Free Project Charter Template

This Project Charter template is used by business analysts to formally authorise a project once its Business Case is approved — naming the project manager and setting the scope boundary before delivery work begins.

What Is a Project Charter?

A Project Charter is the document that formally authorises a project’s existence. It’s created once a Business Case has been approved, and its job is to hand a named project manager the authority to use resources and start delivery — defining objectives, high-level scope, key stakeholders, and a governance structure, without re-arguing whether the project should happen at all.

What Should a Project Charter Include?

• Purpose and justification — a short reference back to the approved Business Case, not a re-statement of the full options analysis
• Objectives — what success looks like, in terms a sponsor would recognise
• High-level scope — both what’s in scope and, just as importantly, what’s explicitly out of scope
• Key stakeholders — who needs to be engaged, and at what level of influence
• High-level milestones and timeline — enough to plan around, not a detailed schedule
• Budget authority — what the project manager is authorised to spend without further sign-off
• Project manager and sponsor — named individuals, with the sponsor’s signature as the actual authorisation

Project Charter vs Business Case — What’s the Difference?

The Business Case decides whether a project should happen — comparing options, costs, and benefits before any funding is approved. The Project Charter comes after that decision: it doesn’t re-argue whether to proceed, it formally authorises the already-approved project and gives a named project manager the mandate to start delivery. If the Business Case is the pitch, the Charter is the permission slip.

Common Mistakes When Writing a Project Charter

• No out-of-scope section. Stating only what’s in scope leaves the boundary open to interpretation — naming what’s explicitly excluded is one of the strongest defences against scope creep.
• Vague project manager authority. A Charter that doesn’t state a budget or decision-making authority forces the PM to seek sign-off for routine decisions, slowing delivery from day one.
• Treated as a formality. A Charter filed away and never referenced again stops being useful the moment scope or objectives shift — it should be the document a team returns to when a change request needs testing against the original mandate.
• No real sponsor signature. A Charter “approved” without a specific accountable signature tends to have no one who owns escalations when the project hits trouble.

What’s Included in This Template

• Pre-structured sections with guidance notes
• Worked examples from real BA projects
• Guidance for Agile, waterfall, and hybrid approaches
• Easy to adapt to your organisation’s standards

How to Use This Template

Complete the Charter as soon as the Business Case is approved and before detailed planning starts — it’s the reference point every later scope conversation gets tested against. Each section has guidance notes explaining what to include and why — based on real BA practice, not textbook theory. Remove sections that don’t apply and add organisation-specific fields.

The objectives and justification in a Project Charter should trace directly back to the approved Business Case — if a Charter’s scope doesn’t match what the Business Case argued for, that gap needs resolving before delivery starts, not after.

Why Requirements Templates Matter

Consistent documentation is one of the most underrated BA skills. A well-structured document:

• Sets clear expectations from day one
• Reduces “we didn’t know that was in scope” conversations
• Creates an audit trail for decisions and changes
• Speeds up new team member onboarding
• Builds your credibility as a professional BA

Browse All Free Templates

Our free BA template library covers 15 core documents. For 175 practitioner-level templates covering the full BA lifecycle, see our BA Toolkit — Complete Pack. Free account required for the library, no payment.

Want to Master These Tools?

Templates are a starting point. Our BA training courses teach you how to apply them in real projects — with exercises, feedback, and examples from experienced BAs. Start with our free intro course.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Project Charter used for?

It formally authorises a project once its Business Case is approved, naming the project manager and setting objectives and scope at a high level.

What is the difference between a Project Charter and a Business Case?

The Business Case decides whether to proceed. The Charter, created after approval, authorises the project and hands the project manager the mandate to start delivery.

Does a Project Charter need an out-of-scope section?

Yes — explicitly naming what’s out of scope is one of the most effective defences against scope creep from the first week of a project.

Benjamen Walsh

Founder, BBA Institute · Certified Business Analyst

Benjamen Walsh is the founder of the Better Business Analysis Institute (BBAI) and a practising business analyst with over a decade of experience delivering change across New Zealand and Australia. He has trained over 200+ business analysts through BBAI certification programmes and hosts The Better Business Analyst Podcast (138+ episodes). Benjamen works with organisations including Corporates, Consultancies, Non for Profits, Small Businesses and the New Zealand Government.

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