Knowing the legal environment for the activities of civil society organizations is fundamental to developing strategies and instruments capable of enabling and stimulating the culture of donation in Brazil, especially for the Philanthropy Network for Social Justice and its member organizations, which operate in the promotion of grantmaking together with the national and international philanthropic ecosystem.
Tax treatment, tax incentives, access to the banking system and other points are central to encouraging donations to civil society organizations. Furthermore, in recent years the increasing restrictions on the participation of CSOs in civic space and also the criminalization of the sector by conservative groups have visibly impacted trust relationships and the flow of donations, not to mention the risks to their performance and activism in the field of access to rights and, in particular, human rights.
In this sense, the publication Assessment of the legal environment for civil society actors, which is part of the seal DONATE TO TRANSFORM, focuses on the analysis of legal aspects related to the field of philanthropy and donations, and proposes to: (1) share the mapping of problems and opportunities related to the legal environment in which CSOs operate; (2) publicize agendas and initiatives to improve the legal environment of CSOs; (3) provide information to organizations that want to engage in advocacy related to improving the legal environment.
Three themes make up the structure of this material, addressed in the dimensions of problems, challenges and opportunities:
► Formalization and management of CSOs: legal personality, registration and tax treatment.
► Donation and fundraising: donations, tax incentives, endowments and access to the banking system.
► Autonomy: supervision and control, restriction of participation and criminalization.
The study was carried out with the support of the Africa Philanthropy Network (APN) in the context of developing the baselines of the countries that are part of the Donate to Transform Program Alliance (Brazil, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Palestine and Uganda ), based on a documentary review and interviews with strategic actors in the field.
Prepared by the law firm Vinícius Marques de Carvalho – specialized in civil society organizations, impact business, antitrust, compliance and data protection – the publication aims to contribute to advocacy actions within the local philanthropic ecosystem, with a view to encouraging the expansion of donations to organizations, groups and grassroots movements, strengthening the field of community philanthropy and social justice .
The expansion of donations in the country depends on political, economic, social and cultural factors. Looking at the instruments capable of boosting this transformation also involves understanding and transforming the legal environment, in order to provide increased resources.
A publication is available for reading and downloading in the Philanthropy Network for Social Justice library.
See other publications that are part of the seal:
Challenges in communicating community philanthropy and social justice
Expanding and strengthening community philanthropy in Brazil
