- From now on all donations from individuals (PAYE and Self-Assessed) will be treated the same, with the tax relief in all cases being repaid to the charity.
- Tax relief is to be given at a blended rate of 31% to all taxpayers, regardless of their marginal rate. All donations will be grossed up as is currently the case with PAYE donations.
- The charitable donations scheme has been removed from the scope of the higher earners' restriction (i.e. decoupling).
- An annual limit of €1m per individual, which can be tax relieved under the scheme has been introduced.
To make donating easier, donors may in future opt to make an ‘enduring declaration’ to their favourite charity for up to five years. This removes the need for annual form filling by donors and eases the administrative burden on charities and Revenue. Data Protection rules have been clarified to facilitate this change.
MS Ireland Head of Fundraising, David Allen welcomed the changes introduced in Budget 2013, saying “in a difficult economic environment, we are believe there will be the potential to reduce administrative costs and increase funding into the charities sector.”