Making tax deductible gifts and contributions

Deductible gift recipients

A deductible gift recipient (DGR) is an organisation that is entitled to receive income tax deductible gifts. DGRs are either:

• endorsed by us
• listed by name in the tax law.

There are two types of DGR endorsement:

• An organisation is endorsed as a whole - for example, a public hospital or a public university.
• An organisation is endorsed for the operation of a fund, authority or institution that it owns or includes - for example, a school that is endorsed for a building fund or a local council that is endorsed for a public library.

Donations you make to an organisation that is endorsed as a whole may be tax deductible. Donations you make to an organisation that is endorsed for a fund, authority or institution it operates are only tax deductible if you make the donation to that particular part of the organisation.

Examples: Not deductible

Example 1

A local government council is endorsed as a DGR only for its library. Only gifts donated to the library are tax deductible. Gifts donated to other parts of the council - for example, the council's neighbourhood program - are not deductible.

Example 2

A school is endorsed as a DGR only for its school building fund. Only gifts donated to the school building fund are tax deductible. Gifts donated to other parts of the school - for example, the school's sports teams - are not deductible.

You can check that a recipient is a DGR by: visiting the Australian Business Register website at www.abn.business.gov.au Enter the recipient's Australian business number (ABN) or name in the search box. If the recipient is a DGR, its DGR status is recorded under the heading 'Deductible gift recipient status' on the 'Current details for ABN:' page. If the search results are a list of matching names, select the ABN of the recipient to see the recipient's current details. phoning us on 13 28 61.

You can also download a complete list of endorsed DGRs by visiting the Australian Business Register website and referring to Deductible gift recipients. Two lists are available:

1. Entities that are DGRs in their own right.
2. Entities that are DGRs for the operation of a fund, authority or institution.

The information on the Australian Business Register is updated daily.

For more information about: endorsed DGRs, refer to our guide GiftPack (NAT 3132) DGRs that are listed by name, refer to our fact sheet Deductible gift recipients listed by name in the tax law.