The new tax arrangements for charitable giving are now in place and UK Members will want to know how this will affect them.

All donations to Nystagmus Network, however large or small, will in future qualify for Gift Aid. The only exception is payment from which you would obtain an advantage and an indication of such items is shown below. The important thing to understand is that whether it is the annual Membership Fee, or a donation, all qualify.

The mathematics for you and for us (at the current standard tax rate of 22%) are:

1. If you pay us £100, we can turn that into £128.21 because the Revenue will pay us £28.21.
   Provided you pay at least £28.21 tax in the year (it does not matter whether it is Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax) this will cost you nothing more than your £100 donation. The tax must be paid by the person making the donation and not your wife or husband who pays the tax.
2. If you are a higher rate tax payer there is more good news.
   On a donation of £100 you can reduce your own tax bill as well by £23.08. It will cost you only £76.92 (£100-£23.08) for Nystagmus Network to be given a donation of £128.21, which is exactly 60% of what Nystagmus Network receives.

If you are a higher rate tax payer, we hope you will pass the benefit of your tax saving to us, by paying us the extra 30% on top of your annual Membership Fee and donation.

What you cannot pay under Gift Aid

Because you must not "benefit" from Gift Aid, there are a few things you cannot pay under Gift Aid Rules and examples are:

• buying any of our books
• buying our new Wobbly Eyes for children or any other leaflet
• buying our Christmas cards or any other merchandise
• advertising in Focus
• advertising on our web site

As mentioned the new Gift Aid requires very little paperwork.   All you need to do for Nystagmus Network to benefit from the tax it can reclaim, is to complete and return the Gift Aid Declaration form and to note the donations for your own tax records.

If you have any query on these new Gift Aid rules, please contact the Treasurer who will do his best to help you or obtain the details you need.   Alternatively ask your local tax office for leaflet IR 113 Gift Aid.