Charitable donations

Charitable donations are money that you give to charities. Charitable donations are tax-free in the UK, so if you have donated, you can claim tax relief on it.

How you claim tax relief depends on how you donated:

• if you gave money directly: in most cases, charities can claim something called Gift Aid – basically, the basic rate of tax for the income that you gave. If you’re a higher rate taxpayer, you can claim the difference between the rate you pay and basic rate on your donation. For example, if you donate £100, they can claim another £25 in Gift Aid. Because you pay 40% tax, you can also claim back £25.00 as tax relief for yourself. You’ll do this through a Self Assessment tax return or by calling HMRC and asking for a P810 form.
• if you donated land, property, or shares: you can claim both Income Tax relief and Capital Gains Tax relief (usually, you have to pay CGT when giving assets as a gift). You do this either through a Self Assessment tax return or by calling HMRC – they’ll either send you a cheque or change your tax code.
• if you donate through your will, the value of your donation will be taken off the value of your estate (so your beneficiaries will pay less Inheritance Tax). If you leave more than 10% of your estate to charity, the rest will also be subject to a reduced IHT rate of 36% instead of 40%.