The Gift Trust’s expertise in borderless giving doesn’t just involve helping New Zealanders support international causes. In fact, this year, we brought more international donations in for New Zealand charities than we granted out to international charities.
We do this with the help of our U.S. partner organisations Every.org and Myriad USA. We have a fund set up with each of these partners, which allows any NZ charity to receive donations from U.S. donors, and for these donors to receive U.S. tax deductions for their donations.
Every.org provides an online fundraising platform for nonprofits to accept online donations, including cash, stocks, cryptocurrency, and donor-advised fund (DAF) gifts. Typically they can only work
with U.S. charities, but because we’ve completed an advanced due diligence check, NZ charities can work with us to receive U.S. donations through their platform. For some donations from the U.S we use our partnership with Myriad USA, who can facilitate complex gifts such as physical cheques and retirement plan gifts.
Many NZ charities utilise our service, including one of our longest-standing partners, HRMI: the Human Rights Measurement Initiative. HRMI tracks the human rights progress of countries, producing robust data that anyone can use to push for improvements in how governments treat people. Since 2018, HRMI has received nearly $475,000 in gifts through The Gift Trust.
Another organisation that has been receiving funding in this way for many years is Kia Kotahi Ako, who catalyse Māori-led community impact, especially in education and energy
sovereignty initiatives. They have received nearly $450,000 in gifts from U.S. donors through The Gift Trust since 2022.
The Gift Trust helps simplify the process for New Zealand charities receiving grants from U.S. funders by managing the necessary compliance and transferring funds in New Zealand Dollars. This support can be particularly useful for organisations undertaking large or complex projects. The Malaghan Institute of Medical Research has worked with The Gift Trust in this capacity, enabling their team to maintain direct relationships with funders while benefiting from our specialist knowledge of international funding mechanisms that help support its research and clinical trials.
