Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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178. To ask the Minister for Finance if he will clarify, in the context of voluntary school contributions that are of €250 or more, whether it is the patron or school board of management that is the designated charity organisation that benefited from tax relief as a result of the submission of the CHY4 form. [7367/23]

Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I am advised by Revenue that, in the scenario set out in the question, the body which claims the tax relief provided for under the Charitable Donations Scheme (CDS) could vary depending on the circumstances of the case.

Section 848A and Schedule 26A Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA) provide a uniform scheme of tax relief for donations to approved bodies. The list of approved bodies in Part 1 of Schedule 26A TCA includes, inter alia, primary and post-primary schools and “eligible charities” in accordance with Part 3 of the Schedule. An “eligible charity” means any charity which is authorised in writing by Revenue for the purposes of this scheme. An authorisation will not issue unless the applicant charity:

- is a body of persons or trust established for charitable purposes only, and

- applies its income for charitable purposes only, and

- if it was a body established in the State and it has been granted exemption from tax (that is, assigned a Charitable Tax Exemption Number (CHY)) by Revenue for a period of not less than two years prior to the date of application for authorisation or

- if it was a body established in another EEA State (EU countries and Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway), an EFTA State (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) or in the United Kingdom, it received a notice of determination from Revenue under Section 208A TCA at least two years prior to the date of the application for authorisation.

In summary, a primary or post-primary school is itself an approved body for the purposes of the CDS; and a school, a board of management, or a school patron may be an “eligible charity” for the purposes of the CDS and thus eligible for tax relief on “relevant donations” under section 848A TCA.

Where an individual makes a charitable donation under the scheme, the “approved body” receiving the donation can claim a refund of income tax paid by the individual at a blended 'grossed-up' rate of 31%, up to the amount of tax actually paid by the donor. The requirements of the scheme include:

- the minimum donation by an individual which qualifies for relief is €250 per annum,

- the maximum amount an individual can donate under the scheme to an approved body or approved bodies is €1 million,

- the donor or anyone connected with the donor cannot get a benefit of any kind resulting from the donation,

- the donation must not be repayable, and

- the donation must not be conditional on, or associated with, any arrangement involving the acquisition of property by the approved body.

Tax relief under section 848A TCA in respect of donations made by individuals (whether self-assessed or PAYE only taxpayers) is paid to the approved body rather than to the donor.

Further information on the CDS, including links to the list of bodies with the Charitable Tax Exemption, can be found in Revenue’s Tax and Duty Manual 36-00-17 “Charitable Donations Scheme, Tax relief for Donations to Approved Bodies” on Revenue’s website at www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/tdm/income-tax-capital-gains-tax-corporation-tax/part-36/36-00-17.pdf.