Comparing Foundation Minimum Distribution In The US, Canada, And The UK

This article was co-authored by Withers' Alana Petraske and was originally published in Checkpoint Contents' Journal of International Taxations – December 2021 issue, a Thomson Reuters journal.

With income inequality and public criticism of philanthropy on the rise, interest in the speed at which philanthropic assets reach beneficiaries has grown. Prescriptive minimum distribution requirements are the subject of legislative proposals in the United States and Canada, while the United Kingdom prefers to "nudge" charities toward "revitalization."

Charitable giving incentives and the tax reliefs enjoyed by nonprofit institutions form an important part of tax policy in the Anglo-North American world. Privileged tax treatment is subject to regulatory control to ensure that philanthropic wealth is duly deployed to charitable purposes and is not unreasonably accumulated.