Only 56% of Charitable Donors Say They’ll Claim the Tax Receipts on their Income-Tax Return

Toronto, Ontario, March 15, 2024 — Only 56% of those who gave to charity last year will claim the tax receipt on their 2023 income tax, thereby potentially leaving money on the table, according to a new Ipsos poll conducted for Canadahelps.org.  One in three (32%) admit that they won’t claim the credit, while another 11% are unsure.

Men (62%) are more likely than women (50%) to say they’ll claim the tax credits, while those 55+ (61%) are more likely than their younger counterparts aged 35-54 (55%) or 18-34 (52%) to claim the receipt. Regionally, British Columbians (67%) and residents of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (66%) are most inclined to claim the tax credit, followed by those living in Atlantic Canada (62%), Alberta (59%), Quebec (55%) and Ontario (51%). Higher-income households are much more likely to claim their receipts (72% of $100K+; 64% of $60-99K; 57% of $40-$59K; 36% of <$40K).

The ability to receive a tax credit for charitable gifts causes 45% of Canadians to be more likely to give to charity as a result. Those aged 18-34 (57%) are most incentivized by the receipt (despite being least likely to claim them on their taxes), followed by those aged 35-54 (48%) and 55+ (33%). British Columbians (55%) – who were most likely to claim their receipts – are also most incentivized by them, followed by those living in Alberta (49%), Ontario (47%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (40%), Quebec (39%) and Atlantic Canada (36%).

Only one in three (35%) Canadians creates a budget for their annual giving for the year.  Those under 35 are considerably more likely (42%) than those aged 35-54 (30%) or 55+ (33%) to budget their annual charitable giving. Men (39%) are more likely than women (30%) to do the same.

About the Study

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between March 1 and 5, 2024 on behalf of Canadahelps.org. For this survey, a sample of 1,000 Canadians aged 18+ were interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within ±3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadians aged 18+ been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this Factum, please contact:

Sean Simpson
Senior Vice President, Ipsos Public Affairs
[email protected]

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