According to the research, donors do not always make the link between tax they’ve paid and Gift Aid claimed by the charity, leading to ineligible donors making claims. It found that some respondents held misconceptions, including the notion that Gift Aid was an additional tax or donation from them.

Possible improvements suggested by the research include making the language used about Gift Aid more straightforward to enable donors to decide if their donations qualify for relief.  HMRC have also suggested improvements to the model GAD form such as avoiding excess detail or dense formatting; breaking up the information to make it easier to digest; and changing the layout significantly so donors pay more attention to the information.

The research document is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/372221/report344.pdf