Streamlined Gift Aid for charity shops

New rules which will lift the admin burdens for charities claiming Gift Aid on the proceeds of donors’ goods sold by charity shops have been announced by HM Revenue and Customs.

The new rules allow donors to make a one off Gift Aid declaration that covers donations of up to £100 or £1,000 of future sale proceeds in a tax year. The charity will only need to write to the donor when sale proceeds exceed the amount agreed.

The current rules require the charity to write to the donor before the charity can claim Gift Aid on the proceeds from each sale so that the donor can confirm that they are UK taxpayers.

Sajid Javid, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, said: “I’m delighted that we’ve been able to work with the charity sector to make Gift Aid simpler and less costly for charity shops. Gift Aid income from charity shops is important for many charities, and we want to reduce the associated administrative costs as much as possible.”

The new procedures will apply from April 2013.