Mr. Speaker, with respect to my colleague’s question, here is the response from the Canada Revenue Agency, or CRA, as of June 9, 2025, the date of question.
The CRA’s data is maintained by fiscal period, from April 1 to March 31. As such, the CRA is providing the data for the 2024-2025 fiscal period.
With regard to (a), as of March 31, 2025, there were 85,315 registered charities in Canada.
With regard to (b), as of March 31, 2025, 32,078 charities were included under the charitable category “Advancement of religion,” which represents approximately 38% of registered charities.
At the time of registration, the CRA assigns all registered charities’ category and sub-category codes that reflect their purposes and activities. The CRA’s publiclyavailable databases retain this information, including its list of charities and certain other qualified donees, available at https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/charities-giving/list-charities/list-charities-other-qualified-donees.html, which identifies each registered charity’s category and sub-category code.
The category code generally identifies the category under which a charity’s purposes are classified. It is important to note that category codes may not always reflect the full extent of a charity’s activities. A charity may have religious motivations or associations without being categorized under an “advancement of religion” category code. For example, a charity with religious motivations that operates a food bank could be categorized under a “relief of poverty” category code. Another example could be a charity whose directors are members of the clergy, who operate the charity based on religious principles, but who offer humanitarian relief programs.
If a charity changes its programs over time, its category code is not automatically updated. The charity must inform the CRA of any such changes for this code to be revised.
With regard to (c), during the 2024-2025 fiscal period, the CRA audited 220 registered charities, which represents approximately 0.3% of registered charities. Through its understanding of the charitable sector population, the CRA has developed and implemented a risk-based and multi-streamed approach involving audits and various non-audit interventions. The risk-based and multi-streamed approach is designed to provide the appropriate balance of compliance treatments, which include an array of activities ranging from reminder and nudge letters, to conducting audits, which can result in outcomes ranging from education letters, to sanctions, and revocations. This approach is based on the understanding of how risk is distributed through the charitable sector population. A priority of the CRA, through its risk-based approach, is to address high-risk non-compliance, which has a severe negative impact on the charitable sector.
With regard to (d), the confidentiality provisions of the Income Tax Act prevent the CRA from commenting on specific cases. The CRA’s actions can only be made public when an audit results in a charitable registration being revoked, annulled, or suspended, or when a charity is penalized. However, the CRA can confirm it does not select registered charities for audit based on factors such as faith or denomination, nor would such factors influence the outcome of an audit.
