Charitable donations

Donors to an approved body cannot claim tax relief on the donation for themselves.

Approved bodies can claim tax relief for donations made to them by donors, if authorised to do so by the donor. Further details can be found in the Charitable Donation Scheme section.

Donations that qualify for tax relief

The following donations to approved bodies qualify for tax relief:

• a minimum donation of €250
• a maximum donation of €1,000,000 in any one year.

Relief will be restricted to 10% of the donor's annual income if there is a connection between the donor and the approved body.

An approved body may claim 31% tax relief on your donation. They receive the grossed up amount, net of tax deducted at the specified rate.

The repayment to an approved body cannot exceed the amount of tax that the donor has paid for that year. The donor is not allowed a repayment of any tax that has been repaid to the approved body.

The donation must:

• be in the form of money or designated securities (quoted shares and debentures), or a combination of both
• not be repayable to the donor
• not benefit the donor or anyone connected with the donor
• and
• not be a condition or connected with any arrangement involved in obtaining a property other than by way of a gift from the donor to the approved body.

Connection to an approved body

You are connected with an approved body at the time you make a donation if:

• you are an employee or member of that body
• or
• you are a member of another approved body that is connected with the first approved body.

One approved body is connected with another if:

• the activities carried on by both bodies can be directed by the same person, group or groups of persons
• or
• the same person, group or groups of persons exercise, or can exercise, control over both bodies.

What are approved bodies?

For the purposes of the Charitable Donation Scheme, an approved body is:

• a charity that has been authorised by Revenue to operate the scheme, that is, an eligible charity
• primary, second and third level institutions who have programmes approved by the Minister for Education and Skills
• institutions that provide courses which are certified by Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI)
• institutes that are approved for Education in the Arts by the Minister for Finance
• organisations that promote human rights as detailed under Section 209 Taxes Consolidation Act 1997.

Certification to the approved body

You can provide an approved body with the required information to claim the tax relief on your donation by either:

• sending them a completed Annual Certificate – Certificate valid for a period of one year
• or
• sending a completed Enduring Certificate – Certificate valid for a period of five years.