Making donations to charities, either personally or corporately,
will result in tax savings. However, depending on the particular
situation, it may make more sense to donate through a corporation
in order to truly maximize the tax savings.
What are the benefits of donating personally?
For individuals, eligible donations made provide a
non-refundable tax credit, reducing any personal income taxes
owing. Unused donations can be carried forward up to a maximum of
five years, so if an individual made a donation in 2017 but has no
taxes owing, they can claim the donation tax credit to reduce their
taxes in a tax year up to 2022. In Ontario, an individual will
realize tax savings of $20.50 for every $100 of donations on the
first $200 of charitable donations made. For every $100 of
donations made in excess of $200, the tax savings can be as high as
$50.41.
