FAQ: Claiming tax back

How often can we claim?

You can claim as often as you like, so long as the income on which the tax has been suffered has been received by the charity. It would help us if you claimed a minimum amount of £100 each time as this enables H M Revenue & Customs (HMRC) (Charities) to process claims faster.

How long will it take to get our money?

We aim to repay 97 per cent of claims within 15 working days. When a charity claims repayment for the first time the process can take a little longer, as we need to ensure that all appropriate details about the charity and its authorised signatory(ies) are held.

How much do we get back?

This will depend upon the amount of tax that has been deducted from the income on which you are claiming repayment. The most common claim is in respect of Gift Aid. Here, for every £1 given by individual donors the charity will claim an extra 25p (whilst the basic rate of tax is 20 per cent).

For Gift Aid donations made from 6 April 2008 to 5 April 2011, HMRC will also be operating transitional provisions, paying the charity a Government supplement of 3p on every £1 donated, provided the repayment claim is made within two years of the end of the charity’s accounting period. Find out more about Transitional Relief.

Can I authorise an agency to handle claims on behalf of my charity?

Yes, you can complete form ChN2 to authorise an agency to act on behalf of the charity. Or, form ChN1 can be completed to authorise persons other than officials of your charity to sign repayment claims and or receive repayments on behalf of the charity.
Charity officials will, however, always remain wholly responsible for the accuracy and validity of any claim made on their behalf by anyone they have authorised. Charity officials should therefore give careful consideration as to the suitability of any person(s) whom they authorise to act on their behalf.

Can our membership subscriptions be Gift Aided?

Yes, subject to the requirements of the Gift Aid scheme being met. The donor benefit rules may prevent subscriptions being paid under Gift Aid if the value of benefits provided to members exceeds certain limits or if the subscriptions secure a right to personal use by members of any facilities or services provided by the charity.

Can you give me a Gift Aid declaration?

Yes, we provide a model declaration.

Can we design our own declaration?

Yes, but it must contain the name of the charity, the donor's name and home address, a description of the donations to which the declaration relates, a declaration that the donations are to be treated as Gift Aid donations and a note explaining the requirement that the donor must pay an amount of income tax and/or capital gains tax equal to the tax deducted from his or her donations. Further information can be found at paragraph 3.11.2 of our guidance notes.

Can companies make donations through Gift Aid?

Yes, but as Gift Aid donations by companies are not paid under deduction of tax there is no tax to be reclaimed by the charity. The company making the Gift Aid donation gets relief against its corporation tax profits for the amount paid to the charity.

How do we claim for Deeds of Covenant?

Tax relief for payments under deed of covenant was replaced by Gift Aid on 6 April 2000. If the charity is still receiving covenanted payments under a deed that was in existence at 6 April 2000, the payments are simply claimed as payments under the Gift Aid scheme. Further information about the transitional arrangements is in our guidance notes at paragraph 3.16.

Can we claim for several years?

Yes, but you need to complete a separate R68 Gift Aid schedule or R68 Other Income schedule for claiming tax deducted from other types of income, for each accounting period of the charity. The combined total is then put on the main R68 Claim form.

Can we claim for earlier years?

Yes, but there are different time limits for claiming earlier years depending on whether the charity is a Trust or a Company for tax purposes. Find out more about the time limits for claiming.