How to File a T3010 for an Inactive Charity

A charity that did nothing all year still has to file. That is the single point that catches out dormant organisations, and it is the reason a quiet year sometimes ends in a revocation notice. The figures may be simpler in an inactive year, but the charity still has to file a complete T3010, and CRA says so directly. This guide covers what inactive actually means on the form, what you report, and when winding up is the better answer than filing another nil year.

What does inactive mean on the T3010?

Question C1 at line 1800 asks whether the charity was active during the fiscal period, and inactive has a specific meaning. It means that during the entire fiscal period, the charity did not use any of its resources to carry out its charitable programs.

That is a high bar. A charity that ran one small programme, made one grant, or delivered any charitable activity at all was active, and answers yes.

The word "entire" matters. A charity that paused for eight months and then restarted was active for the year.

Holding assets, paying bank fees, filing paperwork and holding board meetings do not make you active. Those are not charitable programs. An organisation can hold investments and a board and still be inactive in this sense.

Do you still have to file if you did nothing all year?

Yes. To keep its registered status, an inactive charity must file its information return and explain why it was not active. CRA states this directly.

The obligation is the same as for any other charity. The return is due no later than six months after your fiscal period end. There are no extensions and no small-charity exemption.

The consequence of not filing is also the same. CRA issues a Notice of Intention to Revoke by registered mail, you have 90 days from the date on the notice, and registration ends if the window closes.

Dormant charities are exposed here in a way that active ones are not. There may be no staff member, no bookkeeper and no calendar entry, and the deadline passes without anyone noticing.

What do you write at question C2?

Explain why the charity was not active, in the "Ongoing programs" space. This is a required explanation, not an optional note.

Write plainly and specifically. A charity between projects, one whose founding programme ended, one waiting on funding, or one that lost the volunteers who ran it should say so.

Avoid a single word like "dormant" with nothing behind it. The explanation is what tells CRA whether this is a pause or a wind-down, and a bare answer invites a question rather than closing one.

Use active language about what will happen next where you can. A charity that intends to restart, and says what has to happen first, reads differently from one that has simply stopped.

What financial information does an inactive charity report?

Complete Section D or Schedule 6 as normal, and file your financial statements. Being inactive removes activity, not the financial section.

Which of the two you complete follows the usual test. Complete Schedule 6 instead of Section D if any one of these applies.

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An inactive charity holding investments can trip the second condition easily. A dormant organisation sitting on $60,000 in a term deposit completes Schedule 6, not the short section, even with no revenue at all.

You still file financial statements with the return, and you still complete Form T1235 for your directors and trustees. A complete return means the same thing for an inactive charity as for an active one.

Does an inactive charity still have a disbursement quota?

It can, and this is the part dormant charities miss. An inactive charity has a disbursement quota where the average value of its property not used directly in charitable activities or administration exceeds the threshold that applies to it. Inactivity does not automatically put every asset into that base, because the test is about how property is used, not whether programmes ran.

Question C17 at line 5850 asks whether the average value of that property exceeds the threshold in the question. If yes, you complete Schedule 8.

Schedule 8 calculates the minimum you were required to spend on charitable activities or qualifying disbursements. The rate is 3.5% on property up to $1 million and 5% on the portion above that.

A charity that spent nothing and holds property above the threshold may have a shortfall, unless disbursement excesses from the five previous fiscal periods, a carryback, or a separately approved reduction cover it. That is a compliance question separate from filing, and worth understanding before it accumulates across several dormant years.

When is voluntary revocation the better answer?

When the charity is not going to restart. Filing nil returns indefinitely for an organisation with no prospect of activity is not a neutral choice.

Question A2 at line 1570 asks whether the charity is no longer operating or no longer wants to be registered. Answering yes identifies the position on the return; it does not by itself revoke anything.

The revocation is a separate request. Online, log into My Business Account, go to "Update registered charity or RCAAA information" and select "Request voluntary revocation." On paper, send a letter separate from the return as well as answering yes at A2.

Winding up has its own consequences, including a final return and rules about transferring remaining property. Those are a separate subject and worth advice before you start, particularly where the charity holds assets.

The decision itself belongs to the board. What the finance function can supply is an honest picture: what is held, what it costs to stay registered, and how long the pause has already run.

What records does an inactive charity still have to keep?

All of them, on the same schedule as an active charity. Inactivity does not shorten a retention period.

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As long as registered, plus two years after revocation

Your books and records have to be kept at the Canadian address CRA has on file, in a format accessible to the charity and to CRA. Electronic and properly scanned records satisfy that, so long as the location and accessibility conditions are met. The obligation does not pause either.

Records go missing when the person holding them moves on and nobody replaces them. If your organisation is going quiet, deciding where the records live is the thing to settle first.

Questions about what a pause means for your obligations are the kind we answer on our FAQ page, and our guide to common pitfalls in charity accounting covers what tends to go missing when nobody is watching the file.

Frequently Asked Questions

We had no income and no expenses. Do we file a blank return?

You file a complete return with the financial figures reported as they are, which may be nil, plus your financial statements, Form T1235 and an explanation at C2. It is a complete return with small numbers, not a blank one.

We were inactive for part of the year. Which answer do we give?

Answer yes at C1. Inactive means the charity did not use any of its resources on charitable programs during the entire fiscal period. Partial activity means the charity was active.

Can we skip a year and file two returns later?

No. Each fiscal period has its own return and its own deadline. A missed year runs the full late-filing sequence regardless of whether you file it later alongside another.

Do we still need financial statements if there was no activity?

Yes. Financial statements form part of a complete information return. Where income is over $250,000 CRA recommends they be professionally audited; otherwise your treasurer should sign them.

Does an inactive charity still have to keep a bank account?

That is a practical matter rather than a CRA requirement. What is required is that you can produce complete records and report your financial position accurately, which is harder without an account.

How long can a charity stay inactive?

CRA does not set a fixed limit, but a charity registered to carry out charitable purposes and not doing so is in an uncomfortable position over time. Repeated inactive years are worth a board conversation about restarting or winding up.

This article covers T3010 filing for inactive charities as at August 2026. Winding up, voluntary revocation and the treatment of remaining property carry separate rules and consequences. Get advice before starting a revocation.

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