Quebec independence institute wins appeal for charity status
Think-tank founded by former PQ leader can now issue tax receipts for donations
QUEBEC The think-tank set up by Pierre Karl Péladeau to produce studies on independence has won its long battle to be declared a charitable organization.
Daniel Turp, chairperson of the board of the Institut de recherche sur l’autodétermination des peuples et les indépendances nationales (IRAI), confirmed Tuesday the organization recently won its appeal of a Canada Revenue Agency ruling that denied the group charity status.
The flip-flop came Oct. 1 — election day — so not many people noticed, Turp said. The decision means the IRAI will be allowed to issue tax receipts for donations in much the same way as other think-tanks — like the Federal Idea, which conducts research on federalism.
“We are very happy we won,” Turp said in an interview. “It will give us momentum. We were convinced we were right all along. We did the right thing in pushing for an appeal.”
The Montreal-based institute applied for charitable-donation status in June 2016 after Péladeau created the entity as part of his Parti Québécois leadership campaign. Péladeau later quit the leadership but the institute has survived, helped by $1 million he donated in startup funds.
But he and other donors never got tax breaks for their generosity. After almost two years, the CRA denied the request for charitable status.
At the time, the CRA said its research determined the institute had been established for political reasons by persons who had been active in the sovereignty movement and thus did not qualify.
However, the CRA has now reversed its position.
Its decision is retroactive, meaning past donors — including Péladeau — will be eligible for tax receipts.