3.36.1 In order to operate the Gift Aid scheme, charities need to keep records to show how much has been received from each donor who has made a declaration. Charities must keep sufficient records to show that their tax reclaims are accurate. In other words, they must keep records that enable them to show:
3.36.2 If a charity does not keep adequate records it may be required to pay
back to HM Revenue & Customs tax reclaimed, with interest. It may also
be liable to a penalty under the Self-Assessment rules.
3.37.1 The form of records to be kept is not prescribed in the legislation and has not changed significantly as a result of the revised Gift Aid measures. In practice, it will depend on the size of the charity, the number of donors and the kind of systems used.
3.37.2 When we audit a repayment claim, the auditor will normally review a sample of the donations on which a charity is claiming Gift Aid. For smaller charities all donations may be looked at. For each donation reviewed, the auditor will ask to see:
3.38.1 The charity does not have to keep records on paper. They may be held on the hard drive of a computer, floppy disc or CD-ROM, or stored on microfiche. If records are kept on computer, it is advisable to make regular back-ups and store these in a different location to the computer. Further details on the procedures to follow when transferring original records onto microfiche or an electronic medium can be found in section 7.4 in Chapter 7 below.
3.39.1 Please see section 7.3 in Chapter 7.
3.40.1 Charities may choose to collect cash donations in envelopes, such as church stewardship envelopes, so that they can show an audit trail linking the donation to the donor. For one-off donations, charities may choose to pre-print the Gift Aid declaration on the envelope for completion by the donor. If the donor is a regular supporter, the charity may already hold his or her Gift Aid declaration, in which case the envelope need simply contain either:
3.40.2 Where a unique identifier is used, such as a reference number, ideally
this should be unique to the donor. In practice, where envelopes containing
the same unique identifier are used by the donor and his or her spouse and
minor children, it can assumed that all the donations are from the donor,
unless there is evidence to the contrary.
3.40.3 When the envelope is opened and the contents are counted, an official
of the charity should record the sum that it contained both:
3.40.4 Charities should retain for the period set out in section 7.3 in Chapter 7:
3.41.1 If a charity receives a donation drawn on a joint bank account, and
it has not been given a Gift Aid declaration by both account-holders, it will
need to determine whether the donation is from the donor who has given a Gift
Aid declaration. The charity may, however, assume that the donation is from
the person who has made the Gift Aid declaration, even if it is authorised
by the other account-holder, unless it holds evidence to suggest that the
donation is from that other account-holder.
3.41.2 Similarly, if a credit card donation is received drawn on an account
in respect of which there are joint authorised signatories, it can be assumed
that the donation is from the authorised signatory who has made a Gift Aid
declaration unless there is evidence to suggest that the donation is from
the other authorised signatory.
3.41.3. If there is any doubt whether the donation is from the person who signs the cheque, etc. or authorises the transaction, the charity should ask them to confirm whether the donation is from them.
