Centre tightens NGO foreign funding rules on declaring purpose, operating areas

The Union government on Monday amended the rules for non-profit organisations seeking foreign funds, requiring them to choose from a pre-defined list of purposes and to specify the states or the Union Territories where they will operate.

The home ministry issued a notification amending the Foreign Contribution Regulation Rules to this effect. Registration under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act is mandatory for a non-profit organisation to receive funds from abroad.

The pre-defined list of purposes for non-governmental organisations encompasses a range of faith-based activities, but explicitly excludes religious conversions. Among the religious activities for which foreign funding can be sought are constructing places of worship, documenting and preserving religious philosophy, carrying out religious education and facilitating inter-faith dialogue and peace initiatives.

“Every application for registration shall mention…the purpose or purposes for which registration is sought, chosen only from such list of purposes as specified in the schedule appended to these rules; and…the states or Union Territories in which the association proposes to undertake the activities,” the amendment states.

All organisations that are already registered under the Act have been given one year to inform the government about their specific purpose, and the states and Union Territories in which they operate. The amended rules also state that a fee of Rs 300 will...

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