Charitable lead trusts

What is a charitable lead trust?

A charitable lead trust allows you to support the lifesaving work of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) while safeguarding assets for your loved ones. You transfer cash, securities, or other assets to a trust. The trustee invests the assets, providing annual payments to MSF for a period of time that you select. When the trust terminates, the remaining amount is paid to you or your heirs with the benefit of a reduced transfer tax.

The trust may be a charitable lead annuity (fixed payments) or a charitable lead unitrust (fixed percentage).

What are the benefits of a charitable lead trust?

• Reduction in transfer tax on the amount passing to your heirs
• Appreciation in trust value passes to your heirs free of gift and estate tax
• Control over when your heirs inherit trust assets

To learn more, please contact your attorney or accountant, or Casey Saunders, Director of Planned Giving, at 212.763.5750 or plannedgiving@newyork.msf.org