Gifts to Certain Charitable Organizations Outside Canada
NO.: 84-3R6
DATE: July 9, 2010
SUBJECT: Gifts to Certain Charitable Organizations Outside Canada
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This version is only available electronically.
This circular cancels and replaces Information Circular 84-3R5, Gifts to Certain Charitable Organizations Outside Canada, dated May 31, 2000.
1. The Income Tax Act (the Act) allows taxpayers to claim a tax deduction or credit for gifts made to registered charities, namely charities that are resident in Canada and that were either created or established in Canada. This circular provides information to persons who want to give to certain other charitable organizations1 outside Canada.
2. Subparagraph 110.1(1)(a)(vii) and paragraph (g) of the definition "total charitable gifts" in subsection 118.1(1) of the Act allow donors to claim gifts to certain charitable organizations outside Canada, provided that Her Majesty in right of Canada (the federal government or its agents) has already made a gift to them within the time periods specified in paragraphs 6 and 7. Corporations would claim the gifts as a tax deduction, and individuals would claim them as a tax credit.
3. The Charities Directorate, as part of the Canada Revenue Agency, maintains a list of qualifying charitable organizations outside Canada to which Her Majesty in right of Canada has made gifts. Some federal departments or agencies make gifts over several years, to ensure that the recipient charitable organization remains eligible to receive gifts. The list, which can be found through our Forms and Publications Web pages at www.cra.gc.ca/charities, is updated if the government department or agency that makes an initial or subsequent gift to a foreign charitable organization on behalf of Her Majesty in right of Canada provides the Charities Directorate with details about the gift.
4. Charitable organizations outside Canada whose names appear on the list are deemed qualified donees and are therefore eligible to receive gifts from Canadian registered charities or donors. The definition of a qualified donee and the types of organizations that are qualified donees can be found through our Glossary Web page at www.cra.gc.ca/charities.
5. Information on how the Charities Directorate determines whether an organization outside Canada, to which Her Majesty in right of Canada has made a gift, would meet the requirements for qualified donee status can be found in Policy Commentary CPC-030, Foreign charities: Requirements for qualified donee status. This is available as a related document to this circular through our Forms and publications Web pages at www.cra.gc.ca/charities.
6. Gifts by individuals, including trusts that report on a calendar-year basis, qualify for tax relief if Her Majesty in right of Canada made a gift in the calendar year, or if Her Majesty in right of Canada made a gift in the 12 months immediately before that calendar year.
7. Gifts by corporations, or trusts that do not report on a calendar-year basis (see paragraph 6), qualify for tax relief if the gifts are made in a tax year that includes the date of the gift by Her Majesty in right of Canada, or if Her Majesty's gift was made within the 12 months immediately before the tax year in which the corporation or trust made the gifts.
8. Gifts made by a partnership qualify for tax relief for the individual or corporate partner(s) for the periods described in paragraphs 6 and 7.
9. Income Tax Regulation 3501(1.1) outlines the information that qualifying foreign charitable organizations must include on the official donation receipts that they issue to Canadian donors as proof of their gifts.
10. For more information on this circular or its related documents, go to www.cra.gc.ca/charities.
11. You can call the Charities Directorate at:
.1-800-267-2384, or
.1-800-665-0354 for TTY service for persons with a hearing or speech impairment.
12. You can fax us at 613-954-8037.
13. You can write to us at:
Charities Directorate
Canada Revenue Agency
Ottawa ON K1A 0L5
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Footnotes
[Footnote 1]
"Charitable organizations," in this document, refers to organizations that, except for the residency requirement, meet the Canadian common law definition of charitable and would be eligible for registration as a charity in Canada.