How making a donation can save you money

By Manish Puri,
Special to The Post

Many Canadians donate to charities to help those who are less fortunate. Not only is this a wonderful thing to do, but it can also result in a tax credit for you. 
The federal and provincial governments offer a non-refundable tax credit to help encourage you to give to a worthy cause. You can claim your charitable donation tax credit on Schedule 9, Donations and Gifts.

The First-Time Donor’s Super Credit:

If this is your first time donating, you may be eligible for the First-Time Donor’s Super Credit (FDSC). With the FDSC, your donation tax credit gets a boost by 25 percent. The government considers you a first-time donor if neither you nor your spouse has claimed a tax credit for charitable donations since 2007.

Donating your investments:

If your investments have increased in value, you might consider donating them to charity as this can save you paying capital gains. If you donate publicly traded shares or stock options, complete Form T1170, Capital Gains on Gifts of Certain Capital Property.
Can you donate
your time?

In most cases volunteer hours are not eligible for tax credits, unless you volunteer as a firefighter or search and rescue personnel. 
In communities without fire stations, it’s fairly common for people to donate their time as volunteer firefighters. You’re able to claim a tax credit worth $3,000 if you volunteered as a firefighter and completed a minimum of 200 hours with a fire department in the year. 
In 2014, a new non-refundable tax credit was introduced for people who volunteer in search and rescue efforts. If you qualify, you can claim a tax credit of $3,000, which could save you up to $450 in taxes. 
Using reliable tax software, such as TurboTax, makes it easy to claim charitable donations. And, with the money you saved by doing your own taxes, you could donate even more to charity. 

Manish Puri works for Intuit Canada and is deeply passionate about helping Canadians do their own taxes. More details about tax benefits and issues are available http://blog.turbotax.ca.