It has now been almost 4 months since the lockdown was introduced, but CTG has been busier than ever, working to protect and improve the interests of charities. Recent activity has included:

• Creating and managing a comprehensive COVID-19 information hub for charities.
• Launching the Gift Aid Emergency Relief campaign in association with CAF, NCVO, CFG and IoF.
• Regularly updating members on topical developments including the changes to the Job Retention Scheme and the end of the VAT deferral
• Providing strategic and technical support to a coalition of charity retailers on the state aid limits for the Retail Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund, culminating in a recent meeting with BEIS officials. As part of this process CTG commissioned legal advice from state aid expert George Peretz QC on behalf of the coalition.
• Spearheading a campaign to allow small charities to claim COVID-19 business grants, resulting in charities being eligible for the Local Authority Discretionary Grant Funds
• Making representations to HMRC on the VAT treatment of RCP properties temporarily repurposed for business use due to the crisis
• Preparing representations to HMRC calling for an extension of the 9 month time limit for payment of Gift Aid payments from trading subsidiaries to parent charities, due to the impact of COVID-19.
• Engaging with HMRC, humanitarian charities and universities on the VAT treatment of DfID and GCRF funding. A detailed response has now been received from HMRC and further details will be shared with members shortly.
• Leading negotiations with HMRC on relaxations to Gift Aid (including for cancelled tickets and retail Gift Aid) and GASDS – you can read a summary here.
• Participating in a constructive meeting with charities, HMRC and Facebook representatives, in July 2020, to reach a resolution over Gift Aid claims on donations received via Facebook – further details to follow shortly and interested charities can ensure you receive updates first by joining the Gift Aid working group mailing list (contact info@charitytaxgroup.org.uk to do so)
• Co-ordinating support for a challenge of HMRC’s view on the VAT treatment of social media advertising. Discussions with HMRC and the advertising sector are also still ongoing.
• Establishing a sector wide “Future of Gift Aid” working group, including HMRC, charities, banks and intermediaries to explore ways to harness the power of the digital technology and move towards automating Gift Aid and making use of modern payment methods.
• Reviewing the findings of the VAT research project – the report by London Economics, commissioned by CTG, on the value of VAT reliefs to charities and the level of irrecoverable VAT faced by the sector, will be published soon.

CTG’s work is led by a volunteer Management Committee, supported by a small paid secretariat. Additional support is always welcome, so if you would like to find out more about getting involved in these various policy streams, please contact info@charitytaxgroup.org.uk.

With CTG’s Annual Conference now unlikely to take place until later in the year, we are planning to hold a number of subject focused virtual briefing/discussion sessions with charities, subject to interest. This could include updates on COVID-19, VAT developments, Gift Aid and other tax issues including business rates. To help with our planning, please let us know at info@charitytaxgroup.org.uk if you would be interested in participating and which issues would be of most interest.

If CTG’s updates have helped you to access a grant or understand how to apply for the Job Retention Scheme, please consider a small donation in return. Two members recently shared why they had made a contribution towards CTG’s work:

“CTG is a class act and has been publishing some clear first class information at a time when there are many spinning plates and lots of fog!”

“You’ve been our right arm during Covid, charities and charity tax. Your support & engagement is exceptional. I could only dream of creating the speedy concise briefings that you do.  Please organisations donate to Charity Tax Group and keep them viable”.

On average smaller charities donate £200-£400, medium size charities donate £400-£800 and larger charities donate over £800 a year. Please give as much as you can this year to help us achieve a fairer and simpler tax system for all charities.

Donation form: Support the Charity Tax Group in 2020 with a voluntary membership payment