GIFTS OF SECURITIES
A gift of publicly traded securities is both simple and tax effective. When you donate securities, you do not pay capital gains tax AND you receive a charitable gift tax receipt to use against other income. You can benefit tremendously from this added incentive to reduce the real cost of your charitable giving or increase the amount of your gifts without increasing the costs.
You can make a gift of securities at any time, or make it part of your estate plan.
Read the securities comparison chart as text
| Comparison | Sell securities and donate the cash proceeds to Vancouver Opera | Donate securities directly to Vancouver Opera |
|---|---|---|
| Original cost of securities | $1,000 | $1,000 |
| Fair Market Value of security | $10,000 | $10,000 |
| Capital Gain | $9,000 | $9,000 |
| Tax due on gain | $1,980¹ | $0 |
| Donation amount after tax | $8,020² | $10,000 |
| Charitable tax credit³ | $3,457 | $4,323 |
The chart highlights these results for donating securities directly: “No capital gains tax”, “Charity gets more”, and “You get more”.
- This assumes a 44% marginal tax rate. For calculating capital gain tax, this rate is applied to 50%.
- $8,020 represents the full value of $10,000 donation minus estimated capital gain tax of $1,980.
- Charitable donation tax credits in BC on donation amount after tax.
Note: These are general figures for the purpose of illustration and do not constitute legal or financial advice. We encourage you to seek professional legal and/or financial advice before deciding on your donation to charity of the capital gain.
By donating shares directly instead of selling and donating the cash proceeds, you can save on taxes overall while donating the same value amount to charity.
You and your broker or investment advisor may transfer these types of gifts electronically into Vancouver Opera’s brokerage account by using our Share Transfer Form.
You’ll receive a tax receipt for the fair market value of the gift, based on the closing price of publicly traded securities on the day the gift is received in Vancouver Opera's brokerage account.
Your support furthers Vancouver Opera’s mission to create extraordinary experiences that engage, inspire and entertain our community through voice, music and theatre. Download our Share Transfer Form or contact Suzanne Scott at sscott@vancouveropera.ca to get more information about Gifts of Securities.