Details of online gift aid filing scheme published

More than 18 months after announcing the move to online gift aid filing, the HMRC has published details of the new scheme at www.hmrc.gov.uk/charities/online/index.htm.

Chancellor George Osborne announced the move to online gift aid submission in the Budget of 2011, but it took until 30 November 2012 for details to be published.

The new system, which come into effect in April 2013 and will replace the present paper-based system, will comprise of three levels:

• A paper option for charities which do not have internet access
• For charities with less than 1,000 records, uploading their database to the HMRC web portal ‘Charities Online'
• For charities with more than 1,000 records, linking their data online with the HMRC system

The system is designed to be more secure, cheaper and faster than the present paper-based gift aid scheme. It will also enable charities to claim Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme payments.

However, the short time frame between the details being published and the scheme coming into affect may cause problems for some charities who have to implement changes in order to submit their gift aid submissions online.