charity gifts

[diesel]

i want to make some gift to charity...does it make much difference if i make this thro my LTD company using company debit card compared to making it from my personal account?
Is there a benefit to the chairty in what they can reclaim or impact to my LTD co from HMRC?

advice welcome

[TheFaQQer]

It depends on whether you want to give (say) £100 which costs you the least, or potentially gets the most for the charity.

If you want it to cost you the least, then it's cheaper to you to do it through the company.

If you want to maximise the benefit to the charity, then it's better to do it from you and gift aid it.

[eek]

If you want to maximise the benefit to the charity, then it's better to do it from you and gift aid it.

Are you sure. A company donation for £100 will give the charity £100 and is tax free. See HM Revenue & Customs: Gifts to charity made by companies for the real rules.

A personal donation can be gift aided but only up to the amount of tax paid. Worse the refund is only against income tax so if you paid NI on that money the charity would be better off with a donation through the company.

[diesel]

thanks for the replies. intersting food for thought.
I plan to make 2 fist of £50 each. either if i use my LTD co money or my own money, its from my earnings, so just wanted to know what is best use to be tax effcient but not to get caught out by HMRC too

[TheFaQQer]

Are you sure. A company donation for £100 will give the charity £100 and is tax free. See HM Revenue & Customs: Gifts to charity made by companies for the real rules.

A personal donation can be gift aided but only up to the amount of tax paid. Worse the refund is only against income tax so if you paid NI on that money the charity would be better off with a donation through the company.

If the company gives £100, the charity gets £100.

If a tax payer gives £100, the charity gets £128.

[ASB]

If the company gives £100, the charity gets £100.

If a tax payer gives £100, the charity gets £128.

Quite true (125 + 3 supplement), but that's not necessarily an entirely valid comparison.

If the company has 100 and pays 21 CT on it and pays the taxpayer 79, gift aiding this it comes to 101.12 (including the 3% supplement). Thus as a standard rate taxpayer giving the net amount the company would have had is of slight benefit to the charity (assuming dividends can be paid and the taxpayer is standard rate). In any other circumstanses (i.e. it is paid as salary and/or the taxpayer pays at basic rate) then the charity would be better off were it paid from the company.