To be registered, organisations must certify that each of their officers is qualified as an officer under the Charities Act 2005.

When you apply to register your organisation and after it is registered, you must send us an Officer Certification Form (Form 2) for each officer to certify that the officer is qualified in terms of the Act.

The Charities Act may define officers differently to the way your rules define them. If your organisation is a trust, your officers are all your current trustees and no one else. If it is not a trust, your officers are all the members of your highest governing body and no one else. An officer may be a person or a body corporate (for example, a company).

A governing body is usually appointed at an AGM and is often called a board or committee. The governing body meets regularly throughout the year to make decisions about running the organisation. Officers may or may not have titles such as secretary, treasurer or committee member.

If you do not have trustees, a board or governing body, your officers are all the people in a position to have significant influence over your management or administration. In some cases, such as a co-operative, the officers may be all the members. Check your rules to see if they specify how many trustees or governing body members you must have. For example if they specify five trustees you must certify five trustees.