The Gift Aid scheme
Gift Aid is tax relief on money donated to UK charities. The church can reclaim the tax that you have already paid on your income and so increase the value of donations. Most of us pay some tax on our income, benefits, pension, savings or share dividends and can therefore use the scheme. The rules state that donors must:
A note for higher rate taxpayers
Higher rate (40%) taxpayers can themselves also reclaim a further £20 on a gift of £80 from HMRC by completing a Self-Assessment tax return. The net cost of giving £100 to the Parish is therefore only £60 for higher rate taxpayers.
Gift Aid is tax relief on money donated to UK charities. The church can reclaim the tax that you have already paid on your income and so increase the value of donations. Most of us pay some tax on our income, benefits, pension, savings or share dividends and can therefore use the scheme. The rules state that donors must:
- pay enough UK income tax (this includes pension payments, bank interest and share dividends) and/or capital gains tax themselves to cover the amount of tax the charity will reclaim
- give the charity a gift aid declaration, which should include your name, home address and the charity’s name along with details of the donation – saying that it is a gift aid donation
- confirm that you have paid UK tax – to cover the tax the charity will reclaim.
A note for higher rate taxpayers
Higher rate (40%) taxpayers can themselves also reclaim a further £20 on a gift of £80 from HMRC by completing a Self-Assessment tax return. The net cost of giving £100 to the Parish is therefore only £60 for higher rate taxpayers.