When signing to say gift aid can be claimed by a charity you donate to, it is important to remember you must be at least a basic rate tax payer.  If you sign a gift aid form and later find your total income falls below the personal allowance (£10,600 for 2015/16) then the basic rate tax relief claimed by the charity will be repayable.

When making a gift aid payment the charity benefits from the basic rate of tax.  So an £80 donation is topped up to £100 by government under gift aid.  This is the case for donations from basic rate, higher rate and additional rate tax payers.

For those that pay higher or additional rate tax, they can claim the additional tax relief due through their tax return.  The claim for this can be carried back to the previous tax year, but, oddly, only if such a claim is made before the tax return is submitted.  The date of the tax return being submitted being the first such submission, not any amending submissions.

For advice on getting the most out of your charitable donations, please contact us.

Charities you may wish to donate to include Climate Outreach.

David Wilsdon