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Secretary — Annual Obligations

The end of your club's financial year starts the most important compliance cycle of the year. Miss these deadlines and the club risks fines, deregistration, or loss of incorporated status.

All requirements come from the Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (Qld), unless otherwise noted.

The compliance calendar

Deadline What you must do Form Source
Within 6 months of financial year end Prepare financial statements + verification or audit report — ss.59A, 59AA/59AB
Within 6 months of financial year end Hold the AGM — s.55
At the AGM Present financial statements + verification report for adoption — s.59B
At the AGM Present the remuneration disclosure — s.70D (since 1 July 2024)
Within 1 month of AGM Lodge Annual Return + financial statements with OFT Form 12 s.59BA
Within 1 month of any change Notify OFT of change of office bearers or address Form 10a s.68
Within 3 months of a special resolution Lodge rule change with OFT, with statutory declaration Form 8 s.48

Check your Constitution for your financial year end date. Common options are 31 December, 30 June, or 31 March.

Financial reporting tiers

The level of financial scrutiny required depends on the club's size. These thresholds were updated on 1 July 2023:

Tier Revenue Current assets* What's required
Small (Level 3) Under $150,000 AND Under $300,000 President or treasurer signs off. No auditor needed.
Medium (Level 2) $150,000–$500,000 OR $300,000–$1,000,000 A qualified accountant verifies the accounts.
Large (Level 1) Over $500,000 OR Over $1,000,000 Full audit by a registered company auditor.

Most Queensland croquet clubs are Level 3. If you are unsure which tier applies, ask your Treasurer.

*Current assets excludes land, buildings, and depreciable equipment — clubs that own their grounds should not include the property value in this calculation.

Source: Associations Incorporation Act 1981 ss.59, 59A, 59AA, 59AB, as amended by the Associations Incorporation and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2020.

Remuneration disclosure

Since 1 July 2024, the management committee must disclose at the AGM all payments and benefits given to:

  • Committee members
  • Senior staff
  • Their close relatives (spouse, parents, siblings, children, grandparents, grandchildren)

This includes salary, allowances, free use of club facilities, subsidised goods — anything with a financial value.

If your club paid no one anything: You must still declare this at the AGM and record it in the minutes. Example: "No remuneration or benefits were provided to any committee member, staff member, or their relatives during the financial year."

If payments were made: Report the total value and the number of recipients. You do not need to name individuals publicly.

Source: s.70D

ACNC exemption

If your club is registered with the ACNC (Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission) as a charity, filing the ACNC annual information statement replaces the OFT Form 12.

Important: The ACNC exemption only replaces Form 12. All other Queensland obligations still apply — remuneration disclosure, grievance procedure, conflict of interest rules, and everything else on these pages.

Note: Most croquet clubs are not ACNC-registered. CAQ itself is not ACNC-registered. This exemption is unlikely to apply to your club unless you have specifically registered as a charity.

Where to find the forms

Search "Queensland incorporated associations forms" at qld.gov.au, or contact the Office of Fair Trading directly:

Sources

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