ATO Interpretative Decision

ATO ID 2002/403

Income Tax

Deductibility of a donation of property made to a school
FOI status: may be released

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If you reasonably apply this decision in good faith to your own circumstances (which are not materially different from those described in the decision), and the decision is later found to be incorrect you will not be liable to pay any penalty or interest. However, you will be required to pay any underpaid tax (or repay any over-claimed credit, grant or benefit), provided the time limits under the law allow it. If you do intend to apply this decision to your own circumstances, you will need to ensure that the relevant provisions referred to in the decision have not been amended or repealed. You may wish to obtain further advice from the Tax Office or from a professional adviser.

Issue

Is a donation of property to a school deductible under Division 30 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997)?

Decision

No. A donation of property to a school is not deductible under Division 30 of the ITAA 1997 as the donation does not constitute a deductible gift.

Facts

The taxpayer donated an item of property to a school.

The gift was made after 1 July 2000.

The school is not endorsed by the Commissioner of Taxation as a deductible gift recipient nor was it listed as a specific education gift recipient.

Reasons for Decision

Division 30 of the ITAA 1997 deals with the deductibility of gifts or contributions.

Section 30-15 of the ITAA 1997 contains a table of all the gifts and contributions that a taxpayer can deduct. The table describes who the recipient of the gift can be. A school is not specifically listed as a recipient in this table.

A fund, authority or institution will be a gift recipient if it is listed in Subdivision 30-B of the ITAA 1997. There is a general category of education recipient (subsection 30-25(1) of the ITAA 1997). However, a school is not listed in this category. Neither is the specific school listed as a specific education recipient under subsection 30-25(2) of the ITAA 1997. The school is therefore not a listed gift recipient for the purposes of Subdivision 30-B of the ITAA 1997.

Subdivision 30-BA of the ITAA 1997 deals with the endorsement of entities as deductible gift recipients. The school has not been endorsed as a deductible gift recipient.

As the taxpayer's gift was not given to a listed or endorsed gift recipient, the donation of property is not a deductible gift under Division 30 of the ITAA 1997.

Date of decision: 13 March 2002

Year of income: Year ended 30 June 2001

Legislative References:
Income Tax Assessment Act 1997
   Division 30
   Subdivision 30-B
   Subdivision 30-BA
   section 30-15
   subsection 30-25(1)
   subsection 30-25(2)

Keywords
Gifts & donations
Gifts to organisations
Deductible gift recipients

Business Line: Small Business/Individual Taxpayers

Date of publication: 28 March 2002

ISSN: 1445-2782

history

	Date:	Version:
You are here →	13 March 2002	Original statement
	18 December 2007	Archived

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