Rebates available for charitable New Zealanders

New Zealanders are missing out on more than $200 million of unclaimed rebates, which is given to charity supporters or gaurdians of school-aged children.

The government gives a rebate to almost anyone who makes a charitable donation over $5. But many New Zealanders either don’t know they can get a third of their donation back – or don’t know how to.

Smart donation has just launched a website to make it easy to see if you are elligible for a refund and to process it. Charities and schools are being encouraged to sign up.

Tax Management New Zealand (TMNZ), which set up Smart Donation, says that charities who partner with the website can use it as a way of saying thank you to their donors and giving something back to them for their support.

Chief Executive Chris Cunniffe says: “We already partner with a number of charities, who appreciate the opportunity to help the people who’ve supported them, by telling them about the rebate. Smart Donation cuts out the need for them to fill in forms or find old donation receipts and so takes most of the effort away. The charities can direct their donors to the website and we sort out the rest.”

Not all donors want the rebate, but TMNZ says they should still claim the money because they can donate it back to their favourite charity, getting them even more bang for their buck. All they need to do is tick a box and the rebate will go straight to the nominated charity.

About one in five people choose to do this and it’s the gift that keeps on giving, making their donation go even further, says Cunniffe.

The government established the tax rebate to encourage a culture of generosity in New Zealand, with the hope that more people would support charitable work and other non-profit organisations. The money comes from the government, so the charity still gets the full amount. Smart Donation has been approved by Inland Revenue to help donors make their claims.

“It’s part of the DNA of TMNZ to help charities and this was a logical thing for us to do sitting, as we do, in the heart of the tax system,” says Chris.

New Zealanders have up to four years to claim a rebate. That means they can get money back from donations made since 2014 – as long as they make their claim for 2014 by the end of March 2018. That includes donations to schools.

Smart Donation is free for charities and schools to sign up to and people who make a claim through the website may be charged a small administration fee of up to $20.

 

About Tax Management New Zealand

TMNZ is New Zealand’s leading tax pooling provider and works very closely with the IRD to help businesses pay provisional tax. Smart Donation is a service it offers to help charities and donors claim back their donation rebates from IRD.

One of its key values is supporting charities, which is why it works closely with them to make sure they get even more money than they normally would.

Smart Donation is their way of giving back to the Kiwis who need it most.