Sponsorship Valuation
Part of Community and local sponsorship
Handling in-kind support as a documented sponsorship
Record in-kind goods or services, sponsor benefits, delivery evidence and valuation limits in a local sponsorship.
When goods or services form part of a sponsorship, document the contribution and any benefit promised in return. Describe what will be supplied, when the organiser accepts it and what the sponsor may receive. In-kind support can also be a gift; the details of the arrangement matter more than its label.
Describe the support in usable terms
Record the item or service, quantity, specification, delivery date and location. For equipment, state whether ownership transfers or the item is on loan, who installs or maintains it and when it must be returned. For a service, define the task or hours, materials included and who may approve changes.
Allocate transport, storage, insurance and setup responsibilities where relevant. Check that the contribution meets an organiser need and that the resources and effort required to deliver any partner benefits are proportionate.
Unwanted stock or a service that demands extensive supervision may be poor support regardless of its stated retail value.
Record any benefit separately
List any acknowledgement, sign, naming right, event access or promotional use the organiser will provide. Give each a channel, date, approval contact and end point. Describe a simple thank-you as such; do not automatically treat it as advertising. If the organiser promises advertising or another material benefit, do not call the whole exchange a pure gift for convenience.
For any Charity Register reporting, check the applicable ACNC guidance and describe the arrangement accurately. The labels used in reporting do not settle the GST, invoice or deduction treatment of a particular arrangement. Have an accountant assess the transaction and each party’s circumstances before making those entries or claims.
ACNC and ACCC guidance on in-kind sponsorship
- ACNC Charity Tax Concessions
- In-kind contributions may affect tax status; accurate reporting required
- ACCC Advertising Rules
- Misleading claims about sponsorship value can breach consumer law
- ACNC Governance Toolkit
- Partnerships must be transparent and documented to meet governance standards
- Charity Financial Reporting
- Support must be recorded at fair market value, not inflated retail price
Keep a delivery record
- The parties, activity and purpose.
- The goods or services promised, including quality and delivery details.
- Any agreed valuation basis and the records supporting it.
- Sponsor benefits, logo permissions, dates and approvals.
- Who confirms receipt and what records delivery.
- What happens if an item is late, unusable or no longer needed.
An agreed figure for the transaction should not become an unsupported public claim about how much the sponsor ‘gave’ the community. The sponsor’s cost and the organiser’s benefit may differ. Keep purchase records, service descriptions, delivery notes and the benefit schedule together.
Close the arrangement
After delivery, record what the organiser received and which promised benefits ran. Note substitutions or partial delivery in writing, and stop using names or logos when permission ends. Both sides can then judge whether the contribution met the need and whether the agreed recognition was delivered without disproportionate work.
