Australian tax payers can reduce the amount of tax they owe by giving a gift of more than $2 to an approved charity (deductible gift recipient). There is no upper limit on the amount of donations you can claim a tax deduction for - but you can’t use a large donation to create a tax loss.
Charitable donations have to be received by the charity by the end of June 30th to be counted in that years Tax Return so don’t leave your donation until July or August!
Studies regularly show that people who donate money to charity feel much better about giving it away than if they had bought something for themselves with the same amount of money.
Giving Money to Charity
You can claim a full tax deduction for gifts of money $2 and over to approved deductible gift recipient charities - there is no upper limit. You can check on Australian charities by going to www.abn.business.gov.au. enter the charity’s Australian business number (ABN) or Charity Name in the search box. Scroll down to “Deductible Gift Recipient”. If the organisation is a DGR it will be displayed on screen.
If you donate money and receive goods or services in return, you can’t claim a tax deduction. For example if you get a chocolate bar, ticket to a charity dinner etc.
Do make sure you get an official receipt for your donation. It may not seem worth asking the Red Cross volunteer collector for a receipt for $5 but small frequent donations add up.