CRA recently released a letter which discusses whether an official receipt issued for property donated in kind can include an amount less than the fair market value of the property. CRA cited section 3501 of the Income Tax Act (Canada)…
Here is a recent article written by Mark Blumberg, Kate Robertson and Lynn Gluckman of Blumberg Segal LLP on the Top Fallacies about private foundations in Canada. The article discusses incorrect misconceptions that many people have about private foundations. This article was also published as…
The Hillborn Charity eNews just published the second part of our article Top fallacies about private foundations in Canada. It discusses numerous incorrect preconceptions that people have about private foundations.
The Hillborn Charity eNews just published the first part of our article Top fallacies about private foundations in Canada. It discusses numerous incorrect preconceptions that people have about private foundations.
The CAGP will be offering an Advanced Canadian Gift Planning Course in Toronto from June 1-3, 2016. I will be delivering two presentations. The first will be on International Philanthropy on May 31, 2016: International Philanthropy Speakers: Mark Blumberg, BA,…
Today the new Liberal Government has delivered their first budget. Here is our article 2016 Canadian Federal Budget – How will it affect the Canadian charitable sector?
We get this question often. If a registered charity receives funds from a qualified donee then it should not issue an official donation receipt. For example a private foundation sends your registered charity a cheque for $10,000.00. Do…
The CRA has provided some information on how estate donations will change in 2016. Essentially the tax benefits for bequests and certain designations may increase as there is added flexibility as which income can be offset by the estate's charitable…
The Department of Finance has released Legislative Proposals Relating to Income Taxation of Certain Trusts and Estates. There are a number of amendments to the Income Tax Act. The Conservative government had previously provided greater flexibility with bequest…
CRA recently released a letter which discusses whether a gift of a share of the capital stock of a corporation to a public foundation to which subsection 118.1(5) applies after 2015, would qualify as an 'excepted gift' as defined in…
Mark Blumberg will be team teaching, with Valerie Campbell and Sharilyn Hale, the Humber Fundraising Management Course “Ethical and Legal Issues”. It was previously taught by Ken Wyman so we will have big shoes to fill. Here is more information…
I was delighted to read a publication “Donor Beware: Investigation into the sufficiency of the Canada Revenue Agency’s warnings about questionable tax shelter schemes”. The special report was prepared in December 2013 by J. Paul Dubé, the Taxpayers’ Ombudsman. The…
The Department of Finance in late July released for consultation purposes draft legislative proposals that will have an impact on charities. The 2 main changes are an “exemption from capital gains tax for certain dispositions involving private corporation shares…
The CRA has posted guidance on the recent 2015 Federal Budget and specifically the provisions relating to donations involving private corporation shares or real estate and the ability of registered charities to invest in limited partnerships. You can read the CRA guidance here…
Properly issuing official donation receipts has been challenging for many registered charities. According to the CRA, 89% of registered charities that are audited are not correctly issuing official donation receipts. Issuing incorrect receipts can result in revocation or penalties. It…
CRA recently released a letter which discusses whether a gift by will of marketable securities provided to a Foundation would be deemed to have been made immediately before the death of the donor. CRA concluded that the gift did constitute…
The British Columbia Supreme Court recently released a decision, Re Mulgrave School Foundation, which discusses charitable gifts that are made for a specific charitable purpose and whether it is possible to change that purpose. Unfortunately, in this case the donors…
CRA recently released a letter with respect to spousal sharing of charitable gifts that was written to David Sherman, one of Canada's top tax lawyers. As a result of recent legislative amendments in Bill C-43 which received Royal Assent on…
Mark Blumberg will be speaking on “Planned Giving and the Elderly Client” conference on January 23, 2015 Here is the description of the presentation: PLANNED GIVING AND THE ELDERLY CLIENT Planned giving arrangements allow your client to help others and…
The CBC has disclosed that CRA had provided them with a list of private information on taxpayers who had applied for certain tax benefits as a result of donating cultural property through the Cultural Property Export Review Board. Disclosure…
Following up on the 2014 Budget, Finance has released draft tax legislation for consultation. The changes with respect to bequests to registered charities are from Budget 2014, and will allow some greater flexibility for claiming the charitable donations against either…
The CRA recently released a letter which discusses whether a taxpayer's estate was entitled to donation tax credits claimed for a charitable gift made by an individual in her secondary will. The use of a Primary and Secondary Will may…
Here is the Blumbergs’ 2013 Receipting Kit. Download Article
Today Finance Minister Jim Flaherty introduced the Canadian Federal Budget 2014. The budget had a large number of provisions dealing with non-profits and charities. Here are some excerpts from the Federal Budget in one PDF document. Overall I was…