Everything you need to know about GiftAid
What is Gift Aid?
If you pay income tax or Capital Gains Tax and you give to charity, Gift Aid is an arrangement which allows those charities to reclaim the tax paid on a donation from the government.
Does my donation qualify for gift aid?
Gift Aid can be claimed on both individual and sponsorship donations provided they are gifts.
Your donation does NOT qualify for Gift Aid if:
- Donations made by anyone who is not a UK taxpayer.
- Donations made on behalf of someone else or a group of people e.g. money collected from friends and family at a funeral.
- Donations made in return for something e.g. registration fee or ticket for an event, goods purchased at an auction, buying a raffle ticket etc.
- Donations made on behalf of a company (however the company can claim tax relief on the donation when donating directly to a charity).
How much more will my donation be worth?
Your donations will be worth 25% more to us at no extra cost to you. Gift Aid makes every £1 you donate worth £1.25; so £10 becomes £12.50, £20 becomes £25 and £50 becomes £62.50, it soon adds up!
How do I know if I’m a taxpayer?
You are a taxpayer if :
- tax is taken from your wages (or pension) before you receive it
- you have to fill in a self-assessment form each year
- you have any taxable savings (e.g. in a Building Society)
- you have a private pension plan
- you get an income from investments and pay capital gains tax.
To confirm that you are a taxpayer, and find out the amount of tax you have paid in the tax year, please contact your local HMRC office.
I am a pensioner, do my donations quality?
You may still be paying tax on a private pension plan or a savings account, or capital gains tax if you sell either some property or shares. You are still eligible if you have paid enough tax during the year to cover the amount we are reclaiming on your donations.
How do I know if I pay enough tax?
Gift Aid lets us claim back 25% of whatever you donate. To be eligible, you need to have paid at least that amount in tax. So for every £10 you donate to us you need to have paid at least £2.50 in tax. To confirm that you are a taxpayer, and find out the amount of tax you have paid in the tax year, please contact your local HMRC office.
What if I pay tax at a higher rate?
Unfortunately we can only claim back tax at the basic rate, but you can request a rebate for the difference when you submit your tax returns and you can then opt to donate that to a charity of your choice.
How do I sign up for Gift Aid?
If you are satisfied that you are a taxpayer and therefore eligible for us to reclaim tax on your donations then please complete one of our Gift Aid declaration forms and send it to us at: Trinity Hospice, Low Moor Road, Bispham, Blackpool, FY2 0BG. You can download a form here: Gift-Aid-Declaration-Form
If you are making a donation online then say ‘Yes’ to gift aid and complete the questions asked, we will do the rest.
I’ve forgotten to add Gift Aid to my donation, what should I do?
Don’t worry if you’ve forgotten to add Gift Aid to your donation, simply complete one of our Gift Aid declaration forms and send it to us at: Trinity Hospice, Low Moor Road, Bispham, Blackpool, FY2 0BG. You can download a form here: Gift-Aid-Declaration-Form
This will add Gift Aid to the past 4 years of your donations to Trinity Hospice.
Can I stop my eligibility for Gift Aid and start again?
Yes. In fact, it’s really important that you let us know if you stop paying enough tax (even if it’s only for a short time) so that we can stop claiming the tax on your donations.
Do I have to make a declaration for every gift?
No. You just need to fill out a Gift Aid declaration and date it – then it will cover donations you have already made to Trinity Hospice in the past 4 years and any donations you make in the future. There is no extra paperwork – we deal with HMRC to reclaim the tax. All we need is your form.
If I’ve already filled in a Gift Aid form for another charity, does this apply to my Trinity Hospice donations too?
No. You can support as many UK charities as you like through Gift Aid. All you need to do is return a declaration to each charity that you support and ensure that you are paying enough tax during the year to cover your total annual donations.
I Gift Aid my donations of clothing/goods at one your shops across the Fylde; can you use the same Gift Aid declaration?
No. Unfortunately retail Gift Aid operates under different rules and we must use a separate gift aid declaration to cover this.
What should I do if I’m not eligible?
Please tick the NO box on the gift aid declaration so that we can update our records.
