A donation to the Art Gallery of NSW can be taken in the form of cash; or property such as shares and securities; or a work of art which the Gallery wishes to add to its collection.

The Gallery prefers that gifts of cash and property be made to the Art Gallery of NSW Foundation ('the Foundation'). Gifts of works of art can be made to the Art Gallery of NSW Trust ('the Gallery'). 

Tax treatment of donations of cash and property 
The Gallery and the Foundation are registered as deductible gift recipients with the Australian Taxation Office and donations of cash of $2 or more are tax deductible and available as a tax deduction over a period of up to five years.

A donation of property, such as shares and securities will be tax deductible provided that the property is either valued at over $5000 or was made within 12 months of the date that the donor acquired it. If the property was acquired less than 12 months ago the donor can claim a deduction for the lower of the cost of the property or its market value on the day the gift is made.  However, if the property is worth more than $5000 and has been held for more than 12 months the deduction is based on the valuation determined by the Australian Taxation Office.
Where the property is worth more than $5000 the deduction can be spread over a period of up to 5 years. Also, since 19 September 1999 the impact of capital gains tax on property has been diminished.

Gifts and donations, in order to qualify for a tax deduction, must be freely given and cannot be made with conditions attached that could provide the donor with any benefits of a material nature.

In the case of a donation of real estate whether capital gains tax is payable will depend on when the property ‘gifted’ was acquired, the nature of the property and how long the donor has owned the property.

Tax treatment of gifts of works of art
Since 1999 gifts of significant cultural works made to the Gallery under the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program entitles the donors to a tax deduction for the market value of their gifts and again the tax deduction can be spread over five tax years.

The general rule is that the amount you can deduct is the average of the market values specified in two formal valuations received from independent valuers.

A donation of works of art under the Cultural Gifts Program is exempt from capital gains tax.

For further information, see the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program >

Note: the Gallery advises donors to seek their own independent tax advice as this is a guideline only.