Amending legislation has implemented Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) Registers reform, giving the ATO administration of all DGR categories from 1 January 2024.
A DGR can receive tax deductible gifts and contributions. This means donors can deduct the value of gifts and contributions from their assessable income when lodging their tax returns, making DGR endorsement attractive to many organisations.
ATO now responsible
Previously, the ATO was responsible for 48 of the 52 DGR categories provided for by the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth).
Following the DGR Registers reform introduced by the Treasury Laws Amendment (Refining and Improving Our Tax System) Act 2023 (Cth), administrative responsibility of the remaining four categories has been transferred from other government departments to the ATO.
The additional categories the ATO will now be responsible for are:
- environmental organisations, previously administered by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water
- harm prevention charities, previously administered by the Department of Social Services
- cultural organisations, previously administered by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts
- developing country relief funds or organisations (previously known as overseas aid funds), previously administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
What does this mean?
Practically, this means that all applications for DGR endorsement must be made to, and will be assessed by, the ATO.
The aim of this change is to simplify the application process for DGR endorsement and improve consistency across the DGR categories.
Organisations that were already DGR endorsed in one of the 4 categories will continue to be endorsed as long as they continue to meet the eligibility criteria.
Applications for DGR endorsement that were with the government departments that previously administered the four categories were transferred to the ATO on 1 January 2024, so organisations with applications in progress are not required to reapply.
Cooper Grace Ward is a leading Australian law firm based in Brisbane.
This publication is for information only and is not legal advice. You should obtain advice that is specific to your circumstances and not rely on this publication as legal advice. If there are any issues you would like us to advise you on arising from this publication, please contact Cooper Grace Ward Lawyers.
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