Take advantage of charity tax relief

There aren't many legitimate ways left to avoid paying tax – that's just one reason why you should definitely take full advantage of reliefs available on charitable donations.

There aren't many legitimate ways left to avoid paying tax that's just one reason why you should definitely take full advantage of reliefs available on charitable donations. Gift aid lets you make either a one-off donation, or a series of them, to a charity of your choice, which they can top up with basic-rate tax relief. So, with basic-rate tax at 20%, a £100 gift becomes £125. In addition, a higher-rate taxpayer can claim back higher-rate relief of 20% via a self-assessment tax return. A single gift aid declaration form (which is usually available on a charity's website, or can be sent by post) needs to be completed, but it then covers all subsequent donations to the same organisation.

Employees might prefer to make donations via their work payroll, known as Give as you Earn. This time, full tax relief is available to both basic and higher-rate taxpayers. So for a basic-rate taxpayer a £100 monthly donation costs just £80, while for a higher-rate taxpayer it costs just £60 of their after tax income.

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