Make use of Gift Aid - Thank you for considering a donation to our charity. It will be spent where the need is greatest. You can increase its value to us at no extra cost to you by using the Gift Aid scheme. It makes a big difference!
Gift Aid is a UK Government arrangement that increases the value of donations to charities from UK tax-payers by allowing us to reclaim the basic rate tax on your gift. If you pay higher rate tax you can claim extra relief from tax on your donations. If you claim age-related allowances or tax credits, then Gift Aid donations can sometimes increase your entitlement.
How Gift Aid works
The Gift Aid scheme is for money donated by individuals who pay UK tax on UK earnings.
Gift Aid donations are regarded as having basic rate tax deducted by the donor. The Sailors’ Society takes your donation – which is money that you've already paid tax on – and reclaims the basic rate tax from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) on its 'gross' equivalent, that is the amount before basic rate tax was deducted.
Basic rate tax on individual earnings is presently set at 20%, (valid at 1 April 2010) so this means that if you give us £10 and declare to use Gift Aid, it’s actually worth £12.50 to us.
How to make a donation to us using Gift Aid
In order to make a Gift Aid donation to the Sailors’ Society you’ll need to make a Gift Aid declaration. It’s not complicated. We will normally ask you to complete a simple 
form – and just one form can cover every gift made to our charity for whatever period you choose, and it can cover gifts that you have already made and/or gifts that you may make in the future.
A Gift Aid declaration must include:
- your full name
- your home address and postal code in the UK
- the name of our charity
- details of your donation, and it should say that it's a Gift Aid donation.
These details are to assure HMRC that you pay UK tax. We will not use these details except for that purpose.
Gifts made jointly by people living together
You can use Gift Aid for gifts you make jointly to the Society if you tell us how much each of you is giving and if you each make an individual Gift Aid declaration.