A Landmark Win for Giving and Community-Led Change
Rainbow Giving Australia becomes the first LGBTQIA+ organisation to be declared as a DGR-1 Community Charity Trust.
Rainbow Giving Australia (RGA), alongside 33 other community foundations, has received a ministerial declaration under the new DGR-1 community charity pathway. RGA is the first LGBTQIA+ community foundation, and the second identity-focused community foundation, to receive this declaration. The declaration was made on 26 February 2026 by the Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP under the Community Charity Guidelines, which created a dedicated deductible gift recipient (DGR-1) category for community foundations and enable declared organisations to seek ATO endorsement under the new framework.
A major step forward for community philanthropy
This announcement marks a significant milestone for community philanthropy in Australia and the culmination of more than 25 years of sector advocacy.
Community philanthropy recognises that communities hold the knowledge, leadership and relationships needed to create lasting change. Community foundations provide the infrastructure that helps communities mobilise resources and act together, and this new pathway is expected to reduce barriers to that work.
Throughout history, LGBTQIA+ communities have built systems of mutual aid, solidarity and collective care. This declaration recognises and strengthens that tradition.
“Community foundations are places where people gather, decide and act together … People are better able to contribute, to deliberate and to direct resources toward shared priorities. That is how belonging grows. That is how social capital is strengthened,” said Mr Ian Bird, CEO of Community Foundations Australia.
What this means for Rainbow Giving Australia and LGBTQIA+ communities
For Rainbow Giving Australia, this declaration enables us to operate with greater flexibility and effectiveness, and helps make giving to support rainbow communities simpler and more accessible.
While we are still working through the full potential of this change, practical applications may include:
The ability to receive funding directly from Private Ancillary Funds and other grantmakers that require DGR-1 status
Offering tax deductibility directly to individual donors
Expanding our eligibility guidelines for grants and GiveOUT Day, making participation more accessible for LGBTIQ+ non-profit organisations with eligible purposes
Unlocking our ability to receive, pool, and steward funding from diverse sources to support sector collaboration and partnerships
Ultimately it strengthens RGA’s role as enduring, community-owned infrastructure that can steward resources for the long-term benefit of LGBTQIA+ communities for generations to come.
Em Scott, Chief Executive Officer, Rainbow Giving Australia | Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP | Loredana Fyffe, Chief Executive Officer, Sydney Community Foundation | Sophie McCarthy, Chair, Sydney Community Foundation
Em Scott (she/her), CEO of Rainbow Giving Australia, said the approval expands what is possible.
“This approval strengthens our capacity to mobilise capital at scale and steward it responsibly for the long term. It provides a more robust and flexible platform to support LGBTQIA+ community organisations. We are excited about the possibilities this unlocks. It allows us to think more ambitiously about sustainability, collaboration, and the long‑term resilience of the rainbow community sector.”
Why this matters now
Across Australia, LGBTQIA+ community organisations continue to deliver essential services, advocacy, and cultural leadership under increasing pressure. Many operate with small teams, heavy reliance on volunteers, and short-term or restricted funding. Demand has intensified but without commensurate increases in funding or infrastructure support.
Research such as Where Are the Rainbow Resources? highlights the scale of the funding gap facing LGBTQIA+ communities in Australia, with only a small proportion of philanthropic funding flowing to rainbow-led organisations relative to need.
The community charity structure creates a nationally focused philanthropic vehicle dedicated to LGBTQIA+ communities. It enables pooled funding, long-term giving and strategic distribution through a specialist intermediary with deep sector insight.
Acknowledgements
Rainbow Giving Australia thanks Ian Bird, CEO of Community Foundations Australia, and the Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP for their leadership over many years, along with Philanthropy Australia, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, Treasury, the ATO, and the Australian Charities and Not‑for‑profits Commission for their work to implement the Community Charity Guidelines.
Next steps
RGA will now complete final administrative steps to formalise its DGR-1 endorsement.
Media release from Community Foundations Australia available via: https://www.cfaustralia.org.au/news/media-release
Media enquiries
Em Scott (she/her)
Rainbow Giving Australia
CEO
+61 421 964 986
About Rainbow Giving Australia
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Rainbow Giving Australia is a national LGBTQIA+ community foundation, formed in 2024 from the merger of GiveOUT and Aurora. We exist to empower, sustain, and unite the LGBTQIA+ community sector. We fund community-led initiatives, build organisational capacity, and expand the knowledge base about the needs of the LGBTQIA+ sector.
