If you are a taxpayer and use Gift Aid to give donations to a UK charity, the charity will be able to reclaim tax on that donation. In addition, if you are a higher rate taxpayer, you can claim personal tax relief on these donations and now you can get this even earlier.

Gift Aid donations are treated as having had basic rate tax deducted – which, if the conditions are satisfied – the charity can reclaim.

So for every £10 you give, the charity will receive another £2.80 from the government.

If you are a higher rate taxpayer, you can personally claim relief based on the difference between the basic and higher rates.

For example, if you pay tax at 40%, and give £10 to charity, they receive an additional £2.80, making a total of £12.80 (gross donation). In addition, you can claim relief for 18% of this (40%-22%) which reduces the tax you pay by £2.30.

To claim your higher rate tax relief earlier:

Higher rate relief is claimed in your return. Normally you claim relief for gift aid donations made in the year that your tax return related to. But now you can also claim relief for donations made from the end of that year up to the time you send your return.