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One of the reasons many people give charity donations in Australia is for tax deductions. By donating to non-profit charitable organisations you can save hugely on income tax. However there are specific rules that govern charity tax deduction.

Tax is deductible only on those donations that are given to charitable trusts endorsed by ATO – Australian Taxation Office. The ATO has to give the organization deductible gift recipient status or DGR status. To avail charity tax deduction you must donate upwards of two dollars. The tax deduction can be claimed in the tax return in that year’s income tax assessment.  In certain situations you may be allowed to disperse the tax deduction on your income for the next five years. For more information visit the Gifts and Donations page of ATO’s website.

If you have chosen a particular charity organization and are not sure if it is registered for DGR status, you can either check with the trust directly or visit Australian Business Register to confirm. You can also ask them for the list of DGR certified charity organizations by calling up ATO at 13 28 61.

While donating for charity tax deduction is a good thing, you must check the legitimacy of the trust before donating. If you have any problems with the charity in terms of funds being misused, not receiving the receipts or any other issues you can complain to the relevant territory / state regulator. You can find the relevant regulator on State and territory governments requirements – fundraising page of the ATO website. For registered charities you can complain to the ACNC (Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission), visit the Raise a concern about a charity page on ACNC website.

If you have any specific cause in mind that you want to support and this charity organization based in Australia is working for that overseas cause you can still donate and avail charity tax deduction. Most such charities get AusAID funding and should be ACFID members (Australian Council for International Development. They have specific code of conduct to adhere to as articulated by ACFID.

Once you donate, whether it is a one-time donation or on going for charity tax deduction, the organization keeps your contact details to get in touch with you for future campaigns. Unless you are a full time philanthropist and don’t mind being contacted at any time, you don’t want to be on this list. Tell them to remove your name from the list and they will not disturb you any further. Any time you wish to donate you can get in touch with them yourself.