Adding a charitable donation to our annual fees?

[Lucan Unlordly]

We are considering an option to add a charitable donation to our website users annual fee.

Is there anything we need to consider tax/accounting wise before doing so?

 

[tertius]

Charitable donations from a business can be tax deductible as far as I know (as long as the charity is not 'connected' to the owners /directors. As far as adding it onto the fees you charge customers - good idea, just not sure whether that would have VAT on or not. Someone will comment I hope..... I'm interested to know myself

 

[Lucan Unlordly]

Charitable donations from a business can be tax deductible as far as I know (as long as the charity is not 'connected' to the owners /directors. As far as adding it onto the fees you charge customers - good idea, just not sure whether that would have VAT on or not. Someone will comment I hope..... I'm interested to know myself

Thankyou. We are not VAT registered and that raises an interesting point as it's possible, but unlikely, that the charitable donations could mean exceeding the threshold?

 

[tertius]

Thankyou. We are not VAT registered and that raises an interesting point as it's possible, but unlikely, that the charitable donations could mean exceeding the threshold?

Indeed, valid point, although this is beyond my experience and expertise. Am commenting in the hope to learn too

 

[Spur Support Services]

If you will be pledging to give part of your income as chartable donations, then the charitable donations will be deductible in most circumstances, with the original pledged income as your sales (included in your sales for VAT registration purposes).

If you want to raise donations from your contacts, you could do it separate from your business activities. For instance, I set up a Justgiving page for the Ukraine Red Cross appeal at the end of last week and am reaching out to fellow motorbikers to donate the equivalent of a day's ride worth of fuel. So far I have raised over £750.

 

[Bobbo]

If you will be pledging to give part of your income as chartable donations, then the charitable donations will be deductible in most circumstances, with the original pledged income as your sales (included in your sales for VAT registration purposes).

If you want to raise donations from your contacts, you could do it separate from your business activities. For instance, I set up a Justgiving page for the Ukraine Red Cross appeal at the end of last week and am reaching out to fellow motorbikers to donate the equivalent of a day's ride worth of fuel. So far I have raised over £750.

If OP sets it up properly and documents it well in their Ts & Cs that it is:
- very much an 'option' to donate and
- there is absolutely no obligation to do so and
- exactly the amount collected in donations is passed on to the charity(ies) it says it will be

then it isn't income of OP's business (and so not relevant to turnover for VAT purposes), nor is the onward payment of money to the charity expenditure of the business. it's essentially the online equivalent of putting your change in a pot next to the till.

 

[Lucan Unlordly]

If you want to raise donations from your contacts, you could do it separate from your business activities. For instance, I set up a Justgiving page for the Ukraine Red Cross appeal at the end of last week and am reaching out to fellow motorbikers to donate the equivalent of a day's ride worth of fuel. So far I have raised over £750.

Unfortunately our membership is unlikely to follow a similar path unless the option to tick a simple box is put in front of them.