Bequests / Planned Gift

A bequest made in a Will is the most common and easy to prepare.  It can be in the form of cash, and assets.  The amount can be identified or in the residue of the estate.

Benefits: 

Charitable receipts up to 100% of the donor’s net income can be claimed as a charitable donation in the year of death (and preceding year, if necessary).

Stocks, bonds and alike assets can be donated through your Will and is referred to as a gift-in-kind which means it’s not considered a cash gift.

Benefits:

Selling appreciated securities will trigger a tax on 50% of the capital gain.  By donating those same securities directly to a charity, it will reduce the capital gain to 0 and trigger a tax receipt for the fair market value of the security.  Receipt amount is based on the value of the security the day the charity receives the fund.

Naming your spouse as a beneficiary of a RRSP/RRIF will defer the tax liability.  On the death of the surviving spouse, the full amount of the RRSP/RRIF will be taxed as income in the year of death.  By assigning a charity as beneficiary, it will offset the tax and eliminate probate fees.

Benefits:

Estate will receive a donation receipt for the full amount of the gift.  Probate fees can be avoided as any asset that is passed directly to the beneficiary won’t require probate and will remain private and confidential unlike those that are distributed through a Will.

Charitable donations can be made through an existing or new life insurance policy as follows:

1. Donate an existing policy with Mohawk College Foundation as owner and beneficiary.
2. Purchase a new policy with Mohawk College Foundation as owner and beneficiary.
3. Donate a policy through your Will naming Mohawk College Foundation as beneficiary.

Benefits:

1. Potential eligibility for a tax receipt for the policy donation if Mohawk College Foundation is owner and beneficiary of the policy.
2. Policy premiums qualify for a tax receipt if Mohawk College Foundation is owner and beneficiary of the policy.
3. Upon death, the estate will receive a tax receipt for the fair market value of the policy.

Donors can make an irrevocable gift of cash or investments whereby a portion is directed as a charitable gift and the balance is invested to generate a guaranteed income for life.  It is important to determine the after-tax income required.

Benefits:

An immediate tax receipt is provided for the portion that is directed to the charity.  Payment can be fixed for life and depending on the age, a substantial portion of the income may be tax-free.  A charitable gift annuity avoids probate taxes to the estate upon death.

In appreciation of your commitment to Mohawk College through a bequest/planned gift, we invite you to share your story and allow us the opportunity to celebrate with you.

Donating gifts of publicly traded securities is a tax-smart way to donate to Mohawk College. A stock portfolio is often among the most valuable assets you own. You can gift the following securities:

• Shares that are listed on the stock exchange
• Units of mutual funds

Tax Benefits:

If you sell a security, you will pay tax on 50% of the capital gain.  However, when you donate a gift of securities to Mohawk College the taxable capital gain is completely eliminated and you receive a tax receipt for the full market value of the security. Now that’s tax-smart!

The Government of Canada has eliminated the capital gains tax on publicly traded securities and mutual funds that have been donated directly.  The entire amount of the donation results in a tax credit that may be used to offset other taxable income, or reduce taxes to your estate.

Here’s an example of how much tax you can save with the donation of a Gift of Security:

How to Make a Gift of Securities:

1. Contact the Mohawk College Foundation foundation [at] mohawkcollege.ca (subject: Give%20a%20Gift) (by email) or call 905-575-2186. 
2. Instruct your broker to transfer your securities to Mohawk College Foundation’s brokerage account. Please do not transfer securities without first forwarding the Notification of Securities Transfer form.
3. A charitable tax receipt will be issued for the closing price of the securities on the day of the transfer to Mohawk College.  All securities are sold on the same day as received by Mohawk College.