Major charities have reassured donors to bushfire fundraising appeals they will try to restrict their administrative costs to 10 per cent of all money they receive.

But with hundreds of millions in donations pouring in from around the world that will mean many millions of dollars meant for bushfire relief will be lost.

Organisers of some appeals say every cent will go where it is most needed and all charities state they are doing their best to reduce support costs.

Funds raised should top $200million without even considering huge corporate contributions from philanthropists such as mining magnate Andrew Forrest who has pledged $20million towards immediate responses.

Four appeals - run by the Red Cross, Victorian Government, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and St Vincent de Paul Society - have already raised $100million.

That does not include about $51million donated to comedian Celeste Barber's Facebook appeal for the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS).

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The Red Cross has raised almost $60million since it launched an emergency appeal in July last year. It says no more than 10 cents in the dollar will be spent on support costs

The Salvation Army is always among the first to offer help in times of disaster. Country Fire Authority volunteers are pictured lining up at a Salvos canteen

The most successful appeal so far has been the Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery fund which has raised almost $60million.

That money will only be used for emergency work in Australia and the charity has said no more than 10 per cent would go towards support costs.

The Victorian Bushfire Appeal has accepted $19million, the Vinnies Bushfire Appeal has taken almost $8million and about $15million has been given to WWF.

The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital on the mid-north coast of New South Wales has attracted donations of $6.6million.

While some charities were able to specify how donations would be spent, it was unclear where the Celeste Barber money would go.

It is likely to be spread among beneficiaries other than the RFS including Victoria's Country Fire Authority and South Australia's Country Fire Service. Discussions between relevant parties are ongoing.

The Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery fund has raised more than $58million since it opened on July 1 last year.

Fires have claimed at least 29 lives and destroyed more than 2,000 homes during the current disaster. Smoke is pictured billowing from a blaze burning in East Gippsland on January 2

Messages thanking the NSW Rural Fire Services are projected on the sails of the Sydney Opera House on January 11. Tens of millions of dollars in donations have been pledged to the RFS

A Red Cross spokesman said that money would go to helping those most affected by the fires, which have cost at least 29 lives and destroyed more than 2,200 homes.

'To start with, we're using $15 million to help people meet immediate needs,' the spokesman said.

'This includes initial cash grants $5,000 for everyone across Australia who has lost their home to bushfires since July 2019.

'More financial assistance is being planned and will be announced in the near future.

'We will also use the funds for the long-term recovery of these communities, including further cash assistance at various points and programs relevant to the needs of each community.'

The spokesman said no more than 10 cents of every dollar donated would go towards support costs.

'This ensures we can pay grants promptly, collect and analyse information from communities, meet legal, privacy and protection obligations to meet immediate needs as well as scaling up to support our recovery work,' he said.

Kiahan Bellchambers and her brother Jesse Bellchambers survey the ruins of their home at Batlow on the NSW South West Slopes. The Red Cross is offering a grant of $5,000 to anyone who has lost their home in the fires

The town hall at Quaama in the NSW Bega Valley is converted into a community supply centre for people affected by bushfires. Charities have asked for money rather than goods

'We're doing everything we can to keep these costs to an absolute minimum, including seeking pro bono support.'

The Victorian Bushfire Appeal is a partnership of the Victorian Government, Salvation Army and Bendigo Bank and 100 per cent of donations will go directly to communities in need.

'The appeal provides a formal channel for the public to donate money directly to affected families and communities, by working directly with local communities to inform and drive the distribution of funds,' its website states.

An advisory panel chaired by former Victorian Deputy Premier Pat McNamara will consider and recommend where funds are distributed. The appeal has already raised $19 million.

The fires ravaging Australia are also estimated to have killed more than one billion animals as more than 10 million hectares of land burned.

WWF Australia has established an Australian Wildlife and Nature Recovery Fund which has already raised almost $15million.

WHERE YOUR MONEY IS GOING Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery fund: $58million $15 million to help people meet immediate needs, including initial cash grants of $5,000 for everyone who has lost their home since July 2019. Long-term recovery of communities based on needs, including further cash assistance and programs. No more than 10 cents of every dollar donated would go towards support costs. Victorian Bushfire Appeal: $19million A partnership of the Victorian Government, Salvation Army and Bendigo Bank. 'The appeal provides a formal channel for the public to donate money directly to affected families and communities, by working directly with local communities to inform and drive the distribution of funds,' it states. 100 per cent of donations will go to directly to communities in need. An advisory panel will consider and recommend where funds are distributed. Australian Wildlife and Nature Recovery Fund: $15million WWF Australia is partnering with wildlife rescue and care organisations in fire-affected states and directing funds to provide immediate response. Almost $1million for immediate wildlife rescue, care and recovery. 'With the unprecedented damage to our country from these fires, we must do things at a totally different scale to future proof this country for the sake of both people and nature,' it states. Normally 10 per cent of each donation covers accountability and administration costs. Vinnies Bushfire Appeal: $7.8 million Vinnies is providing food, clothing, essential items and grocery vouchers for people who have lost everything. It is paying household bills as people work through the recovery process and providing emotional support and counselling. It is also directly supporting with crisis accommodation through its own services and making referrals to a range of other organisations and specialised services. 100 per cent of donations would be used to support those who have been affected. Advertisement

CEO Dermot O'Gorman said the fund had been established 'to provide an immediate response to this bushfire crisis and ensure there are long-term plans to restore what has been lost.'

'Since the fund was established we have committed almost $1million for immediate wildlife rescue, care and recovery and that's just the beginning,' he said.

'Over the coming weeks WWF will deliver emergency response to our conservation field partners within fire-affected areas, directing our funds to critical areas as capacity is secured.

'With the unprecedented damage to our country from these fires, we must do things at a totally different scale to future proof this country for the sake of both people and nature.'

Mr O'Gorman said WWF was committed to keeping administrative costs low so every donation was used for maximum effect.

'Traditionally 10 per cent of each donation covers the accountability and administration costs necessary for us to deliver our conservation work effectively,' he said.

Adelaide wildlife rescuer Simon Adamczyk is pictured with a koala in a burning forest near Cape Borda on South Australia's Kangaroo Island. At least a billion animals have died in fires

The Vinnies Bushfire Appeal has raised $7.8 million to assist people affected by fires in NSW, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory.

The charity confirmed 100 per cent of donations would be used to support those who have been most affected.

'Vinnies is on the ground helping people as they deal with the immediate aftermath of fires, and we will continue to be there as they rebuild their lives in the long term,' a spokesman said.

Vinnies is providing food, clothing, essential items and grocery vouchers for people who have lost everything.

It is paying household bills as people work through the recovery process and providing emotional support and counselling.

It is also providing crisis accommodation through its own services and making referrals to a range of other organisations.

'We will work with people in the weeks, months and years that follow by listening to what they need and providing them with the right financial and emotional support to rebuild their lives after the devastation,' the spokesman said.

Hundreds of Lions Clubs across the country are also out in their communities hosting sausage sizzles and shaking donation buckets to raise funds for the Australian Lions Foundation National Bushfire Appeal.

Members of Australia's largest service organisation are all volunteers who pay annual fees, so 100 per cent of donations to Lions will go towards the cause.

Firefighters monitor a blaze burning between Orbost and Lakes Entrance in East Gippsland on January 2. Volunteer firefighting bodies have been overwhelmed with huge donations

Lions Clubs have been using the funding to purchase local shopping vouchers, food, water and supplies to support residents and businesses which have been heavily impacted by the fires.

Almost $1million has already been raised and more than $625,000 distributed.

Exactly where funds raised by the Barber appeal will eventually go is less clear and an RFS spokesman said he did not know how much money had been donated to the organisation.

'At the moment we honestly don't know a total because we're still focused on the ongoing fire emergency,' he said.

'However we are very appreciative and thankful for the outpouring of generosity and support we've received.'

Barber set up her appeal hoping to raise $30,000 and nominated the Trustee for NSW Rural Fire Service & Brigades Donations Fund.

That fund was established and operated 'solely for the purpose of supporting the volunteer-based fire and emergency service activities of the Brigades'.

The Barber appeal has raised more than $51million. Donations to the RFS can be made here.

The RFS spokesman said the service was still in discussions with Barber to sort out where the money would be allocated.

NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service officers load boxes of carrots and sweet potato onto a helicopter to be dropped for wallabies on the state's South Coast

'We are still working through the matter with Celeste's team - all in good faith, everything's going well - but we do need some time to resolve that one,' he said.

'We'll be talking to our membership about how they see the money could best be used for the benefit of their brigades and their local communities.

'Under the terms of the trust we won't be using it to provide things that the government would otherwise provide.

The RFS has launched fundraising campaigns for the young families of Geoffrey Keaton and Andrew O'Dwyer, who were killed in the Green Wattle Creek fire near Buxton in south-western Sydney.

It is also raising money for the pregnant wife of Samuel McPaul, who was killed in the Green Valley fire east of Albury. Donations to each campaign can be made here.

A spokesman for Victoria's Country Fire Authority said the organisation would not be commenting on specific donations or providing a running tally.

'CFA will be using the donated funds to support brigades and volunteers in their firefighting activities and supporting volunteer leadership and development,' the spokesman said.

A burned out car is pictured in the Kangaroo Island Wilderness Retreat. Two lives have been lost on the popular holiday spot off the coast of South Australia

The South Australian government has set up the SA Bushfire Appeal to raise funds for people affected by blazes in Cudlee Creek and on Kangaroo Island.

The fund has raised more than $3.8 million, including $2 million pledged by the state government.

Premier Steven Marshall has said the government would absorb administration costs so every dollar was going directly to people who had lost loved ones, homes, businesses, and livelihoods.

Port Macquarie Koala Hospital's GoFundMe appeal page was established with the goal of raising $25,000 and has received pledges of more than $6.6million.

Initially, the hospital's aim was to purchase and distribute automatic drinking stations which would be installed in burned out areas.

Drinking stations would now be shared with other wildlife organisations in fire-affected regions across New South Wales.

The hospital is also purchasing a water carrying vehicle with fire-fighting capabilities to replenish the drinking stations.

A koala is treated at Kangaroo Island Wildlife Park for injuries sustained in bushfires. Charities including WWF and WIRES have raised millions of dollars for animal welfare

Some of the funds raised will be directed to building a 'Koala Ark' facility to allow surviving koalas to be accommodated in a healthy habitat area.

About 40 other GoFundMe bushfire appeals with donations of more than $10,000 have raised have raised a total of more than $9million.

The RSPCA has launched appeals in NSW, Victoria and South Australia to assist in the rescue and treatment of animals affected by the fires.

The Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal's Disaster Resilience and Recovery Fund, which has received $4.5million, keeps its administration fees between 6 and 10 per cent.

The Anglican Aid Bushfire Appeal has raised at least $500,000 from more than 1,400 donations and has already distributed funds to the NSW Southern Highlands and far north coast.

It has given out supermarket cards and established a scholarship program for children whose family homes have been lost. Administration costs are limited to 20 per cent.