Charity regulators from nine jurisdictions plan an AI working group after some saw AI-written applications

Charity regulators from nine jurisdictions have agreed to set up a joint working group on digital transformation and artificial intelligence, after some of them saw applications for charitable status, and complaints, produced entirely by AI. The decision is recorded in a joint communique that the Charity Commission for England and Wales published on October 30, 2026, after a two-day meeting hosted by Ireland's Charities Regulator on October 19 and 20.

The meeting brought together heads and representatives of the charity regulators of Australia, Canada, England and Wales, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Singapore, along with a representative of the National Association of State Charity Officials in the United States. It covered four themes: regulatory approach, geopolitical challenges for the sector, digital transformation and AI, and compliance.

What the regulators saw

"Some Regulators had observed an increase in applications for charitable status and campaign-style complaints, generated entirely by AI," the communique says. It does not say which regulators, or how many cases. The regulators recognized significant benefits in AI, the communique says, but "registered a note of caution" about its growing use by "rogue actors attempting to circumvent robust processes." Besides agreeing to set up the working group, they agreed to share what they learn and to explore how AI can be used ethically in their own regulatory work.

More applications, and more complex ones

The regulators also discussed "sustained increases in the number and complexity of registration applications." Figures from England and Wales show the pressure. Dame Julia Unwin, chair of the Charity Commission, told its annual public meeting on October 15, according to the published script, that it had seen "yet another record year of applications to register a new charity" last year, assessing more than 11,700 and adding 4,650 new charities to the register. Its regulatory compliance caseload rose 23%, she said, and response times have suffered. The government is giving the Commission an increase in annual funding of around 25% on average over the next three years, much of it to make its services more intuitive and efficient, she said.

Trust and money across borders

The communique sets the meeting against legal and regulatory challenges, among them "eroding public trust in institutions generally." The invited speaker for the session on geopolitical challenges, Oonagh Breen, a professor and expert in NGO law and comparative charity regulation, spoke on "Charity regulation in an era of eroding public trust" and used international statistics to show how public trust in charities is directly linked to external factors.

On compliance, the regulators affirmed their central role in supporting compliance with the standards of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), given how much charity money crosses borders. They also agreed to look at reinstating their working group on policy as a separate group.

Since the last meeting

At their previous in-person meeting, held in the U.K. from October 28 to 30, 2024, regulators from seven jurisdictions met with an observing invitee from the United States, eight nations in all by that communique's count. The regulators agreed, subject to national laws, to improve data sharing to prevent cross-border abuse of charity status through registration, and planned to meet again in the spring of 2026. This year's list adds the Isle of Man, and it describes the U.S. participant as a representative of the National Association of State Charity Officials rather than as an observing invitee. The next meeting will be hosted by a different member, and until then the regulators will keep meeting online every quarter. The communique gives no date or place.