How Much Can Be Claimed as a Charitable Donation?

The allowable claim for the regular donation credit is calculated as follows, based on your qualified gifts which can include cash, publicly traded securities and mutual funds, life insurance policies, personal use property, capital property, depreciable assets, cultural and ecological gifts.

Also, be aware that your software will calculate the allowable donations automatically based on your proper data entry:

• First, your donations limit is the least of
  • your total charitable gifts for the year
  • 75% of your net income for the year plus 25% of
    • capital gains on gifts
    • reserves from the prior year on gifts of non-qualifying securities
    • recapture on gifts of depreciable property
    • the lesser of net proceeds from gifted depreciable property and the capital cost of that property

minus any capital gains deduction claimed on gifted property

• Then add 100% of your total cultural gifts and total ecological gifts.

Cultural gifts are gifts of objects that the Canadian Cultural Property Export Review Board has determined meet the criteria set out in the Cultural Property Export and Import Act.

Ecological gifts are gifts of land which is certified by the Minister to be ecologically sensitive land, the preservation of which is important to the preservation of Canada’s ecological heritage. Such gifts must be made to Canada, a province, a municipality, or a registered charity whose main purpose is the preservation of Canada’s environmental heritage. The taxation of the capital gains on such gifts is completely eliminated.