Gifts in Wills

Making a Will is the only way you can be sure your wishes will be followed after you die, as well as allowing you to provide for the people and causes you care about. If you don’t have a Will it can cause additional distress for your family and friends at an already difficult time.

We’re unable to provide any specific legal advice, so for guidance on your Will we recommend that you contact a solicitor. You can also write or update you Will for free through Christian Aid’s partners.

Make sure you keep your Will up to date. If there have been any changes in family circumstances, it’s worth reviewing your Will.

If you would like to add a gift to Christian Aid to your existing Will, this can usually be done quite cheaply and simply with a document called a codicil. Please contact your solicitor about the best way to add a codicil to your Will.

In England and Wales our registered charity number is 1105851, and our address is Christian Aid, PO Box 100, London, SE1 7RT.

In Scotland our registered charity number is SC039150, and our address is Christian Aid, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.

In Northern Ireland our registered charity number is NIC101631, and our address is Christian Aid, Linden House, Beechill Business Park, 96 Beechill Road, Belfast BT8 7QN.

Your solicitor will also need to know what type of gift you wish to leave – you can find this information in the next question.

• A specific gift is a possession or item such as jewellery, property or shares.
• A pecuniary gift is a financial donation of a fixed amount. However, because of inflation, these are liable to depreciate during the course of your lifetime. That’s why many of our supporters prefer to leave a residuary gift.
• A residuary gift is all or part of what’s left of your estate once your other wishes have been carried out.

Here is some sample wording for your solicitor:

Specific gift

I give to Christian Aid of [full address according to location you are writing your Will] Charity Registration Number: XXXXX [according to location you are writing your Will] [description of items] absolutely for its general purposes and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other duly authorised officer shall be a sufficient discharge to my Executors.

Pecuniary gift

I give to Christian Aid of [full address according to location you are writing your Will] Charity Registration Number: XXXXX [according to location you are writing your Will] the sum of £...[amount in words] for its general purposes and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other duly authorised officer shall be sufficient discharge to my Executors.

Residuary gift

I give to Christian Aid of [full address according to location you are writing your Will] Charity Registration Number: XXXXX [according to location you are writing your Will] [proportion of residue] for its general purposes and I direct that the receipt of the Treasurer or other duly authorised officer shall be sufficient discharge to my Executors.

Legacies fund just over 10% of everything we do. However large or small, your gift will be used to support our work fighting poverty and transforming lives.

Our supporters usually choose to leave a gift to our work in general, so we can use it wherever the need is greatest. However, if there’s a particular aspect of our work you’d like your gift to support, please contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss it with you.

In most cases, your gift to Christian Aid will be exempt from inheritance tax, so it can help to reduce the tax burden on your friends or family.

Your solicitor will explain how to make your Will as tax efficient as possible. They can also outline the rules that reduce the rate of inheritance tax for people who leave at least 10% of their estate to charity.

You don’t have to tell us anything. But if you’d like to, we’d love to hear from you.

Many of our supporters have been telling us what inspired them to include Christian Aid in their Wills – and these stories are, in turn, a real inspiration to us!

If you are the executor or solicitor acting in connection with the administration of an estate where Christian Aid is bequeathed a legacy, and you would like to contact us or make a payment, please email our Legacy Case Management team legacyadmin@christian-aid.org

If you'd like to learn more about including Christian Aid in your Will in complete confidence, we are here to help.​​​​​​​

Contact our Legacy team by email at legacyteam@christian-aid.org or call 01925 573 769.