The Charity Commission has urged charities to ensure they are up to date with new reporting requirements that come into effect this year.
The regulator said charities and professional advisers should make sure they read its updated guidance, published today, on preparing annual accounts.
The guidance has been updated to take into account the revised Statement of Recommended Practice, which applies to accounts relating to financial years starting on or after 1 January 2026.
The updated Sorp includes new requirements for recognising and reporting on certain types of income and lease arrangements and new expectations for increased transparency from big-income charities.
The guidance has also been updated to take into account new income thresholds for which charities must follow the Sorp and have their accounts examined or audited.
The government has raised the income thresholds at which charities in England and Wales must prepare Sorp-compliant accruals accounts and/or have their accounts examined or audited, for financial years ending on or after 30 September 2026.
The new income thresholds are: above £500,000 for preparing accruals accounts (up from £250,000); above £40,000 for having accounts checked by an independent examiner (up from £25,000); either above £1.5m gross income or gross income above £500,000 and gross assets over £5m for an obligatory audit (up from £1m).
The commission said it had prepared separate guides for each of the three main charity structure types: a trust or an unincorporated association, a charitable company and a charitable incorporated organisation.
It said guidance for previous financial years would remain on its website for the time being because some charities might need to refer to this in compiling their accounts.
The regulator said that in the longer term, it would be “considering a range of options for making accounting for charities fit for the future”.
Amie Woods, assistant director of accountancy at the Charity Commission, said: “Our guidance should help charities continue to get it right under the current system.
“However, the rules for compiling accounts are complex, so in the longer term we want to explore if there are other ways to make it more straightforward for charities.
“It’s not just about cutting red tape, it’s about getting the right balance between reducing the burden on charities while maintaining accountability and protecting public trust.”