Charity thresholds are changing on 30 September 2026
From 30 September 2026, several of the income and asset thresholds that decide how a charity in England and Wales must have its accounts scrutinised are going up. For many charities that means moving from a full audit to an independent examination, or from needing a qualified examiner to being able to use one who is not, or from accruals accounts to simpler receipts-and-payments accounts. It's the biggest shake-up of these figures in over a decade.
These changes affect the level of scrutiny and the form of accounts. They do not change when you must register as a charity or file with the Commission — those thresholds stay the same.
What is changing
| Threshold | Now | From 30 Sep 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Audit required (gross income) | £1 million | £1.5 million |
| Audit on assets (with income over £250k → £500k) | £3.26 million gross assets | £5 million gross assets |
| Independent examination needed above | £25,000 | £40,000 |
| Qualified examiner needed above | £250,000 | £500,000 |
| Receipts-and-payments accounts allowed up to | £250,000 | £500,000 |
| Group (consolidated) accounts threshold | £1 million | £1.5 million |
England and Wales; applies to financial years ending on or after 30 September 2026. Check the exact application to your own year with your examiner.
And what is not changing
- Registration: still required once income exceeds £5,000 (CIOs at any size).
- Annual return: still required for charities with income over £10,000.
- Filing accounts and the fuller annual return: still from £25,000 income.
What the terms mean
Audit vs independent examination. An audit is the fuller, more expensive check carried out by a registered auditor. An independent examination is a lighter review. Raising the audit threshold to £1.5m means charities with income between £1m and £1.5m (and within the asset limit) can generally switch to an independent examination — often a real saving.
Qualified examiner. Above the qualified-examiner threshold, your independent examiner must be a member of a listed professional body. Raising it to £500k means more mid-sized charities can use a suitably experienced but non-qualified examiner.
Receipts-and-payments accounts. The simpler, cash-based way of preparing accounts, as opposed to accruals accounts. Raising the ceiling to £500k lets more charities use the simpler basis — which also keeps them outside most of the new SORP 2026 requirements.
One thing to check: your own governing document may require an audit even when the law no longer does. If you want to take advantage of the higher thresholds, look at your constitution — you may need to amend it or take a formal decision first.
What to do
- See where you sit against the new figures for your next financial year.
- Ask your examiner or accountant whether you can move to a lighter level of scrutiny, and from when.
- Check your governing document for any audit requirement that overrides the statutory position.
Source: ICAEW — new financial thresholds effective 30 September 2026.
This guide is general information for trustees and committee members, not legal, accounting or security advice, and every charity is different. The rules described here are changing during 2025–2027 and some detail may still shift, so always confirm the current position with the relevant regulator or a suitably qualified adviser before acting. Last reviewed July 2026.
Not sure how this lands on your board?
Sorting out exactly what a small charity or committee needs to do — and what it can safely ignore — is what we do. Ask us one question free, and a person answers, usually the same day.
Ask us — one question free