Elim Gift Aid Submissions
The Elim Gift Aid Submission functionality within ExpensePlus enables Elim EFGA Churches to create Gift Aid submissions at the click of a button in the form that is needed for the Elim Central Finance team.
Important: If you are not an Elim EFGA Church, for more information on how to manage and claim Gift Aid within ExpensePlus click here.
Basic Setup
Within the system settings, check your organisation type is set as Church - Elim EFGA and the Elim Church Code for your church is displayed correctly below this. If you need to update any details, click the edit (pencil icon) button to the right of this section.
Note: for details about how to set up your categories, bank accounts, and how to create Elim Monthly Return Reports within ExpensePlus, please see this separate help guide article.
Elim Gift Aid Declarations
If you are setting up ExpensePlus, then as part of the 5 simple setup steps, you will be able to import your donor information (including Gift Aid declaration information) into ExpensePlus using the template spreadsheet provided - click here to find out more.
If your donors are already in ExpensePlus, here is how to add Elim Gift Aid declarations to ExpensePlus:
1. When a donor completes an Elim Gift Aid declaration, the details from that declaration need to be added to ExpensePlus. To do this, within Manage Donors module, select the Gift Aid Declarations tab.
- Select the donor, click Add Gift Aid Declaration, then add the Gift Aid Declaration details
Note: At this point, you will not have an Elim Gift Aid declaration reference, so you should leave this field blank.
- The declaration form from the donor then needs to be sent to Elim, who will provide you with a Gift Aid declaration reference for the donor.
- Once you have the Elim Gift Aid declaration number, you will need to add it to the donor declaration created in step 2.
Valid declaration references will be in one of the following formats:
- M123456 (M followed by 6 numbers) OR
- S123456 (S followed by 6 numbers) OR
- 12345 (5 numbers only)
Important: Eligible Donations from donors who have completed an Elim Gift Aid Declaration will only appear within Gift Aid submissions once the Elim Gift Aid Declaration Reference has been added!
Any donors with Gift Aid declaration details, but that don't have Elim Declaration References are highlighted at the top of the Manage Donors screen
Elim Gift Aid submissions
ExpensePlus enables Elim Gift Aid submissions to be created at the click of a button. All Named Donations are automatically included if the donor has a valid Gift Aid declaration, excluding donations that have been included in a previous Gift Aid submission, or donations that have been recorded against a fund where Gift Aid has been disabled.
Important: Donations will only appear for donors once a Gift Aid declaration with a valid Elim Gift Aid Declaration Reference has been added!
Note: donations via payment processors aren't excluded as they are for other non-Elim EFGA churches and charities.
To create an Elim Gift Aid Submission, first ensure you have uploaded and reconciled all donations in the period you wish to create the submission for, then:
- Go to the Gift Aid module within ExpensePlus, and click the Create Claim button to the right of the submission you wish to create
Note: Donations are grouped by tax year and not financial year, with donations for all funds grouped together.
- Give the submission a name and if you are happy, click the Create Gift Aid Claim button at the bottom of the screen
Top Tip: To ensure only donations in the submission period are included in the submission, select the 'donations up to a custom date' radial and select the end date of the submission period.
Note: When donors complete an Elim Gift Aid declaration, and the declaration details are added to ExpensePlus then retrospective donations that become eligible for Gift Aid are automatically included in your next Gift Aid submission (or, if donations relate to a previous tax year, an additional Gift Aid submission will be automatically generated and appear on the Gift Aid screen).
- Select the Create Elim Submission button at the bottom of the screen
- Follow the instructions in the popup that appears
Note: The downloaded file should be encrypted before sending it to the Elim Finance Team as it contains personal information.
To better understand the Gift Aid module, please view the module overview video here.