Was it the criticism in the Haredi media, or was it the determination of Finance Committee Chairman MK Nissan Slomianki, that led to Finance Minister Yair Lapid's agreement to also approve religious and Haredi associations under Section 46? It's hard to know.
What is clear is that on Monday evening, Lapid submitted to the committee a request to approve benefits for 61 non-profit organizations whose approval had been frozen for a long period. Among the non-profit organizations are 22 synagogues, 15 welfare organizations, and 14 educational organizations, 41 of which are Haredi.
The permit is valid for only six months, instead of three years so far.
The approval in question allows donors to donate money to non-profit organizations, while benefiting from tax relief on about a third of the donation amount. To obtain it, one must obtain confirmation from the Registrar of Non-Profit Organizations that the non-profit organization is being properly run, as well as confirmation from the Tax Authority that the non-profit organization is entitled to the benefit.
At the same time, Lapid intends to establish a public committee that will formulate new rules regarding the provision of tax benefits for donations to non-profit organizations.
As you may recall, for weeks Lapid delayed the approval of 80 non-profit organizations. In a discussion held a few days ago in the Finance Committee, a representative of the Tax Authority was asked the reason for this and was unable to answer, as these were non-profit organizations that had received approval from the Tax Authority and had been approved in the past.
Following the discussion, the members of the Finance Committee approached the Attorney General and the State Comptroller to ask for their help on the matter. As mentioned, the pressure worked and the Minister of Finance gave in and granted the long-awaited approval.
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