We are regularly contacted by people who would like to leave money to effective charities after they die. This is commonly known as a bequest — but is also known as "planned giving" or "gifts in wills".
Making a bequest is a powerful way to ensure your impact lives on.
If you're considering leaving a bequest, thank you. This page will help answer common questions about how and why you might do so.
Bequests allow you to:
Learn more in this post about how some bequests can quadruple your charitable donations at little or no cost to your beneficiaries.
⚠️ Note: Charities and causes on our platform may change over time, in line with our inclusion criteria. If a program is no longer on our platform, we will be unable to allocate funds there. Therefore, we strongly recommend providing fallback instructions in case the program(s) you've chosen are no longer available. See below for some examples.
We strongly advise speaking with a legal professional. The following examples can guide your lawyer.
(Giving What We Can operates by receiving donations and then allocating them to supported programs.)
For UK Donors
“I bequeath {X% or £X} to Giving What We Can UK, registered charity number 1207964, 71-75 Shelton Street, London, WC2H 9JQ, or its successor. Please contact community@givingwhatwecan.org.”
For US Donors
“I bequeath {X% or $X} to Giving What We Can USA Inc., a 501(c)(3) charity, EIN 93-3629215, or its successor. Please contact community@givingwhatwecan.org.”
For Donors in the Netherlands
“I bequeath {X% or €X} to Giving What We Can UK, charity number 1207964 and ANBI RSIN 827647232, or its successor. Please contact community@givingwhatwecan.org.”
Add the wording that matches where you'd like Giving What We Can to allocate your donation. In case the program you specify is no longer available, consider specifying one or two alternate programs as fallback options. We've also included language that instructs Giving What We Can to look for a similar option, in case none of your preferences are available.
A. To support our operations:
“These funds should be allocated to support Giving What We Can’s operations. If Giving What We Can has ceased to exist then they should be allocated to a similar organisation [include some examples here, or specify a specific org] promoting effective giving to the general public.”
B. To support a specific charity or fund:
“These funds should be allocated to the organisation or fund listed as '{charity/fund name}' at the time of writing, which supports {brief description}. If this organisation or fund is no longer listed on the Giving What We Can platform at the time of my death, I request that my bequest be allocated to the most similar organisation or fund available, based on the recommendation of Giving What We Can.
C. To support a specific cause area:
“These funds should be allocated to the cause area listed as {cause area name} which supports {brief description}. If Giving What We Can no longer focuses on this cause area at the time of my death, I request that my bequest be directed to the closest available cause area or organisation that advances similar goals, based on Giving What We Can’s judgement.”
D. To support the organisations judged most effective by Giving What We Can:
“These funds should be allocated at the discretion of Giving What We Can, to support the charitable organisations, funds, or initiatives it deems most effective at the time of my death. If Giving What We Can no longer exists at that time, the funds should be allocated to a similar organisation that promotes effective giving to the general public, with the same discretionary authority.”
You may also add the following language to the end of B, C, and D in case Giving What We Can has ceased to exist:
If Giving What We Can has ceased to exist, than these funds should be allocated to [a similar fund/charity such as X, Y, or Z /a similar charity or fund, at the recommendation of a similar organisation promoting effective giving.]
Giving What We Can is not in a position to provide legal advice. Since there are many considerations to take into account when you leave money to charity in your will, we strongly recommend:
If you're based in the UK, you can make use of our partner in this area, Farewill.com, which offers free tools and assistance to help you through the drafting process. The following guides may also help:
Please note that these resources are provided by third parties. We still recommend consulting with a legal professional to ensure accuracy.