Jordan - NGO Law Monitor - Research Center - ICNL - The ...

Jordan - NGO Law Monitor - Research Center - ICNL
that meets its membership criteria, which are specified within its articles of incorporation. Societies may
benefit from income tax exemptions and charitable status.
Closed Society: A closed society is a society of one or more member(s) where its financial resources are
limited to the funds/money paid by the founding members to achieve its objectives. Closed societies are
registered at the Ministry of Social Development, and require the approval of the Council of Ministers to be
registered. Closed Societies are supervised by the competent ministry to which the society’s objectives are
related.
Private Society: A private society is a society with a limited number of members, which should not be less
than three and not more than twenty. Private societies are registered at the Ministry of Social Development,
and are also supervised by the competent ministry to which the society’s objectives are related. If the
membership of a Private Society is limited to one legal person, approval of the Council of Ministers is
required. Private Societies do not have an open membership scheme, and were formerly known as not-forprofit
companies.
Foreign Societies: Law 51 of 2008 and its amendments allow the registration of operating branches of foreign
societies. The registration of branches of foreign societies is handled by the Ministry of Social Development.
According to the 2008 law, both Societies and Private Societies are eligible to receive local and foreign
funding, and support from the Fund for the Support of Societies. Closed societies are prohibited from seeking
any kind of funding other than the money put by the members, and foreign societies may not seek local
funding without the prior approval of the Council of Ministers.
Public Benefit Status
The Income Tax Law (Law 75 of 1985) exempts the income of societies and other social entities from tax; it
also exempts the income of any religious, charitable, cultural, and educational, sports, and health
organizations with public benefit purposes. Societies apply to the Income Tax Department requesting
recognition for tax-exempt status; the Department verifies whether the eligibility criteria stated in Article 7 of
the Income Tax Law has been met by the applicant, and issues a decision to that effect.
In addition, the Income Tax Law grants certain societies charitable status. Societies with religious, charitable,
humanitarian, scientific, cultural, sports, or professional purposes are eligible to apply for charitable status.
Donations made to societies with charitable status are exempted from income tax; the exempted income,
however, should not exceed one quarter of the taxable income of the donor. For the society to benefit from
charitable status, a request should be submitted to the Council of Ministers requesting recognition of the
society as charitable. The Council of Ministers will then verify the eligibility of the applicant society and issue
a decree to this effect.
Barriers to Entry
Law 51 of 2008 as amended makes registration of societies mandatory. It does not specify a sanction for
unregistered groups, but it does stipulate that the law does not prevent the application of any penalty
stipulated in any other law. The Penal Code (Law 16 of 1960) stipulates that unregistered societies are illegal,
and that individuals who conduct activities for such unregistered groups or become members therein are
subject to a penalty of up to two years’ imprisonment.
Founding members of societies must be Jordanian citizens; fully competent and at least 18 years old; and not
convicted of a crime or felony involving morals. The approval of the Council of Ministers is required to give
approval where one of the founders is non-Jordanian or a corporate identity. Approval from the Council of
Ministers is also necessary for all closed societies and for private societies of only one member.
Jordanian law provides the Council of the Society Register with 60 days to review an application for
registration, and 15 days for the Society Register Officer to complete registration procedures. In practice,
therefore, a society applicant may have to wait 75 days from the date of submitting his application before he
receives proof of his registered legal status.
The Societies Registrar has met on several occasions and decided on 150 registration applications, 98 of
which were approved. The Council of the Society Register has the right to reject any application without
stating a justification.
Finally, the law prohibits the registration of any society with illegal objectives or that contradict the public
order in Jordan. CSOs are also prohibited from having any political objectives or seeking to achieve political
goals.
Barriers to Operational Activity
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