Gift Aid
In the U.K., charities can claim back the income tax that you have already paid on a donation, boosting the amount you have donated by 20% for basic-rate taxpayers. This means an £800 donation is worth £1,000. Under the scheme, known as Gift Aid, donors need to make a declaration allowing the charity to claim back the tax. Provided you have paid enough tax, your Gift Aid Declaration can allow the charity to claim Gift Aid on all donations that you made in the preceding six years. For Gift Aid donations made between 6 April 2008 and 5 April 2011, an additional government supplement of approximately 3p will be given to the charity for every pound that you donate. In the example, the charity would receive an additional £24. If you are a higher-rate taxpayer, you will be entitled to recover the higher-rate tax (20%) paid on the gross amount of the gift. In the example, you would receive £200. This means that if you give £800 to charity under the Gift Aid Scheme, the net cost of doing so will be £600 and the charity will receive £1,024. For more information, visit HM Revenue and Customs or Directgov .
