Home Ministry extends validity of FCRA registration for NGOs till December 31

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Union home ministry has extended the validity of FCRA registration for non-governmental organisations with pending renewal applications until December 31. The notice cautioned NGOs whose renewal application has been either denied or their FCRA licence cancelled from receiving or utilising foreign grants.

In a public notice, the ministry said the validity of the registration of those FCRA entities whose validity had been extended till September 29 and whose renewal application is pending, will stand extended up to December 31 or till the date of disposal of renewal application, whichever is earlier.

It also said the validity of those entities whose five-year validity period expire by October 1 to December 31, but have applied for renewal before expiry of the validity period, will stand extended up to December 31 or till the disposal of the application, whichever is earlier.

This is the 11th time that the MHA has granted extension to NGOs following passing of FCRA Amendment Act, 2020. According to sources, several prominent NGOs have lost their FCRA licences in the latest round of scrutiny while 281 new FCRA registration licences have been issued to NGOs in the last nine months. These include Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's Meer Foundation, Olympian Abhinav Bindra Foundation and Vedanta-backed Cairn Foundation, among others.

The ministry last month cautioned NGOs that the interest earned on fixed deposits or profits made from investments in financial instruments by using foreign funding should be credited to