Gift Aid is a scheme enabling registered charities to reclaim tax on a sum of money donated by an individual who is a UK taxpayer, effectively increasing the amount of the donation. Using Gift Aid means that the taxman will add 25p to every pound a donor gives. If your organisation raises money which it currently is unable to claim Gift Aid for, it may now be able to make a claim for all or some of this money. That’s an extra 25% your charity could be missing out on and we may be able to help it to recover this. Aidvante works with organisations to find new and undiscovered techniques to help their organisation attain excellent outcomes in their demands for gift aid and thus appreciate the exceptional benefits that this provides.
We carry out proprietary practices to conform with all applicable UK law and maintain statutory records of all Gift Aid claims produced by charities (as part of our service) for at least 5 years after the end of the tax year to which they relate (and make these documents accessible to HMRC and the Charity Commission if and when necessary). We also liaise on behalf of the organisation with HMRC and the Charity Commission if any queries or audits are produced as a consequence of our job in connection with a Gift Aid claim.
If any Gift Aid claim is queried or audited by HMRC, it will give us the opportunity to answer the queries and correct any errors. If HMRC are not satisfied – we will simply make a technical withdrawal of the claim.
If HMRC raises any concern or initiate audits for any Gift Aid claim, it will offer us the chance to answer the queries and rectify any mistakes. If HMRC is not satisfied, we will simply make a technical withdrawal of the claim. For technical purposes, withdrawing a claim is not something that will cause reputational harm to any external public or create adverse PR, as it is ordinary practice, and many of charities do so all the time.
We are focused on meeting all the requirements of HMRC audits and therefore there is relatively low chance that any problems will arise and if there are any, we will be diligent in correcting them. For Gift Aid, there is no charity commission, as only HMRC is responsible for this. As far as the use of our services is concerned, Trustees are allowed under charity legislation to use any legitimate business service that serves to benefit the charity and as the charity does not pay us anything in advance – this also removes any financial risks to it.
There are a range of services that charities can take advantage of, to achieve this we offer a number of different services and approaches.
Use this service if you have time pressures within your charity. This is suitable for those who want to remain efficient and make sure your returns are correct every time. Also, it can be used as an alternative to giving away a percentage of donations to giving platforms.
This usually begins with a thorough review of all the fundraising activities. We will also look at all other fundraising areas where Gift Aid may be received but compliance may be somewhat more difficult due to the special conditions required. Our review will take a look at your current set-up and put forward recommendations for improvements. There are many benefits to a review: 1) Ensures compliance; 2) Improves internal procedures; 3) Consultancy on current fundraising activities, with suggested improvements; 4) Access to over the phone advice for Gift Aid queries; 5) Access to ongoing Gift Aid training and updates; 6) VAT - sometimes there can be inconsistencies and conflict between Gift Aid and VAT, we can assist you to set the optimum position for your charity. Gift Aid can often be missed by organisations and has the potential for unclaimed gifts that the charity could use. We also find that even minor changes can make this system more successful a long way. If your charity is involved in any of the activities below, you may be able to gain from a health check or review.
There are many organisations that still do not claim the full amount of Gift Aid available, with HMRC stating in 2018 that up to £ 564 million of Gift Aid was not claimed from potentially qualified donations received, which amounts to almost one-third that could be claimed.
The Mock Audit involves us at Aidvante undertaking a Gift Aid Audit as if we were HMRC, (if you wish to take on our Gift Aid Service, the auditors will be different from the processors). This provides an opportunity for your organisation to submit to an inspection of your Gift Aid practices and assess the degree of adherence, without the possibility of any consequences in the event that things are not 100%. HMRC has a duty to take care of public funds and is therefore very focused on ensuring strict adherence to the rules relating to the payment of Gift Aid claims.As far as the audit itself is concerned, HMRC has a well-defined policy setting out what the charity needs to provide as verification of its gift aid procedures. To save you the trouble, we can manage your Gift Aid completely! To find out how, contact us for further information.
Gift Aid can often be overlooked by charities and has potential for unclaimed donations which could be used by the charity. We often find that even small changes can go a long way to making this process more effective. If your charity is involved in any of the below activities, you could stand to gain from a review or health check.
There are many charities who are still not claiming the full amount of Gift Aid available, with HMRC reporting in 2018 that up to £560m of Gift Aid has not been claimed from potentially eligible donations received, which amounts to almost a third that could be claimed. A health check or review could ensure you aren’t missing out on unclaimed donations.
This relies on the work we do for a specific organisation to create a claim for Gift Aid. All fees are agreed with the organisation in advance and we will send an invoice for the agreed fees to the charity along with the appropriate paperwork on the Gift Aid claim.
