How does Gift Aid work?
Gift Aid is a government scheme that allows us to claim an extra 25p for every £1 you raise. If you fundraise for charity, your donation will come from money that you have already paid tax on. As a charity, we can then reclaim this tax back from the Government.
This means that if you raise £100, and you and your sponsors choose to Gift Aid, it becomes £125.
For your donations to be eligible for Gift Aid, you need to be a UK taxpayer. If you pay less Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax in the current tax year than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all of your donations across all charities, it is your responsibility to pay any difference. Gift Aid is reclaimed by BHF from the tax you pay for the current tax year.
Fundraising money which is not eligible for Gift Aid
Before completing the Gift Aid form, please make a note of the types of fundraising donations that are not eligible for Gift Aid.
We are unable to claim Gift Aid on money where a reward is received in return for donating. For example, we cannot claim Gift Aid when people have donated in return for tickets (raffles, events, auctions) or goods and services, such as a bake sale. This is because you are getting something in return for your donation.
We cannot claim Gift Aid on a donation made on behalf of a company. You can only declare Gift Aid on your own taxpayer status when spending your own money. However, a company can claim tax relief on the donation when donating directly to the charity.
If the donation amounts for the whole form are all the same, for example £2, they may be considered payments for goods received or competition entries. This could mean they are not eligible.
How to claim Gift Aid on your fundraising money
The easiest way to claim Gift Aid is by using a sponsorship form.
Simply ask your sponsors to tick the Gift Aid box next to their donations. Your sponsors must be UK taxpayers in order to claim Gift Aid on their donations.
The sponsorship form is for individual donations only. Please do not record the total amount you have raised from your event on the form. For example, if you raise £100 total at your event, do not send in the form with your name and £100 in the amount donated box. Please break down your donations.
Details your sponsors will need to provide
To allow us to claim Gift Aid on the money you raise, your sponsors must:
- tick the Gift Aid box on your sponsorship form when they sponsor you
- write their full name (minimum of initial and surname)
- include their home address (house number/name and postcode at minimum)
- fill in the 'date paid' box on the sponsorship form when they give you their donation.
- if sponsors live at the same address, they must each complete the address and postcode fields
- donate individually (you cannot make joint donations, for example from Mr and Mrs Smith, as HMRC needs to determine who the taxpayer is)
- the Gift Aid tick box must be ticked, not crossed (see the sample filled in at the top of the sponsorship form).
Post your sponsorship form
Once your sponsorship form is complete, please post it to:
British Heart Foundation, Compton House, 2300 The Crescent, Birmingham Business Park, Birmingham, B37 7YE
