What is an annual general meeting?
An annual general meeting is a meeting held once a year that all members of an organisation are invited to attend. The purpose of an AGM is to give members a report on the organisation’s activities and finances from the previous year, to allow time for members to ask questions and to elect members of the organisation’s governing body (such as its board or committee members).
Your organisation should make sure it complies with all applicable rules and procedures when holding a meeting. If a meeting is not called or held in accordance with the rules, any resolutions made at the meeting may not be valid.
Calling an AGM
Your association’s rules must set out how to:
- call an AGM
- give notice of an AGM to your members
- give notice of any special resolutions to your members.
Under the model rules, the secretary gives notice to each member. They must:
- outline the nature of the business (including that it is the AGM)
- send the notice at least 14 days before the AGM
- send written notice and details of any special resolutions at least 14 days before the AGM.
You can send the meeting notice and notice for any special resolutions in the same document.
Who can attend?
Who can attend an organisation’s Annual General Meeting?
- Committee members
- Ordinary members
- Life members
- Invited guests
The ‘quorum’ of the meeting is the minimum number of people that need to be present at a meeting for that meeting to proceed. If a decision is made at a meeting where there is no quorum, it will have no effect. Your organisation’s constitution must specify the quorum for AGMs.
Your organisation’s constitution may permit meeting attendance by technology (e.g. phone or video conferencing). The quorum of a meeting for your organisation may be reached without members needing to be physically present at the meeting.
Running an AGM
Your association’s rules should set out what business to cover at the AGM. Under the model rules, you must:
- receive the financial statement for the last financial year, covering
- income and expenditure
- assets and liabilities
- mortgages, charges and securities affecting your association’s property
- receive an auditor’s or verifier’s report about the financial position
- present and adopt the audited or verified financial statements
- appoint an auditor or verifier for the next financial year
- elect members of the management committee.
The format of the meeting is similar to that of a general meeting. The previous minutes should come from the previous AGM, not the previous general meeting. You must keep minutes of the AGM. The minutes kept must specifically state that they are the minutes of the AGM.
After the AGM
The president or treasurer of the organisation must sign a copy of the financial documents that were presented to the AGM. Within one month of the AGM, the secretary must lodge the signed documents with the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). Some decisions passed (such as changes to the constitution) are not official under the Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (Qld) until they have been approved by the OFT.
Unsure if your organisation is meeting all the requirements for its AGM? Contact NFP House to see where we can help!
NFP House provides information and advisory services to not-for-profit (NFP) organisations. Any advice, information or data provided by NFP House does not constitute financial or legal recommendations and should not be relied upon for business decisions. Ownership of any decisions remains exclusively with the NFP organisation being assisted and should be made at their discretion, in consideration of all possible risk factors. NFP House shall not be liable or held liable for any consequence of decisions or actions made by NFP organisations being assisted.