Charitable Giving Through Your Will

Charitable giving through making a will is a very good idea and so easy to do too. This is your big opportunity to be generous to a charity of your choice, a local charity perhaps, that you have long admired for the good an noble work they do. You don't have to donate tens of thousands, or even thousands. It needn't be many hundreds even - just whatever you feel comfortable with.

Perhaps the biggest drawback to doing this, however, is that nagging thought at the back of your mind that says it isn't fair to your family. They have stuck by you, night and day almost, for many, many years, and when the final moment comes, they are going to find out that you have given a sizeable chunk of your worldly good to a charity.

That's how most people think, and it's understandable too, but they are not necessarily seeing the whole picture. Your family could be crippled by inheritance tax on what you leave them in your will. It depend on how much you leave of course, but for many families, the inheritance they thought might help them out becomes a bit of a nightmare in some cases when the tax man puts in his bill.

Charitable giving, on the other hand, can be free of inheritance tax, or can greatly reduce it. It may seem strange, but it could be the case that your charitable giving actually gives your family more than they would have had otherwise. At worst, depending on individual circumstances if course, it could reduce what they have to pay in inheritance tax and ease things for them a lot.

You should of course discuss all this with your solicitor to find out the best way to proceed, but bear in mind that far from taking away from your family, you could be helping them - and helping your favourite charity at the same time. It isn't often you get to do all that, and get one up on the tax man at the same time! That's the kind of final gesture that most people would like to make, and it could be the case that you can!

It could also be the case that you have not made your will yet. Don't leave it too late. Wills are not for old people; anyone of legal age can make a will, and it should be done as early as possible. It can be changed from time to time to reflect your changing circumstances and in this way be kept up to date. Without a will, how can you do any charitable giving through your will?

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