Using the code

In July 2016, we (the Fundraising Regulator) became responsible for regulating fundraising in the UK and took over responsibility for the Code of Fundraising Practice (the code) from the Chartered Institute of Fundraising. Since then we have updated the code several times – following consultation ahead of the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in May 2018 and then again before the version published on 1 October 2019 (the 2019 code).

The code applies to fundraising activity for charitable, philanthropic or benevolent purposes in the UK. It aims to: 

• promote consistent, high standards of fundraising;
• explain what we expect from charitable institutions, their governing bodies and fundraisers;
• explain what we will consider when investigating complaints;
• provide information for charitable institutions to help them assess their fundraising activity and deal with any issues they identify; and
• develop a culture of honesty, openness and respect between fundraisers and the public. 

The code does not cover: 

• fundraising for a personal cause (for example, someone raising money to pay for their pet’s operation); or
• financial and business practices of charitable institutions, which are generally dealt with by statutory bodies.

Through the code, we aim to make sure that fundraising activity meets the following values. 

Legal: Fundraising must meet the requirements of the law. 

Open: Fundraisers must be clear about their processes and willing to explain them when necessary. 

Honest: Fundraisers must act with integrity and must not mislead people when asking for donations. 

Respectful: Fundraisers must respect the people and places they interact with.

The code is not legally binding. It outlines what we expect of fundraisers carrying out fundraising activities that are covered by the code. We have included brief information and links to specific legislation which is relevant to our rules. However, it is not possible to include links to every piece of legislation which could be relevant across all fundraising practices, and which apply more generally to charitable institutions. 

The code also includes links to other industry codes of practice and standards that apply to fundraising. The code is intended to add to these standards, not replace them. 

You should not use the code as your only source of information on how to keep your fundraising legal. You should get appropriate professional advice to make sure your fundraising activity does not break the law.

The code applies to fundraising activity for charitable, philanthropic or benevolent purposes in the UK. Fundraising activity in the UK by organisations who are not registered with the Fundraising Regulator is still covered by the code. We will consider complaints about fundraising activity whether fundraisers are registered with us or not. 

Although the code applies to fundraising activity in Scotland, complaints about Scottish-registered charities operating in Scotland are dealt with by the Scottish Fundraising Adjudication Panel (the ‘panel’).

Most rules in the code start with ‘You must’ or similar wording, but certain rules only apply in certain circumstances or to certain organisations or people. Each section of the code starts with the following wording: ‘In this section, ‘you’ means….’ This will help you understand whether the rule is relevant to you and your activity. 

Organisations and people who certain rules in the code might apply to include the following. 

• Charitable institutions and their staff, including: 
  • registered charities; 
  • community interest companies (CICs); 
  • social enterprises; and 
  • exempt charities (such as universities in England).
• Professional fundraisers.
• Commercial participators.
• Fundraising platforms.
• Volunteers.
• Third-party suppliers and agencies.

The code has been significantly revised from the 2019 version. It no longer contains rules linked to specific legislation and many rules have been combined under wider principles.

This new approach has several advantages.

• Less prescriptive: It removes the need to list every practice that is allowed or not allowed.
• More flexible: It allows rules to be applied in a wider range of contexts, so each specific fundraising approach does not need its own set of rules.
• Proportionate: It allows fundraisers to consider appropriate action to take based on the size and nature of their fundraising activities.
• Future-proof: It allows fundraisers to apply the principles to a range of contexts without having to wait for specific advice about new approaches.

There are significantly fewer rules in the 2025 code, which makes it easier to follow. The rules often include terms which fundraisers will need to interpret, such as ‘appropriate’, ‘reasonable’ and ‘proportionate’. As a result, the code does not need to list all practices that are always required and all practices that are never allowed. Instead, it encourages fundraisers to think about how their activity meets the principles.

For example, rule 2.2.2 in the 2025 code states that:

You must carry out appropriate due diligence, proportionate to the size and nature of the donation, on the potential donor before accepting a donation.

‘Appropriate’ and ‘proportionate’ due diligence will vary depending on the size and nature of the donation in relation to the charitable institution’s normal fundraising activity. It is often ‘appropriate’ and ‘proportionate’ not to carry out formal due diligence checks on small cash donations. For larger donations from known sources, some checks will be necessary, but these may be relatively straightforward. Unexpected large donations, or those which come in unusual forms such as loans, foreign currency or cryptoassets (such as Bitcoin), will require more complex checks.

To help fundraisers decide what is appropriate and proportionate, many of the new rules are also accompanied by examples of acceptable and unacceptable practices (see below) and additional guidance, including Code Support Guides (CSGs). When we investigate complaints under the new rules, we will offer fundraisers a chance to explain how the steps they have taken are, for example, ‘appropriate’. We publish findings from our investigations to help other fundraisers understand our rules.

Rules in the code are often accompanied by bullet‑point lists outlining, for example: 

• actions which are never allowed;
• actions which are always required; and
• ways to meet the principle of a rule.

These are not intended to be complete lists, but will help you understand some of the actions which would or would not meet the principle of the rule. If we investigate your fundraising, we may ask you to explain how you met the expectations listed, or how you used a different approach in order to meet the rule.

As well as bullet-point lists, several rules are followed by text to help you understand:

• how a rule will be applied; and
• if there are any other important legal or regulatory requirements that apply. 

As this information is separate from the rules, we may update it more flexibly than the rest of the code (see How the code is updated, below)

The code includes links to relevant legislation, guidance from regulators that has to be followed by law (statutory guidance) and wider advice which may be useful when fundraising.

All organisations registered with us and using the Fundraising Badge are committed to meeting the standards of the code. If these organisations fail to meet the standards of the code, we may take action, such as asking them to remove the Fundraising Badge from their documents and other fundraising materials.

We may become aware that a fundraiser may have broken the code when we receive a complaint or through our monitoring of fundraising activity. If we decide to investigate a complaint about fundraising activity, we will give the charitable institution opportunities to explain their fundraising approach and how they believe this was in line with the code. If we find that their fundraising activity has broken the code, we will usually publish information about this on our website so the charity sector and the wider public can see the outcome of the investigation and apply any lessons that can be learnt from our decision.

Under rule 2.1.3 of the code, charitable institutions must work constructively with us and the panel. A charitable institution which fails to do this will have broken the code and we or the panel may take action against them as a result.

We developed the new code through extensive consultation with fundraisers and organisations in the charity sector. We will carry out further consultation before making any significant changes to the rules in the code.

We can update supporting information, such as the explanatory text under the rules and links to legislation and guidance, with the approval of our Standards Committee. We will announce any changes to these parts of the code on our website.