.