Over the years, you invested wisely - and accumulated wealth in shares and securities. Now, you wish to use a portion of this portfolio to help a charitable cause. But you're asking, "What's a tax-efficient way to this?" "How do I reduce the impact to my estate?" "How do I integrate this gift into my estate plans?" The Equities Strategy answers these questions by making gifting an advantage - to your charity and to your heirs. Working with our advisors, you make a donation of equities to a charity or other non-profit organization.* When you gift equities to a charity, the tax implications are minimized in two ways:

  1. You are not taxed on the realized capital gain.
  2. You receive a donation receipt from the charity, which generates a tax credit. Then, you apply the tax savings as a first deposit into a universal life plan with a death benefit equal to the value of the equities you donated. In this way, you have maintained the value of your estate since, upon death, the benefit is paid out to your beneficiaries tax free.
The net effect actually increases the value of your legacy because the estate will no longer be holding equities, which otherwise would be liquidated upon death and taxed at the usual rate for capital gains. Therefore, your charity benefits from your generous financial gift, and your heirs receive a tax-free payout - funds that maintain the value of your legacy.