Charitable Gift Annuity

A charitable gift annuity is an arrangement whereby a donor transfers a lump sum or investment to a charity in exchange for a guaranteed fixed income for the life of the donor and/or another person, i.e. a spouse. Charitable gift annuities offer the same income security as GICs, but with better cash flow.

When you make a charitable gift annuity, part of the funds will become an irrevocable gift for which you receive an immediate tax receipt. This gift portion will be determined by you and the charity, but it must be a minimum of 20%. It is common practice for donors to permit charities to retain 25% – 30% of the contributed amount for its immediate charitable purposes or for an endowment, whichever the donor prefers. The balance of your contribution will be used to purchase a commercial annuity from a top-rated insurance company.

Benefits:

• Guaranteed income for life at a rate of return that is typically higher than GICs.
• ‘Income for life’ payments from the annuity are tax-free or largely tax-free.
• Immediate charitable income tax receipt for the gift portion of the annuity that you can use to off-set your current income.

Considerations:

• The capital used to establish a gift annuity is irrevocable.
• Annuity payments are fixed and cannot be changed.