In this tutorial you will collect a Gift Aid declaration from a donor, record an eligible donation, and create a claim ready to submit to HMRC. By the end you will have walked the full Gift Aid path end-to-end with one record.
You will need:
- A contact record for a donor who is a UK taxpayer (create one first if you haven’t — see Set up your organisation)
- The Gift Aid module enabled on your workspace
- Your charity registered with HMRC for Gift Aid
Background: If “Gift Aid” sounds unfamiliar, read Understanding Gift Aid first.
Step 1 — Record the declaration
- Click Gift Aid → Declarations in the sidebar.
- Click Create declaration.
- Pick your donor in the Contact field.
- Set Scope to All future donations.
- Set Method to whichever channel you collected the declaration through (Written, Web form, Oral, etc.).
- Click Save.
The declaration appears in the list with status Active.
Step 2 — Record a donation
- Open your donor’s contact profile.
- Click Add payment.
- Fill in the Amount, Date, and Payment method.
- Tick Tax relief eligible (this is what flags the payment as Gift Aid eligible).
- Click Save.
Step 3 — Create the claim
- Click Gift Aid in the sidebar then click Create new claim.
- Pick the same contact.
- Enter the same Amount, Currency (GBP), and Payment date.
- Set Status to Ready if you want to submit it now, or Draft to come back later.
- Click Save.
The claim appears in the claims table.
Step 4 — Submit to HMRC
From the claim detail view, follow the prompts to submit to HMRC. Once submitted, the status moves through Submitted → Paid (or Rejected) as HMRC processes it.
You’ve completed the Gift Aid loop
From here:
- For each new donor, repeat Step 1 — see Collect a Gift Aid declaration
- For batch claim handling, see Submit a claim to HMRC
- For status meanings, see Claim statuses