Parliament reviews government draft law restricting overseas transfers by charities

TDT | Manama

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A draft government law that would bar charities and other licensed bodies from sending money raised for public causes overseas without ministerial consent is being examined by Parliament’s Foreign Affairs, Defence and National Security Committee.

The bill amends parts of the law on raising funds for public purposes.

It sets stricter checks on fundraising and on receiving money from inside and outside Bahrain, and widens the list of breaches and penalties linked to that work.

Duties

It also adds new duties on reporting and gives the Ministry of Social Development new tasks linked to risk checks.

Under the proposed text, no sums collected for public purposes may be transferred to any person or body outside Bahrain unless the Minister of Social Development gives approval.

The bill also deals with cases where a licensed body receives a cash donation for public purposes without prior permission.

Value

It would have to notify the ministry within seven working days of receipt, stating the value of the donation, what it is for and the donor’s details.

The ministry would then have 30 days to tell the receiving body if the donation is accepted or refused, based on how far it fits public-purpose aims.

If that time runs out with no reply, the donation would be treated as refused.

Reports

The executive rules would set the terms for accepting donations, how they may be spent and what reports must be filed.

Where a fundraising permit is granted, the bill would require a detailed report within 30 days after the permit ends, or from the date the body is told the donation has been accepted.

The report would need to list the total collected and where it went, backed by supporting papers.

If fundraising runs for more than a year, the report would be filed each year.

Rules

The executive rules would also define how spending is checked.

The bill would make it an offence to accept donations from abroad without permission from the Ministry of Social Development.

It sets a penalty of jail and/ or a fine of up to BD1,000 for anyone who breaks that rule, or who transfers collected money abroad without the minister’s consent and in line with the rules in place.

It also allows the court to order confiscation of funds collected outside the legal rules, with those sums to be directed to charitable work approved by the ministry.

Two new articles are included. One assigns the Ministry of Social Development responsibility for analysing risks tied to those licensed to raise funds, including spotting potential terrorist-financing risks and taking steps to reduce them, with updates in line with the National Risk Assessment report.

Fine

The second allows an administrative fine of up to BD10,000 for breaches of the law, its executive rules and any decisions issued under it.

In setting the amount, the bill says account should be taken of the seriousness of the breach, any gain made and the harm caused.

A ministerial decision would specify which breaches trigger the fine and how much each one carries.