As many of you may know, the federal government brought into force the Canada Not-for-Profit Corporations Act (CNCA) on October 17, 2011. The CNCA is a comprehensive piece of legislation that is designed to provide organizations with a more modern governance structure.
The CNCA establishes a new set of rules for federally incorporated not-for-profit corporations in Canada. These new rules will replace Part II of the Canada Corporations Act (old Act), the law that has governed federal corporations for nearly a century. The rules under the CNCA are modern, flexible and more suited to the needs of the not-for-profit sector.
Pursuant to the CNCA, it is mandatory for all federally incorporated not-for-profit corporations to transition to this new act by October 17, 2014 or risk dissolution. The transition process requires that all federally incorporated not-for-profit corporations replace their Letters Patent with a Certificate and Articles of Continuance and create a new set of by-laws that comply with the provisions of the CNCA. More information on the CNCA and transition to it can be found on Industry Canada’s website.
