Frequently Asked Questions

When did ARMS start?
ARMS was first registered as a charity in Canberra Australia in August 1988.

What kind of a company is ARMS?
ARMS is company limited by guarantee. It is a Public Benevolent Institution (charity) that has been set up to care for the poor and the needy both within Australia and overseas. ARMS is registered with the Australian Tax Office as Deductible Gift Recipient.

Is ARMS linked to any other organizations?
Yes. ARMS is the mercy ministry arm of Youth With A Mission Australia. It is also a member of the Australian Council For International Development (ACFID) and is a member of COAID, and also of World Relief.

ARMS also works closely with many other agencies and government bodies including the United Nations in order to accomplish its goals.

What kind if accountability is there for funds handled by ARMS?
As a Public Benevolent Institution ARMS is required by Australian law to submit to a yearly audit of all its financial dealings.

As a member of ACFID, ARMS has all its books audited once a year to the standard laid out in the ACFID Code Of Conduct.

All audits are submitted to the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC).

What proportion of funds donated to ARMS is absorbed into administration costs?
Very little. ARMS pay no wages to its workers. Everyone is a full time volunteer. However, ARMS does take 5% from donations and other forms of income to help cover the costs of its administration.

How can I get involved in ARMS?
There are several ways that you can become involved. You can pray for our work. We need all the prayer support we can get. Secondly you can give to the work of ARMS, support one of our many projects, or send a general donation to help us cover the costs of doing the work that we do amongst the poor and the needy. You could always train with us, do a school that will help you to make a difference in some one else's life. Finally you could come on an ARMS team to a location where there is need, we need lots of people with lots of varying skills to help us to serve the poor.

How can I contact ARMS?
You can write to us at :

ARMS
PO Box 1212
Surrey Hills North
Vic, 3127 Australia.

Phone: +61 3 9888 4537
Fax: +61 3 9836 9231
Email: info@arms.org.au

A full list of our office addresses can be found at the bottom of this page.

Are Donations To ARMS Tax Deductible?
ARMS has full Tax Deductibility in the US and Canada and partial Tax Deductibility within Australia. Details of how US and Canadian donors can receive tax deductible receipts are found here. (Just scroll to the bottom of the page.)

Australian donors can receive a tax deductible receipt for donations made to all projects ARMS run within Australia, and on some approved international projects. A list of tax deductible international projects can be found on our donations page (About half way down the page.)

For further infomation contact

ARMS
PO Box 1212,
Surrey Hills North
Victoria 3127 Australia.

Phone: +61 3 9888 4537
Fax: +61 3 9836 9231
Email: info@arms.org.au

How safe is the ARMS secure site?
ARMS subscribes to Thawte who gives the site an SSL Web Server certificate.

Authentic Sites use thawte SSL Certificates to offer secure communications by encrypting all data to and from the site. Thawte has checked and verified the company registration documents and the site´s registered domain name.

This information is included in the SSL certificate. This enables you to check the site´s validity yourself. Always check a site´s certificate before entering any sensitive information.

More information about Thawte can be found at www.thawte.com

What happens to the money raised when an appeal is over subscribed?
The ARMS Board has stipulated that where an ARMS appeal is oversubscribed; once the appeal has been balanced off, the extra funds are to be passed onto a similar kind of project run by ARMS in another nation; or to an ARMS project in the same country. This stipulation recognizes that moneys donated for tax deductible purposes must only be used on projects that qualify as tax deductible.

CLICK HERE FOR OUR PRIVACY STATEMENT