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Making tax deductible donations
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Donors can claim tax deductions for gifts made to eligible gift recipients. Entities entitled to receive gifts for which a donor may claim a tax deduction are called deductible gift recipients (DGRs). For a donor to claim a tax deduction for a gift, there are several requirements:
the payment must be truly a gift
it must be made to a DGR
be a gift of money or property that is covered by a gift type, and
comply with any relevant gift conditions.
What is a gift?
Not all payments to DGRs are tax deductible. Gifts have the following characteristics:
they are made voluntarily
they do not provide a material benefit to the donor, and
they essentially arise from benefaction, and proceed from detached and disinterested generosity.
Examples of payments that are not gifts include:
purchases of raffle or art union tickets
purchases of chocolates, pens, etc
the cost of attending fundraising dinners, even if the cost exceeds the value of the dinner
membership fees
payments to school building funds as an alternative to an increase in school fees
payments where the person has an understanding with the recipient that the payments will be used to provide a benefit for the 'donor'.
Deductible gift recipient (DGRs)
Only gifts made to DGRs are tax deductible. To find out whether an organisation can receive tax deductible gifts see Locating an organisation for tax deductible gifts.
Gift types
The law specifies the types of gifts that can be donated. To be deductible, a gift must be of money or property that is covered by one of the gift types. These are:
$2 or more: money
property < 12 mths: property purchased during the 12 months before the gift was made
property valued at more than $5,000: a valuation by the Tax Office is required
trading stock: trading stock disposed of outside the ordinary course of business
cultural gifts: property under the Cultural Gift Program
National Estate gifts: places listed in the Register of the National Estate.
A detailed discussion on the various gift types can be found at the Donors and gifts chapter of GiftPack for deductible gift recipients & donors.
Gift conditions
For some DGRs, the income tax law adds extra conditions affecting the sorts of deductible gifts they can receive. The gift may only be tax deductible:
between certain dates, or
for a specific use.
You should ask your DGR if conditions apply. A table in the DGR table – general categories chapter of GiftPack for deductible gift recipients & donors sets out the various categories of DGRs and gift conditions. Many categories of DGR have no gift condition.
How much can be claimed?
The deduction for a gift cannot add to or create a tax loss. The deduction can reduce assessable income for the tax year to nil but any excess cannot be claimed in the year the gift is made or any later year.
The amount of the deduction depends on the type of gift. For gifts of money, it is the amount of the gift. For gifts of property, there are various valuation rules, these are explained in the Donors and gifts chapter of GiftPack for deductible gift recipients & donors.
Apportioning gift claims
Certain gifts may be apportioned over a period of up to five income years. Donors may elect to apportion their gift deduction over a maximum of 5 years where the gift is:
a ‘cultural gift’ made on or after 1 July 1999
a ‘National Estate’ gift made on or after 1 July 1999
a gift of property made to certain environment or heritage DGRs on or after 1 July 1999, where the property has been valued by the Tax Office at more than $5,000, or
a gift of property made to any DGR on or after 1 July 2002, where the property has been valued by the Tax Office at more than $5,000.
A detailed discussion about apportionment and election requirements is contained in the Donors and gifts chapter of GiftPack for deductible gift recipients & donors.
http://www.ato.gov.au/nonprofit/content.asp?doc=/content/8568.htm |
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