Welcome to the Charities Aid Foundation

We help donors to give more impactfully and charities to build their resilience so they can do more of their life-changing work.

Personal giving From one-off donations to long-term giving, or designing your personal philanthropic strategy, we work together to help you realise your giving ambitions. Corporate giving You have the vision for making a difference. So do we. We help you plan how to give based on your goals. Services for charities Helping your charity or social enterprise become more resilient. Insights Discover the latest insights for donors and charitable organisations to help create a greater impact About us We are a leading charity, working at the centre of the giving world. We help donors to give more impactfully and charities to build their resilience so they can do more of their life-changing work. Donate  
 
 
 

Personal giving

From one-off donations to long-term giving, or designing your personal philanthropic strategy, we work together to help you realise your giving ambitions.

DISCOVER OUR PERSONAL GIVING SOLUTIONS

Corporate giving

You have the vision for making a difference. So do we. We help you plan how to give based on your goals.

DISCOVER OUR CORPORATE GIVING SOLUTIONS

Services for charities

Helping your charity or social enterprise become more resilient.

DISCOVER HOW WE SUPPORT CHARITIES

Insights

Discover the latest insights for donors and charitable organisations to help create a greater impact

Explore

About us

We are a leading charity, working at the centre of the giving world. We help donors to give more impactfully and charities to build their resilience so they can do more of their life-changing work.

Find out more about CAF
Home About us Protecting you and the charities you support
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Protecting you and the charities you support

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Protecting you and the charities you support


We help people and businesses give money to good causes. Many charities have good relationships with their supporters; but it’s vital to protect charities and donors from the threat of financial crime.

As a charity, we have to be vigilant and check our donors and their donations. One of the ways we do this is by having robust anti-money laundering (AML) processes in place. We work with our customers to follow the guidelines set down by respected industry bodies like the UK Joint Money Laundering Steering Group to guard against money laundering or the threat of terrorist financing.

TP30

What will we ask you?

The guidelines expect us to confirm the identity of anyone who donates funds via CAF, verify sources of funding and wealth, and monitor transactions regularly. For us to do this, we may ask for details about yourself or your company, such as your date of birth or the home addresses of your board of Directors when you open a CAF account.

What happens if we don't check our donors?

CAF trustees and staff are expected to ensure that we fulfil our legal obligation to help counter money laundering. If any charity, including CAF, knows or suspects that a donation comes from the proceeds of crime, and doesn’t report it, they could face criminal sanctions.

Do we also check charities?

Yes. We carry out verification checks to ensure charities are legitimate. It’s often the most important reason our clients choose to work with us, because it means they can be sure their donation will be put to good use.

The process is especially valuable for donors who want to give money to overseas charities. Some organisations operate in countries that don’t have a charity regulator, or where laws on financial crime and money laundering are weak. Our verification work makes it possible for donors to give confidently to non-regulated charities. Verification also protects charities, because we make sure every donation complies with all relevant UK laws.

Read some important changes to the way we verify charities.