We strive to attract and retain the brightest minds of each generation at UNB, setting the stage for the leaders and change-makers of tomorrow.
Students and researchers often realize their potential thanks to a thoughtful alumnus or friend of UNB who has included a gift in their will.
Your estate gift has the power to transform individual lives and communities.
At UNB, we aspire to be a university of influence through excellence and innovation in research and teaching. Our people are our most valuable assets – our students, faculty, staff and alumni – and the opportunities that allow them to succeed are made possible through support from our donors.
Nearly half of all undergraduate scholarships at UNB have been established through estate gifts, benefiting more than 3,700 students each year. The need for graduate scholarships has grown – they give students the skills to create opportunities for themselves and others. A gift from your estate can come in any size, and all have the potential to create positive change.
The challenges we face as a society demand meaningful research. As the epicenter of research and innovation in New Brunswick, your gift can also help us continue to develop areas of strength and ensure UNB’s research and people are recognized nationally and internationally.
With a bequest starting at $25,000, you can create an award that bears your name or that of a loved one in perpetuity. While support for scholarships and research is important, you may choose to foster other opportunities at UNB such as:
An estate gift often allows you to make a larger contribution than is possible in your lifetime, as it comes from the combined assets of your estate. You can specify exactly how your gift is to be used. For example, you may choose to support a scholarship or bursary for students who graduate from your high school, study in a particular faculty at UNB, or are members of your favourite UNB sport or club.
A bequest to UNB can be a gesture that might otherwise be financially impossible during working or retirement years. You can also make a bequest that creates an ongoing endowment or investment fund for a purpose you have supported during your lifetime – such as a scholarship or research project – allowing it to support the UNB community for years to come.
Nearly all estate gifts carry the name of the donor and/or the name of a loved one. The gifts become a living legacy and a perpetual tribute to you – the donor – and your family.
Estate gifts carry significant tax benefits. For example, 100 per cent of a charitable bequest may be claimed against the donor’s taxable income in the year of passing. If there is excess, the balance of the bequest may be carried back against 100 per cent of the taxable income in the year prior to the donor’s passing. If a bequest is funded through a gift of appreciated securities, the estate is also exempt from capital gains tax on those securities.
Bequests in a will are a popular choice for donors because they are relatively simple to create and easy to understand and administer. Estate gifts may also be made in other ways:
RRSPs and RRIFs – Recent income tax changes enable you to make UNB the beneficiary of a registered retirement fund allowing you to avoid all tax on the principal that remains at the time of passing.
Charitable Remainder Trusts – Under the agreements governing these types of estate gifts, you provide UNB with a sum of principal which the University invests and from which you are paid an annual income at an agreed-upon interest rate. At the time of passing, the principal remaining is used by the University for the charitable purpose designated by you.
Gifts of Residual Interest – These gifts of valuable property, such as real estate or artwork, are deeded to the University during your lifetime with a provision that allows you to continue to enjoy the use of the property. At the time of the gift, you receive a charitable donation receipt based on life expectancy; at the time of passing, the property becomes the University’s.
Life Insurance Policies – You can make UNB the beneficiary of a life insurance policy, but it is even more advantageous to your estate to make UNB both the owner and beneficiary of the policy. Premium payments can be claimed on a new policy (or the cash value of an existing policy) as a charitable donation. The death benefit of a life insurance policy is not counted as part of your estate, so it does not add to the estate’s tax burden.
After providing for loved ones, you may choose to include UNB as a beneficiary in your will.
View sample bequest language here.
Bequests can be earmarked, as determined by the donor, for the unrestricted purposes of the University or for a restricted purpose such as a scholarship or bursary. UNB will assist in drafting language for donors who wish to direct their bequests for a particular purpose, and discuss the ways in which a will can provide a gift to the University. A bequest is revocable and can be easily changed should your financial circumstances change.
Please contact us to discuss how a bequest, or other ways of making a gift to UNB can help fulfill your wish to support UNB further its mission.
We encourage you to speak with trusted advisors – a lawyer, accountant, financial planner – to determine the most appropriate arrangement for you. Considerations include not only finances, but also age, other beneficiaries included in the estate plan, and tax implications.
Donors who inform UNB when they have arranged for an estate gift are recognized as members of the UNB Legacy Society. Members are invited to special University events, and with the donor's permission they are recognized in the annual Donor Honour Roll published online at unb.ca/dhr.
Your bequest will enable us to provide an educational experience that empowers students to pursue their goals, provides resources for ground-breaking research work, and builds a better future for us all.
Many donors choose to start giving annually to complement their bequest so they can support opportunities at UNB now.
There are several different ways to do this. The most popular way
is to begin an annual gift directed toward an award or project and endow it with a bequest in your will. You will receive a charitable deduction on your income tax now and witness how your generosity can help students and researchers excel.
By making an annual gift, you have the opportunity to meet the recipients of your award, follow their dreams and outcomes, and see firsthand the impact you’ve made at UNB.
Contact us today for more information on arranging your bequest, and how you can support the UNB of tomorrow.
