Preserve religious charity status
Petitioners ask the Government of Canada to reject FINA recommendation 430 and retain 'advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose in the Income Tax Act. The government responds it is not considering removing that purpose.
Why we would sign this petition
- It would preserve tax benefits that help religious charities fund social and welfare services many communities rely on.
- It maintains the role of religious organizations in fostering social cohesion, volunteerism and local supports.
- It resists using the Income Tax Act to reshape civic culture and protects citizens’ freedom to promote religion-driven public good.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- Revising charitable definitions can be legitimate to ensure neutral, consistent criteria for all charities.
- Removing privileged categories could curb potential misuse of tax benefits or partisan political activity.
- An outright rejection may foreclose a targeted, transparent review that could better balance religious freedom, public benefit and fiscal oversight.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
Petition to the Government of Canada WHEREAS The House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance's "Pre-Budget Consultations in Advance of the 2025 Budget" report recommends to "Amend the Income Tax Act to provide a definition of a charity which would remove the privileged status of 'advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose" (recommendation 430). The removal of the charitable status of religious organizations would be harmful to society by: compromising the viability of those organizations, many of which provide substantial social and welfare supports, with no prospect of the government's filling the void; undermining the fourfold multiplicative effect of religious organizations' financial and social impact in their communities (see Cardus' Halo Project); and diminishing the common good advanced by religious organizations, which function as a bulwark against polarization, loneliness, and the erosion of social cohesion, purpose, involvement, and encroachment on civil liberties. compromising the viability of those organizations, many of which provide substantial social and welfare supports, with no prospect of the government's filling the void; undermining the fourfold multiplicative effect of religious organizations' financial and social impact in their communities (see Cardus' Halo Project); and diminishing the common good advanced by religious organizations, which function as a bulwark against polarization, loneliness, and the erosion of social cohesion, purpose, involvement, and encroachment on civil liberties. Recommendation 430 reflects a closed and rigid secular mindset contrary to Canada's open and flexible secular culture (see Bouchard-Taylor commission). Any effort to change or socially engineer the civic culture in Canada should not be done surreptitiously through the Income Tax Act. We, the undersigned citizens and residents of Canada call upon the Government of Canada to reject recommendation 430 of the FINA pre-budget report, reaffirm Canada's commitment to an open culture, and support each citizen's freedom to promote the common good through the advancement of religion, without punitive financial measures.
Government response
Response by the Minister of Finance and National Revenue Signed by The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne The Government of Canada recognizes the vital role that charities, including religious charities, play in delivering essential services to some of the most vulnerable in Canadian society. To support their important work, registered charities are granted significant tax benefits and privileges, including the ability to issue official donation receipts for the gifts they receive. Under the Income Tax Act, an organization may only qualify for charitable registration where it is established exclusively for charitable purposes and devotes all its resources to achieving those purposes. The legal interpretation of “charitable purposes” has developed over time to include the relief of poverty, the advancement of religion, the advancement of education, and other purposes recognized as charitable, such as the promotion of health or the protection of the environment. Today, Canada is home to over 85,000 registered charities, representing a wide variety of causes, beliefs, and interests. Registration as a charity does not indicate government endorsement of an organization’s specific goals or views. Instead, it confirms that the organization meets certain conditions, including that it is constituted and operated exclusively for charitable purposes. These benefits are extended to a broad range of organizations providing socially beneficial activities to the public, from educational institutions to religious organizations, as long as they meet the legal requirements for registration. The Government of Canada is not considering amending the Income Tax Act to remove the advancement of religion as a qualifying charitable purpose, nor is it actively developing policy on this issue.