Leaving a gift in your will is one of the most meaningful ways to make the world a healthier place to travel. A legacy gift enables you to make a significant, long-lasting contribution to a cause that’s close to your heart. For example, a bequest from IAMAT supporter Violet Williams allowed us to establish a travel medicine scholarship in her name.
Our travel medicine scholarships offer a unique way to leave a legacy. Each scholarship sponsors a doctor or nurse to train in travel medicine. After their training, the scholars return home to teach their colleagues and expand travel medicine services in their communities, resulting in better care for travellers and local patients.
Learn more about our Travel Medicine Scholarships
Note: this information is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice. If you are considering including a provision for a donation to IAMAT or any other charity in your will, we encourage you to work with your lawyer in writing or revising your will to ensure that it accurately reflects your intentions as well as the prevailing law in your jurisdiction.
Supporting our work by making a bequest is easy – in general, all you need to do is include a clause in your will naming us as a beneficiary and stating the amount you would like to donate. There are, however, some things you need to watch for:
1. Ensure you use the name under which we are registered with the federal government: Foundation for the Support of International Medical Training (Canada) or Foundation for the Support of International Medical Training (US). IAMAT, which is how you probably know us, is a division of the Foundation, but it isn’t a registered charity on its own and cannot issue donation receipts in its own name. Getting the name right also removes any potential confusion about your intention to make the donation to us, and not another organization with a similar name.
2. It may also help to lessen confusion if you include our address, current as of the date you drafted your will: at present, this is 2800 14th Avenue, Suite 210, Markham, ON L3R 0E4 or 2430 Military Road, #279, Niagara Falls, NY 14304.
3. Be specific about the amount of your bequest. It may be easiest to state this as a simple dollar amount to be paid in cash. Other alternatives are identifying a portion of your estate (e.g., five percent or one-twentieth part) or a specific piece of real or personal property. The advantage of a cash bequest is that it can be available fairly quickly, may not require liquidating other assets, and is easier to value - $10,000 cash is worth $10,000, but a painting or shares of stock may fluctuate in value and, in the case of shares of a family company, can be extremely difficult to value.
4. Ideally, do not place any restrictions on the use of your bequest. Programs may change over time, as may the countries in which we are active. If you specify a program that has been discontinued or a country where we no longer have a relationship, you will present the trustees of your estate with a problem.
5. If you make a major change in your life (such as marriage or remarriage) after you make a will, this may invalidate that will and all its bequests. In that case, be sure to discuss with your lawyer whether you need to draft a new will.
6. Finally, ensure your entire will complies with the legal requirements in your jurisdiction.
While we strongly recommend retaining a lawyer to draft your will, we know some people may prefer to prepare their own. In that case, if you’re in Canada, a sample clause you may want to use could be:
“I direct my Trustee(s) to pay the sum of (amount in words) dollars ($amount in numbers) to the Foundation for the Support of International Medical Training (Canada), currently located at 2800 14th Avenue, Suite 210, Markham, Ontario, L3R 0E4, for its general purposes. The receipt of an appropriate officer of the Foundation for the Support of International Medical Training (Canada) shall be a sufficient discharge of my Trustee(s).”
If you reside in Canada, please include the following information in your bequest:
Legal business name: Foundation for the Support of International Medical Training (Canada)
Address:
2800 14th Ave #210,
Markham, Ontario
L3R 0E4
Canadian Charitable Registration: 11892 9231 RR0001
If you reside in the United States, please include the following information in your bequest:
Legal business name: Foundation for the Support of International Medical Training Inc.
Address:
2430 Military Rd, #279
Niagara Falls, NY 14304
USA 501(c)(3) non-profit. E.I. Number: 13-261375
Again, this does not constitute legal advice – only a lawyer who is familiar with your circumstances and intentions, and the law in your jurisdiction, can provide that.
Download our free Legacy Giving Tipsheet
You don’t have to notify us if you plan to leave a gift to IAMAT in your will. However, we hope that you will let us know so we can thank you! Donors like you are the reason we can continue expanding travel medicine to more countries with our scholarships.
If you have any questions about legacy giving, please get in touch.
Last reviewed and updated: December 12, 2019
When you have reached the point where you no longer expect a response, you will at last be able to give in such a way that the other is able to receive and be grateful. - Dag Hammarskjöld
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