| If you have already,
or are thinking of making a gift to any one of the funds set up
to help those affected by the Indian Ocean earthquake, tax-efficient
giving is one of the best ways to do this. This can make it cheaper
to donate to and it can benefit the charity by making your donation
go further.
The only requirement to be able to
use Gift Aid is that you pay tax in the UK. If this is the case
the scheme is a simple way to increase the value of your gift to
a charity.
However if you have forgotten to claim
Gift Aid, it’s not too late, advises John Squire, partner
at Cardiff based accountants Graham Paul.
He comments: “The good news
is Gift Aid can be claimed retrospectively so if you have donated
already but didn't use Gift Aid, your charity needn't lose out.
You should contact your chosen charity to find out how they would
wish you to provide a Gift Aid authorisation.
“Anybody who has donated to
the Disasters Emergency Committee for the Tsunami Earthquake Appeal
and believes they may have omitted to use Gift Aid, should write,
to Disasters Emergency Committee, PO Box 2710, London, W1A 5AD.
Just state your name, full postal address and how you donated.”
Making your donation using Gift Aid
will enable the charity to reclaim the basic rate tax on your gift
to them. This means that if you give £10 to charity using
Gift Aid it’s worth £12.82 to the charity.
For more information contact
John Squire at Graham Paul on 01656 679800.
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