8 Types of Charitable Giving慈善捐赠的八种方式

韦斯·莫斯

How to determine what type of charitable giving is best for you

如何找到最適合的慈善捐赠方式

Charitable giving is one way that many people elect to support a specific cause or organization that is close to their heart. From a financial standpoint， charitable giving can be an important part of your estate， tax， and financial planning. In fact， twenty-six percent of taxpayers itemize charitable deductions on their tax return.

Depending on the type of your estate， the amount of money you want to give， and how you want to give it， you may find that youre unsure of what type of charitable giving can work best for you and your philanthropic goals. There are several different ways you can give， each with its own pros and cons， depending on what youre looking for.

Donor-advised funds

A donor-advised fund is a type of charitable giving where you donate a nonrefundable amount， either in cash or securities， to a nonprofit of your choice.

The advantage to this type of giving is that if you feel very close to the cause or organization and want to be involved with how the funds that you give are utilized， you are able to direct the funds administrator to which grants you think should be made. You also immediately receive the maximum tax benefit from the IRS for your contribution， and you can set up the funds to continue even after your death.

Real estate

If you are still living in the property that youd like to give away， you can set it up to become a charitable contribution by having the deed to your real estate transferred after your death. At that point， the value of the home will be taken out of your estate， lowering your estate taxes. You may also find a great tax benefit by donating real estate. In some cases， you may be eligible for a tax deduction equal to the fair market value of the real estate.

Cash

A cash gift is the simplest form of charitable giving. Your tax deduction is equal to the amount of cash you donated， minus the value of any goods or services you received in return. For example， memberships to non-profits， like a zoo or some other organization， are considered cash gifts. Titles， certificates， or stocks are not transferred in a cash donation either.

Stocks

There are two huge advantages to contributing long-term appreciated securities， like stocks.

One， since you are not selling your stocks， there are no capital gains taxes to be concerned with， and the more appreciation the stocks have， the bigger your tax savings will be. The second advantage is that any of your stocks that were purchased over a year ago that have a current value greater than their original cost can be donated and become eligible for a tax deduction equal to the full fair market value of the stock.

Charitable trusts

There are two types of charitable trusts you may be interested in making part of your financial plan—a charitable lead trust （CLT） and a charitable remainder trust （CRT）.

Charitable Lead Trust is a trust that you establish by transferring assets into the trust and donating a stream of income from the assets to a charitable organization each year. Money left in the trust at the end of the period youve established to donate can be disbursed to other beneficiaries or held in the trust.

Not only is this great for transferring wealth to your heirs， but it also provides consistent cash flow to the charity of your choice. The only disadvantage is that it requires annual administrative management.

Charitable Remainder Trust is similar to a CLT， with one big difference. In a CRT， the beneficiaries and donor are paid first， receiving their stream of income before the charitable organization does. However， this is beneficial as it gives you and your beneficiaries income and diversifies your investments.

This is perfect for those with highly appreciated investments that want to create income but still provide consistent cash flow to a charity. Like a CLT， the only disadvantage is the annual administration of the trust.

Giving assets to charity

A major advantage of giving your assets， such as retirement accounts and life insurance policies， to charity is that in addition to any charitable income tax deduction， your estate will not have to recognize that gifted income， which can give you a break on the estate tax. Many also choose to use assets that would normally have an income tax liability， leaving tax-deferred accounts in their estate for beneficiaries， giving them a nice inheritance that wont be taxed.

You may also have tangible assets you want to donate to charity. These items， like art and jewelry， may entitle you to a tax deduction equal to the value of the assets youve donated. If your asset is related to the charity， such as art to a museum， youre more likely to receive a larger tax deduction than gifting something that doesnt directly correlate with the organizations aim or mission.

Pooled income fund

If youre looking to generate income but want to give smaller portions to charity， a pooled income fund may be your best choice. You can “pool” together different securities and/or combine them with cash to create a larger amount of money to distribute to charity. Money is paid out to you and any other benefi-ciaries that have pooled together assets to the fund. At your death， the remainder of the pooled income fund is donated to charity. In some cases， you may be able to receive a charitable tax deduction equal to the amount of money a charity is expected to receive.

Private foundation

Private foundations are charities set up as charitable trusts or corporations. If youre looking to set up your own char-itable foundation， a private foundation is a great way to get the family involved， particularly if you have a cause thats very dear to your heart. Although there are stricter regulations and tax laws， a private foundation can give grants to individuals and you can retain control of donated assets.

许多人选择以慈善捐赠的方式支持自己认同的某项事业或某个机构。从财务角度来看，慈善捐赠可以是你的财产、税务和财务规划的重要组成部分。事实上，26%的纳税人会在纳税申报单上详细列出慈善捐赠免税金额。

每个人的财产类型、意向捐赠金额、意向捐赠方式不同，因而进行慈善捐赠时，你需要考虑：哪种慈善捐赠最符合你的意愿和慈善目标。下面列举几种慈善捐赠方式，每种各有其优缺点，取决于你看重哪个方面。

捐赠人建议基金

捐赠人建议基金是慈善捐赠的一种方式，指以现金或证券向中意的非营利机构捐赠，所捐资产不可退还。

这种捐赠方式的优点在于：如果你非常认同某一慈善事业或慈善机构，并希望参与决定所捐善款的用途，可以向基金管理人提出拨款建议。捐赠之后，你可以即时获得美国国税局提供的最高税收优惠。此外，你还可以设立基金，在去世后延续你的慈善事业。

房产

如果你仍然住在意向捐赠的房产中，可以通过去世后转让房产契据，将其设置为慈善捐赠。在此情况下，房屋的价值将从你的遗产中扣除，由此降低你的遗产税。通过捐赠房产，你可以获得高额税收优惠。在某些情况下，你还可能有资格获得与房产公平市价数额相等的税收减免额。

现金

现金捐赠是最简单的慈善捐赠方式。你捐赠的现金数额，减去因捐赠所得的任何实物或服务的价值，即为你的税收减免数额。成为非营利机构（比如动物园或其他机构）的会籍可视为现金捐赠。所有权、证书或股票在现金捐赠中也不会发生转移。

股票

可以捐赠股票等长期增值的证券，这种方式有两大优点：

其一，由于你不卖出股票，所以无须担心会被征收资本利得税;此外，股票升值越多，你的税收减免越多。其二，凡是超过一年以前购入的股票，若其当前价值大于其原始成本，你就可以捐赠这只股票，并有资格获得与该股票的公平市价全额相等的税收减免额。

慈善信托

以下两种类型的慈善信托，你可能会有兴趣将其纳入自己的财务规划中：慈善先行信托、慈善剩余信托。

慈善先行信托是指你把资产转入信托慈善先行信托，并逐年将资产收益捐赠给慈善机构。在你所设置的捐赠期限结束时，信托里的剩余资金可以分配给其他受益人，也可以继续存放在信托中。

慈善先行信托不仅有利于你将财富转移给你的继承人，也能为你选定的慈善机构提供稳定的现金流。它唯一的缺点是需要年度行政管理。

慈善剩余信托和慈善先行信托类似，但两者有一个明显区别：慈善剩余信托中，受益人和捐赠人要先于慈善机构拿到钱。不过这是有利的，它能给你和你的受益人带来收益，也能让你的投资更为多元化。

对于那些拥有优质投资项目、希望既创造收益又为慈善机构提供稳定现金流的人而言，慈善剩余信托是絕佳选择。和慈善先行信托一样，它唯一的缺点是需要年度行政管理。

向慈善机构捐赠资产

你可以将资产（比如退休金账户、人寿保险单）捐赠给慈善机构，这样做的一大好处是：除了获得慈善所得税减免以外，你捐赠的这部分资产收益无须纳入你的遗产之中，由此获得遗产税上的减免。也有不少人向慈善机构捐赠通常会产生所得税的资产，将递延纳税账户留给受益人，让他们拥有一笔无须纳税的遗产。

此外，你也可以将一些有形资产（比如艺术品、珠宝）捐赠给慈善机构，由此获得与所捐资产价值相等的税收减免额。比起捐赠与慈善机构的目标或使命没有直接关联的资产，如果捐赠与慈善机构密切相关的资产，比如将艺术品捐给博物馆，你有可能获得更多的税收减免。

共同收益基金

如果你希望创造收益，但只想将少部分收益捐赠给慈善机构，共同收益基金也许是最佳选择。你可以将不同证券汇集在一起，也可以把证券和现金组合起来，创造更多收益以资助慈善机构。共同收益基金产生的收益将分配给你和为基金出资的其他受益人。在你去世后，剩余的共同收益基金将捐赠给慈善机构。某些情况下，你可能会获得与慈善机构所收捐款数额相等的税收减免额。

私人基金会

私人基金会是设立为慈善信托/公司的慈善机构。如果你希望建立个人的慈善基金会，特别是如果你有自己热爱的事业，私人基金会是个不错的选择，可以让你和家人都参与进来。尽管受到更为严格的法规和税法制约，私人基金会也有其优点：可向个人提供资助，捐赠人可保留对所捐资产的支配权。

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者）