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How To Claim Donations to a Charity on Your Tax Return
When you give money to a charity, your gifts may be a tax deductible donation that can boost your tax refund.
There are lots of charities and worthy causes out there that rely on the generosity of taxpayer donations in order to help the less fortunate.
Like many Australians, if one or more of those charities or causes are close to your heart, you may choose to make a donation to these charitable organisations to help them achieve their stated goals and aims.
But did you know that the charitable donations you make may be tax deductible?
Charitable Donations & Tax Deductions
If a charity is endorsed by the ATO as a “deductible gift recipient organisation”, or is listed by name in Income Tax Law (such as Amnesty International or the Australian Sports Foundation), then any donations you make to that charity may be tax deductible donations.
You can find out if a charity is a deductible gift recipient organisation by searching the Australian Business Register. Often, deductible gift recipient charities will emphasise in their advertising material and website that your gifts toward their cause are tax deductible donations. If you’re still not sure, ring the charity and ask for proof of their deductible gift recipient status, or just send us a message and we can check for you.
What Donations Can I Claim?
To claim tax deductible donations on your tax return, your donation must be made to a deductible gift recipient charity, and it must be a donation of $2 or more.
You must keep proof (in the form of a receipt or bank statement) of any donation you make as well as the total dollar amount of all donations you make in a tax year.
On top of that, it’s important to be aware of the following important notes:
- If you receive something for your donation (e.g. raffle ticket, pen, bandana), you cannot claim that donation on your tax return. This is because the ATO sees this as a transaction where you receive a good/service in return for the money you donate.
- There are different rules for donating property, shares, and other goods, so please ask us if you are unsure about how to claim these items.
- Some charities have special rules which limit the donation amount you can claim; this should be explained to you or referenced on your receipt so that you know how much of your donation is actually a tax deductible donation.
Tax deductible donations are a great way to give your refund a boost while contributing to worthy causes.
How Do I Claim?
As long as your donation is $2 or more, and you make it to a deductible gift recipient charity, you can claim the full amount of money that you donated on your tax return. Section D9 on your tax return (Gifts and Donations) deals specifically with charitable donations, so that’s where you should record your donations.
Don’t forget – as with any other tax deduction, in order to claim your tax deductible donations on your return, you must have a receipt.
