The OECD’s report on taxation and philanthropy stimulated individual countries to examine their own practices and policies in respect of the issue, revealing opportunities and possible areas for review. What has been the Australian experience?

In 2023, Australia’s Productivity Commission was asked to ‘examine the tax expenditure framework that applies to charities’, and to consider, in particular, ‘the effectiveness and fairness of the deductible gift recipient framework.’ The last part of the remit is perhaps the most telling and reveals the key purpose behind the review– to ‘identify reforms to address barriers or harness opportunities to increase philanthropy.’ The Commission has recently submitted its final report.  

In November 2020, the OECD released a report entitled ‘Taxation and Philanthropy’ [see page 59] in which it analysed data from 40 countries. What would these questions look like from an Australian perspective? Drawing from the OECD report for comparisons’ sake, three areas of difference can be identified: eligibility, income tax relief, and tax treatment of donations.  

Eligibility