Getting Started with Gift Aid:

Cancellations and Amendments

Can a Gift Aid Declaration be cancelled?

Yes. The donor can cancel the Declaration at any time. The cancellation will take effect from the date the donor notifies you of the cancellation, or such later date that the donor specifies, ie it is not retrospective.  Any donations received before the date of the donor’s notification will still qualify as Gift Aid donations. You need to keep a record of the cancellation, including the date of the notification. Where a donor’s circumstances have changed and they no longer have paid enough tax to cover donations already made before they cancelled the Declaration, you should not fully claim for that donor.

For donors sent a written statement of a declara tion, if the donor cancels 30 days after you sent the written record, the cancellation takes effect from the date the donor notifies you, or such later date as specified. If the donor cancels within the 30 days, the cancellation has a retrospective effect, so that it is as if the Declaration was never made, ie nullifying the Declaration.

From 6 April 2000, donors need to have paid an amount of income tax and/or capital gains tax, whether at the basic rate, or some other rate, equal to the tax deducted from their donations. The position of a taxpayer making Gift Aid donations to both the church and other charities can change from one year to the next. We recommend that you remind donors regularly of the tax requirement. This is best done by writing to all your donors on an annual basis for encouragement and thanks, and also to check their tax status. Click here to download an example letter. If a donor knows how much tax they have paid in any tax year, they can calculate how much they can donate under Gift Aid, to all their charities, by dividing the amount of tax paid by 28p (whilst the basic rate of tax is 22%).

How do we deal with amendments?

You do not need to get a replacement Declaration when a donor changes his or her name or address. The Declaration itself does not need to be amended, but you do need to keep a record of the change with the Declaration.

Diocesan Scheme parishes should also notify the Gift Aid Officer of any amendments or cancellations.

To find out more, click on the following links:
The benefit rules

Or go back to
Getting started with Gift Aid
Declarations
Recording Declarations