2. Declaration
 All information is given by the Institute of
Fundraising as current best practice, or is
existing research which is credited. However,
this is not a substitute for professional legal or
financial advice.

3. Gift Aid in Numbers
 £1.07bn paid back to charities in 2011/12
 £340 million to higher rate taxpayers in
2010/11
 39% of donations from individuals used Gift
Aid; 80% of those giving £100 or more used it
 Still an estimated £742 million left unclaimed
each year
(UK Giving 2012 CAF & NCVO; HMRC)

4. Gift Aid Facts
 On donations from UK taxpayers (income and capital
gains tax)
 The 2010 budget extended Gift Aid to eligible EU,
Norwegian and Icelandic charities
 The charity claims tax paid on donations
 Donors must complete a declaration – oral or written
 Both UK and non-UK Charities must be registered with
HMRC for tax purposes to claim Gift Aid.

5. Gift Aid – What’s it worth?
 Gift Aid is currently worth an extra 25p per £1
donated
 It is calculated as a percentage of the gross
donation - to take home £100, a basic rate
taxpayer needs to earn £125.00 (at current
20% basic rate tax)
 The charity claims back the £25.00.

6. Gift Aid – The
Value of Gift Aid
Donation Charity Total Donor Full potential
claims donation reclaims
Basic rate £100 £25.00 £125.00 £125.00
taxpayer
(20%)
Higher rate £100 £25.00 £125.00 £25.00 £156.25*
taxpayer
(40%)
Highest rate £100 £25.00 £125.00 £37.50 £171.88*
Taxpayer
(50%)
* Full potential with Gift Aid on the amount reclaimed
by the donor and given to the charity.

7. Gift Aid –
From 6 April 2013
Donation Charity Total Donor Full potential
claims donation reclaims
Basic rate £100 £25.00 £125.00 £125.00
taxpayer
(20%)
Higher rate £100 £25.00 £125.00 £25.00 £156.25*
taxpayer
(40%)
Highest rate £100 £25.00 £125.00 £31.25 £164.06*
Taxpayer
(45%)
* Full potential with Gift Aid on the amount reclaimed
by the donor and given to the charity.

8. Gift Aid and Higher
Rate Tax Payers
 Higher rate taxpayers can reclaim the
difference between their highest rate (40% or
50%) and basic rate tax (20%) on donations
 From April 2013 the higher tax rates will be
40% or 45%.
This can be done on the taxpayer’s standard tax
return (SA100) form

9. Gift Aid – Why?
 It’s free money!
 With a donor’s permission you can claim Gift Aid:
 on their current donation
 on donations made over the previous four years
 and on all future donations
 Donors want charities to maximise the value of their
gift!

10. Gift Aid – The Rules
 Donor must pay at least as much income tax or capital
gains tax as the charity claims back in Gift Aid from
HMRC
 Both UK and non-UK Charities must be registered with
HMRC for tax purposes to claim Gift Aid
 Gift Aid can only be claimed on gifts of money
 Donor must complete a Gift Aid declaration
 Donor ‘thank you’ gifts cannot exceed HMRC’s
‘Donor Benefit Rules’.

11. Gift Aid –
Donor Benefit Rules
 Donation < £100 – max benefit of 25% of the
gift
 Donation £101 - £1,000 – max benefit of £25
 Donation > £1,000 – max benefit of 5% of the
gift
 Donation > £10,000 – max benefit of £2,500.

12. Gift Aid – Connected
Persons Rule
 If a donor receives a benefit that exceeds HMRC’s
‘Benefit Rules’, then donations from the donor and
individuals connected to that donor may not qualify for
Gift Aid
 This is most common when the donor is taking part in a
sponsored event where there are clear benefits such
as flights and accommodation
 Connected people include any linear relative of the
donor or their spouse/civil partner

13. Gift Aid –
Declaration
Declarations can be made in writing or orally and must
contain:
 Donor’s first initial, surname, house number and full
postcode
 Name of the charity
 Details of the gift(s) to which the declaration relates -
can also specify if donor wishes to backdate and Gift
Aid future donations
 Confirmation that the donor has paid UK income tax or
capital gains tax sufficient to cover the
amount that the charity claims

14. Gift Aid –
Keeping Records
 Paper
 Electronic (hard drive, CD-ROM, disc etc)
 Scanned documents
 Oral declarations can be a recorded phone call or a
follow-up letter confirming donor and donation details
(and giving the donor a 30 day ’cooling off’ period)
 All records must be readily available for audit

15. Gift Aid – The Audit
HMRC check to ensure that charities are following the
rules:
 Look at accounting records, systems and procedures
 Charity must produce a sample of donor records that
include: records of donations, Gift Aid declarations and
bank records
 The audit may also identify other tax risks – major
donors, gifts of shares, gifts of land and property

16. Gift Aid – Making
Claims
From 22 April, claims can be made electronically through
Charities Online by:
 Using an online form: for up to 1,000 donors; submit
online
 Through your own database: for 1,000+ donors; max 1
claim per day for up to 500,000 donors
 Using a paper form: new Claim Form ChR1 replaces
existing R68; submit claim by post; claim for up to 90
donors by using ChR1CS Continuation Sheet

17. Gift Aid – Claims for
Sponsored Events
 All the donations for someone taking part in a
sponsored event can be put as one entry under the
name of that participant
 Single donations of £500 or more must be listed
individually on the claim

18. Gift Aid – Aggregated
Claims
Charities Online will allow claims for donations of up to
£20 to be aggregated:
 Donations totaling up to £1,000 per entry can be added
together, reducing the number of donations you have to
provide details for
 You still need to keep records of each donation for
audit purposes

19. Gift Aid – Small
Donations Scheme
GASDS is a new scheme being introduced in April 2013:
 Charities can claim a top-up payment on cash
donations of £20 or less without the need to collect Gift
Aid declarations
 Charities will generally be able to claim on small
donations of up to £5,000 per year. Claiming for £5,000
of small donations will result in a repayment of £1,250
for the charity

20. Gift Aid –
Maximising Take Up
 Newsletter articles
 Specific or regular mailings
 Briefing staff and volunteers
 Envelope collections
 Sponsor forms
 Website; Online Giving; Blog; SMS; FaceBook;…..
 Use the gift Aid it logo

21. Gift Aid –
Consider claiming on...
 Admissions to view charity property
 Charity Events
 Charity Auctions
 Adventure fundraising events
 Selling goods on behalf of individuals
 Church collections
 Gift Aid for school charities
 Voluntary workers expenses
 Membership subscriptions

23. Useful Websites
 www.tax-effective-giving.org.uk
 www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk
 www.direct.gov.uk/giftaid
 www.hmrc.gov.uk/charities Tel: 0845 302 0203
 www.payrollgivingcentre.org.uk
 www.rememberacharity.org.uk
 www.charity-commission.gov.uk