Can you gift money to a foreign government in your will?

Silvertabby

“ He should donate a fixed amount, for the same reason you should never give a percentage of your estate to a charity, and review this regularly.
Originally posted by Malthusian

p00hsticks wrote: »

Why is this please ? I've always thought a percentage would be better as if the estate is worth considerably less at the time of death than when the will is written, fixed amount bequests could end up swallowing the whole estate and leaving nothing for the residual beneficiaries ?

When we made our Wills, we initially said that we wanted to leave X% to two charities - but our solicitor advised that we should leave £X instead.

The reason for this was that the two charities would insist on all assets - not just the house - being sold for the highest possible price in order to maximise their percentage. This could drag on for years.

Reminds me... time to do another review of our Wills.

Brynsam

Silvertabby wrote: »

The reason for this was that the two charities would insist on all assets - not just the house - being sold for the highest possible price in order to maximise their percentage. This could drag on for years.

Unless the charities are also the executors, they would not be in any position to make this sort of stipulation. Putting it bluntly, they get what they're given if they are left a %age of the sale proceeds of various assets, whether those assets form just part of the estate or all of it.

With the right safeguards for the executors written in to your will, there shouldn't be any issue.

Savvy_Sue

Brynsam wrote: »

Unless the charities are also the executors, they would not be in any position to make this sort of stipulation. Putting it bluntly, they get what they're given if they are left a %age of the sale proceeds of various assets, whether those assets form just part of the estate or all of it.

Well, they CAN be very 'pushy', to put it no stronger than that, if they don't feel they receive their bequest as promptly as expected, AND if they felt a house had been deliberately undervalued or undersold, then they can pursue it.

Sea_Shell

Just on the point of a charity legacy.

If this was for a nominal amount or percentage, can an executor just make this payment via Just Giving, if they have a debit card on the account they're using for estate funds?

Say, up to £5000??

In this way the Charity wouldn't know it was a willed amount and so couldn't make a song and dance about it.

Do you have to write to them, with a cheque, explaining whose estate it's come from?

hjd

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

Well, they CAN be very 'pushy', to put it no stronger than that, if they don't feel they receive their bequest as promptly as expected, AND if they felt a house had been deliberately undervalued or undersold, then they can pursue it.

When my MIL died, she was in a care home and her house had been sold. Her assets were basically money in banks/building societies. Specific monetary legacies were left to 3 charities.
My husband and his sister, as executors, received a letter from one charity which basically said "We understand Mrs XX has died and left us £xxx. Send the money to us now."
No sorry for your loss or anything like that. If they had written to say sorry for your loss and just letting you know this is where you should send her legacy, that would have been fine.
My mother had similar experiences when winding up estates for her mother, brother and husband, so she specifically didn't include any charities in her will - if any of her children wanted to give money to charity that would be up to them. I won't leave money directly to charity in my will, either. I know most charities don't act like that but don't want to take the risk.

Mojisola

Sea_Shell wrote: »

Just on the point of a charity legacy.

If this was for a nominal amount or percentage, can an executor just make this payment via Just Giving, if they have a debit card on the account they're using for estate funds?

Say, up to £5000??

In this way the Charity wouldn't know it was a willed amount and so couldn't make a song and dance about it.

Do you have to write to them, with a cheque, explaining whose estate it's come from?

The charities will know about the legacy as soon as the will goes through probate.

Sea_Shell

Mojisola wrote: »

The charities will know about the legacy as soon as the will goes through probate.

Of course, forgot about that.

Do they get notified by the probate office or do they have departments dedicated to trawling through records looking for bequests?

Maybe small, local charities are better then if they don't have the resources to do that.

gettingtheresometime

Sea_Shell wrote: »

Of course, forgot about that.

Do they get notified by the probate office or do they have departments dedicated to trawling through records looking for bequests?

Maybe small, local charities are better then if they don't have the resources to do that.

I have a feeling that some charities employ a service that, for want of a better word, searches wills specifically for bequests to charities.

Personally having worked for a charity that benefited from such bequests so know they employ someone specifically to 'liaise' with executors once they're made aware of such bequests and how they operate, it would be a cold day in hell before I left any money to a national charity

Savvy_Sue

hjd wrote: »

When my MIL died, she was in a care home and her house had been sold. Her assets were basically money in banks/building societies. Specific monetary legacies were left to 3 charities.
My husband and his sister, as executors, received a letter from one charity which basically said "We understand Mrs XX has died and left us £xxx. Send the money to us now."
No sorry for your loss or anything like that. If they had written to say sorry for your loss and just letting you know this is where you should send her legacy, that would have been fine.
My mother had similar experiences when winding up estates for her mother, brother and husband, so she specifically didn't include any charities in her will - if any of her children wanted to give money to charity that would be up to them. I won't leave money directly to charity in my will, either. I know most charities don't act like that but don't want to take the risk.

Yes, this is the sort of thing I've heard of, including pushing hard for the sale of a house when they were told that their legacy would not be paid until that had happened.

It is (or should be) a DELICATE balance: the charity is legally and morally obliged to maximise its income. Some years ago, at the charity I work for, we received a legacy from one of our long-term volunteers and supporters. This was well over a year after she'd died, and we had no idea we were benefiting from her will. There is an argument to say we SHOULD have known and asked when we might expect our legacy: we'd definitely have done it very politely ... We have occasionally had to 'chase' donations which we've been told are coming as a result of a fundraising event: it's never easy but it has to be done.

Malthusian

p00hsticks wrote: »

Why is this please ? I've always thought a percentage would be better as if the estate is worth considerably less at the time of death than when the will is written, fixed amount bequests could end up swallowing the whole estate and leaving nothing for the residual beneficiaries ?

To put it more strongly than Savvy Sue, large charitycorps will employ the finest lawyers other people's money can buy to gouge your executors for every penny. They are perfectly capable of demanding a larger sum than they are due with the threat they will take the executors to court otherwise (costing the beneficiaries more than the blackmail) for selling a property too cheaply or similar grounds.

This may of course not apply to smaller local charities which are small enough to have a conscience.

The optimal solution is to give any money you want and can spare to give to charity while you are still alive, leave all your money to your heirs, and let your heirs decide whether any extra should go to charity, possibly leaving them a letter of wishes. But second best is to leave a fixed sum.