If you have assets that have substantially increased in value, you could avoid capital gains tax while receiving a full charitable deduction for the current value of the asset by making a gift.

Instead of an outright gift, you may prefer to make a grant in trust. For those who have the means or know someone who does, we ask you to consider a present day gift of a “split interest” (as opposed to an outright) gift. This would not only benefit the University, but would also provide immediate financial benefits to you in the form of tax deductions, and possibly future benefits in reduced estate taxes. There are two types of split-interest trusts:

• A “Charitable Remainder Trust” is a trust in which the donor retains an income for life (or for a number of years) for him/herself and/or another, at the end of which time the principal goes to the charity. With a Charitable Remainder Trust, you can retain the income while receiving 1) an immediate tax deduction for the value of the charitable “remainder” (i.e., the value of what is left over for the charity), 2) avoid a potentially steep capital gains tax, and 3) avoid possible estate tax.

• For those who do not need to retain the income but wish to benefit their loved ones after their death, there is a “Charitable Lead Trust;” i.e., a device by which the donor surrenders income that he/she really does not need, to a charity for a period of years or for life. Upon the termination of a predetermined period, the balance goes to his/her beneficiary. This results in 1) no income tax on the income that goes to the charity, and 2) reduced gift and estate taxes, since the bequest will be discounted to “present value”.

Like many others, Ms. “Y” didn’t have a good year in the stock market. There were a lot of losers in her portfolio she wanted to let go. To get the maximum tax benefit from these, she should not give them directly to Ewha. Instead, she should sell them, harvest the losses to offset taxable gains from this year, and send the proceeds to Ewha. If she were to contribute the depreciated stock to Ewha, she would have lost the tax opportunity.

손실을 이용하면서 기부한다. 다른 사람들처럼 Y 씨 역시 지난 1년간 주식 하락을 경험하였다. 가치가 떨어져 팔고 싶은 주식이 많이 생겼다. 그런데 이 하락한 주식을 팔지 않은 채 그대로 이화국제재단에 기부하면 세금 공제 혜택을 제대로 누릴 수 없다. 주식을 판 뒤, 세금을 내야 하는 이득과 손실을 상쇄한 후에 이화에 기부해야 세금 헤택을 받을 수 있다.