Foundations to provide abridged regulations

From 6 January 2021, all foundations must provide us with abridged regulations upon incorporation.

Existing foundations must provide these by 6 April 2021.

Abridged regulations

Abridged regulations are defined in the amendment to the Foundations Law:

"Abridged regulations means those parts of the regulations of a foundation comprising the information required to be included in the regulations under Articles 12 and 14, but not including any information from which a person can or may be identified or any other information prescribed by Regulations."

The abridged regulations should state that they are 'abridged regulations' and must contain the following information from the foundation’s regulations:

  • the establishment of a council to administer the foundation’s assets and to carry out its objects
  • provision for the appointment, retirement, removal and remuneration (if any) of its members
  • how decisions of the council are to be made and, if any decision requires the approval of any other person, the decisions and that person must be specified
  • the functions of the council, and, if they must or may be delegated or exercised in conjunction with any other person, the extent to which this must or may be done;
  • the procedure to ensure a qualified person is appointed to be the qualified member of the council as soon as reasonably practicable if the qualified member
    • dies
    • retires or
    • otherwise ceases to be able to act
  • provision for the appointment of a guardian:
    • identifying the initial guardian of the foundation
    • providing how a guardian of the foundation may retire
    • providing how a new guardian is to be appointed and
    • providing for the guardian’s remuneration (if any)

If the regulations give the guardian the power to approve or disapprove any specified actions of the council, then this should be included in the abridged regulations.

The abridged regulations should also include any part of the regulations that contain provisions to the following effect:

  • the guardian is not permitted to sanction or authorise any action taken or to be taken by the council of the foundation that would not otherwise be permitted by the charter or regulations.

Any information that can or may identify a person does not have to be included in the abridged regulations. Only exclude what is necessary to protect the identity. The abridged regulations still need to make sense.

Submit abridged regulations

Abridged regulations must be submitted by 6 April 2021. It should be clear that they are the 'abridged regulations' on the title page or front cover.

All foundations incorporated under the Foundations Law will need to complete a transition application in myRegistry. You can upload the abridged regulations in the transition application.

If you are not ready to file the transition application by 6 April, you can provide the abridged regulations via the 'Form uploader' submission type within myRegistry. Select 'other registry correspondence' from the drop down and attach the abridged regulations using the upload facility.  

Applicants for a new foundation can upload the abridged regulations, with a copy of the proposed charter, as part of their application for incorporation in myRegistry.

Amendments to the law

The changes have been made by amendments to Articles 1 and 2 of the Foundations (Jersey) Law 2009

Financial Services (Disclosure And Provision of Information) (Jersey) Regulations 2020 - Article 8

Financial Services (Disclosure And Provision of Information) (Jersey) Law 2020 - Article 27