Rule change to let donors grant intermediaries authority to Gift Aid all donations in a year
Melanie May | 1 February 2017 | News
As of 6th April, intermediaries that collect donations for charities will be able to ask donors for the authority to create Gift Aid declarations on their donations for the rest of the tax year.
Intermediaries will be allowed to ask donors for this authority at any time during the tax year, and authorisation will then last for the remainder of the tax year, or until the donor cancels it.
Donors however must be able to cancel their authorisation at any time by contacting the intermediary, and to set a date for the cancellation. If no date is set, their authorisation ceases immediately. Donors will also have to pay the difference if they pay less Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid on their donations in a year.
As well as explaining these points to donors, intermediaries must also provide them with an annual statement between the 5 April and 31 May for the previous tax year that explains, amongst other things, the total amount of the donations that were Gift Aided, and the maximum amount of Gift Aid that can be claimed on their Gift Aided donations. In addition, intermediaries are required to keep donor records for six years.
The full guidance is available online,
Commenting on the changes, Lee Clark, founder and CEO of GivePenny said:
“Authorising an intermediary to create and then manage a donor’s Gift Aid declarations for a whole year could no doubt lead to more Gift Aid being claimed by charities overall. This could be a great thing for good causes all over the UK, large and small.
“However, combined with the changes that make it clear the donor will be responsible for making up the difference if they pay less Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on their donations in each year I see potential for some donors to hesitate in making such a commitment. Close and effective engagement with supporters will be crucial in ensuring the third sector can maximise this opportunity.”
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.