Making Canterbury a Beneficiary

Benefits

• You have the satisfaction of knowing that Canterbury School will benefit at the end of your life.
• You retain complete control over the ultimate use of the insurance or retirement plan benefits.
• If your estate is large enough, your estate will receive an estate tax deduction for the full face value of the insurance or the full value of the retirement plan assets.

How to designate Canterbury School as the owner and/or beneficiary of a life insurance policy or a qualified retirement plan (IRA, 401(k), 403(b), SEP, or other similar plan):

1. You can secure a beneficiary designation form from a representative of the insurance company or the manager of your retirement plan.
2. You name Canterbury School as a beneficiary of the policy or plan (if you are changing beneficiaries only, you can name us as the beneficiary of a percentage of the assets or as a 100% beneficiary). You also retain the right to change beneficiaries in the future.
3. If you name us as the owner of the life insurance policy, you can do so on the same form (or on an accompanying form if the company requires it.).
4. If you name us as the owner of the policy, you receive an income tax deduction for approximately the cash value of the policy. You will need a third party appraisal to determine the exact deduction value.
5. We will send you an acknowledgement and receipt for the gift.
6. At the end of your lifetime, you know that Canterbury School will receive a direct benefit without the costly delays of probate.

IMPORTANT HINT: 

Unless you are over 70.5 years old and are rolling over a gift directly from your IRA to Canterbury School, retirement plan assets may not make a tax-wise gift during your lifetime since they will generate an income tax liability to you, even though giving retirement assets that you withdraw from your plan will generate an off-setting income tax deduction for you.

If you designate Canterbury School as the beneficiary of your retirement plan after your death, however, your estate will avoid both income and estate taxes.

If you would like to learn more about these kinds of gifts of if you would like to see a confidential example designed specifically for you, please send an email to mperry@canterburyschool.org.