INCORPORATED ASSOCIATION / NOT-FOR-PROFIT
For new endeavours in the early stages of development, the incorporated association structure can be a practical and cost effective means of establishment.
Below is a guide to the general benefits and the simple process of establishment.
WHAT IS AN INCORPORATED ASSOCIATION?
An incorporated association is a registered legal entity that's usually established for recreational, cultural or charitable purposes. It must have at least 5 members and put all profits back into the association's activities. (Business Victoria)
They are clubs or community groups, operating not-for-profit, whose members have decided to give their organisation a formal legal structure. (Consumer Affairs Victoria)
The incorporated association structure can be more effective for small community organisations. Incorporated associations are registered under state and territory legislation. (ASIC)
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF THIS LEGAL STRUCTURE?
Recognised Not-for-Profit Legal Entity – Provides the foundation for greater recognition by regulatory authorities and improved engagement with regional communities.
Legitimate Creative Community Group – Acknowledges the well-established intentions of the group to support legitimate creative and artistic production.
WHY A MEMBERSHIP SYSTEM?
Clean Payment Processing - Annual Membership Fee can be received in advance via online payment portals allowing secure financing and effortless management.
Non-Commercial Event Status – Annual event is free to attend for members only, run by a Not-for-Profit entity, and is a private event on private property.
Established Membership Website Template – Provide 10-15 good quality photos or backgrounds, any promotional videos, and a preferred colour scheme, and the entire website and membership platform will be ready to go for your association.
Simple Business Management – The established membership website provides complete automation for the entire membership management process. The only manual part of the sequence is approving the individual members to ensure the private community remains so.
Model Rules Well-Suited – While the model rules may seem complex, they mainly just outline the processes to follow for meetings, communication, membership management, internal disputes, etc, and generally will only be referenced at the Annual General Meeting (AGM). More than anything, they provide a ‘How To’ guide for all general association management matters. It is recommended to approve one key change in the first meeting, whereby the founding members are classified as standard members with full voting rights at meetings, and all other members are associate members with no voting rights. You may choose to allow associate members to apply to be standard members, but this is up to you, and you may simply add or amend any other such rules at any general meeting.
INCORPORATED ASSOCIATION REQUIREMENTS
Size and type of organisation
To become an incorporated association, your club, community group or organisation must:
- have at least five members
- not operate for the profit of its members (although an incorporated association can provide services or benefits to its members).
Choose a name
You must choose a name that reflects the purpose of the association.
- Your proposed name must not be identical or similar to one listed on Search ASIC registers. This list is checked as part of the application process and you are unable to proceed through the application until a proposed name can be registered.
- Your association must have the word ‘Incorporated’ as the last word of its name. You may also use ‘Inc.’ or ‘Inc’.
Create rules and purpose
Your association must have a written set of rules, also known as a constitution, which deals with the 23 matters set out in Schedule 1 to the Associations Incorporation Reform Act 2012 (the Act).
The rules also include the association’s purpose; this is what the association intends to achieve. For example, the purpose for a junior football association may be:
1. To provide an opportunity for the youth of our area to participate in Australian Rules Football and enhance their health and wellbeing through organised sport.
2. To provide for the health, welfare and wellbeing of players, supporters and spectators.
For more information on how to create rules for your association, view Incorporated association rules.
Vote to incorporate the association
In order to incorporate, the association must hold a meeting to vote on whether to do so. All members must be given at least 21 days notice of the meeting.
At this meeting, a majority of votes cast by members must:
- authorise a person, who is at least 18 years old and lives in Australia, to incorporate the association
- approve proposed rules that comply with the Act, or approve adoption of the model rules.
Unless the association nominates another secretary, the person who lodges the application for incorporation becomes the first secretary of the incorporated association.
Unless the rules specify otherwise, the committee members of the unincorporated association form the first management committee of the incorporated association. If the person who lodges the application is not the secretary, that person will become a delegate of the association. For more information, view Delegates of incorporated associations.
Model rules
Using the model rules can save an association the time and expense of drafting its own rules.
There are three items than can be specified to suit an association’s particular circumstances:
- the association's name
- its purposes and
- its financial year.
If an association changes any other items in the model rules, then the association has made its own rules.
Download a copy:
- Model rules for an incorporated association - English (Word, 198KB)
BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENT LINKS
Follow the links below to start setting up your incorporated association:
APPLICATION TO INCORPORATE AN ASSOCIATION
ABN REGISTRATION SERVICE
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