Funding is a slightly sensitive matter for many churches and other donation-driven organisations. Due to being of a non-profit nature, it can be challenging to sustain the level of funding required to maintain facilities, pay rent, take care of staffing needs, and more – all the while pursuing the goals of the organisation. Gift Aid is a government-backed tax relief scheme that enables UK taxpayers to claim back a portion of their donations made to eligible charities. It’s an effective way to boost money raised by charitable organisations since the donation amount is increased by up to 25% when Gift Aid is applied. As few things are when finances are involved, claiming gift aid isn’t quite as simple as giving HMRC a call, and gift aid declaration forms are pivotal in establishing eligibility to claim gift aid, as well as ensuring that the full amount available is claimed.

For more information on the general functionality of gift aid as well as some of the reasons to claim it if eligible, visit our blog on ‘What is Gift Aid and How Does it Work?’.

The Importance of a Gift Aid Declaration

Is a declaration needed to claim gift aid?

In the vast majority of instances, a gift aid declaration is needed if a business is looking to claim – especially for substantial amounts of regular payments. However, there are exceptions to this with smaller cash or contactless donations of £30 or less not actually requiring a declaration under the rules imposed by the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme. The value that can be claimed back through this is capped out at £2000 per tax year for up to 2 years after the tax year the donation was received in.

. If donations are being logged properly, a charity should have access to all of the data required to comply with a Gift Aid audit; at GoodtoGive we can help with this and provide specialist gift aid management services to streamline the claiming process and provide advice in regards to the other financial facets of the business.

What Should a Gift Aid Declaration Contain?

There are various parts of a gift aid declaration that need to be completed in order to reach the desired outcome; below are some of the key areas requiring focus.

• Full name and title of the donor
• Door number and postcode of the donor
• Date of the donation

It’s important that the donor also:

• Checks the box verifying that they are happy for their donation to include gift aid
• Has paid as much or more income/capital gains tax as the amount being claimed

Contact Good to Give for Gift Aid Support

Through GoodtoGive, many charitable organisations have benefitted from the tools we provide to streamline their finances and make the most of donations.

To find out more about our charity accounting services and gift aid management software, get in touch with a member of our team on 020 7731 2041.