Donations to Eligible Charities and other Approved Bodies

Section 19 Finance Act 2013 amended section 848A Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 which, together with Schedule 26A to that Act, deals with the scheme of tax relief for donations to eligible charities and other approved bodies (hereinafter referred to as "approved bodies"). Under the new arrangements, which apply to donations made by individuals on or after 1 January 2013, tax relief is granted directly to the approved bodies regardless of whether the donor is registered as a PAYE-only or self assessed taxpayer. Relief is given on a grossed up basis at the specified rate, currently 31%. There has been no change in the treatment of donations made by companies, which continue to be deductible as a trading expense or an expense of management for corporation tax purposes.

In order to allow an approved body claim tax relief under the new arrangements, donors must complete either a CHY3 (Enduring Certificate) or a CHY4 (Annual Certificate). The CHY3 allows the approved body claim tax relief in respect of all donations made to the body by the relevant donor during the lifetime of the certificate, which is 5 years while the CHY4 is valid for 1 year only.

Claims under the new arrangements will be accepted by Revenue on or after 1 January 2014 and all such claims will have to be made using ROS – the Revenue Online Service.

There has been no change to the arrangements for claiming relief in respect of donations made in 2012 and earlier years. PAYE-only donors should continue to complete CHY2 Certificates for donations made in those years to facilitate the approved body making the claim.

Self-Assessed individuals should continue to claim the relief for 2012 and previous years in their Annual Return and should not complete CHY 2 Certificates.

The various CHY Certificates and further information on the scheme are available on the Revenue website at: Taxes & Duties - Income Tax - Forms - Claim Forms; or from the Office of the Revenue Commissioners, Collector-General’s Division, Charity Claims Unit, Government Offices, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary.

Phone: 01 7383680
Email: charityclaims@revenue.ie

23 December 2013