The article is devoted to a comparative study of the legal regulation of charitable organizations and their taxation in such countries as the United States, Russia, China, Brazil, Australia, the United Arab Emirates, Denmark and other countries. The article examines the legislation adopted both at the level of the national government and at the regional level. The problems of coordination of legislation at different levels in the sphere of charity regulation and related taxation, the constitutional basis for taxation of charitable organizations, and non-mandatory rules and recommendations as a substitute for legislation are in the focus of the present study.