HMRC has written a preliminary document that gives a preview of how Charities Online is likely to look and operate prior to its launch on 22 April.

Although How the new online filing for charities will look begins with the caveat that it is not the definitive final version, it should nonetheless serve as a good indication of what charities can expect from the online gift aid declaration platform.

It provides a step-by-step guide to how an individual can log in, and access the service as either a new or existing user, with screenshots to accompany each step.

Features include the option to claim under the gift aid small donations scheme or not (see image 1 below); a ‘Repayment claim summary’ screen, which shows the user what he or she has completed and what is still left to be done (image 2); and the key step of attaching a gift aid schedule (image 3).

Users also have the option right at the end of their claim to include any adjustments they may be making to a previous claim. A short explanation of why the tax was previously claimed incorrectly must be given (image 4).

The full document is available to download here.