A charitable gift in your will can support a cause that has mattered to you during your lifetime. It need not be large to be meaningful. The practical task is to make sure the intended organisation can be identified and the gift can be administered without uncertainty.
Begin by checking the charity's correct legal name and registered details. A familiar campaign name may not be the name of the organisation that should receive the legacy.
Choose the form of gift
You might leave a fixed sum, a particular asset or a share of the residue. A fixed amount is easy to understand, but its significance may change with inflation and the size of your estate. A percentage of the residue moves with the value of what remains after liabilities and other gifts.
Consider the balance with your other beneficiaries. The charitable gift should fit the overall plan, including protected family rights and any dependants' needs.
Keep restrictions workable
You may care about a particular service, region or project. Before imposing a narrow restriction, ask the charity whether the wording would be workable. A project may change or close before the gift takes effect.
The charity can often provide its preferred identification details, but any suggested clause should still be considered in the context of your whole will. If you want an alternative charity to benefit should the first no longer exist, obtain suitable wording rather than relying on a general hope that the executor will choose correctly.
Understand the Irish tax position
Irish Capital Acquisitions Tax provides an exemption for qualifying gifts applied for charitable or public purposes, subject to the relevant conditions. Do not import UK inheritance-tax rules or percentage incentives into an Irish plan; they are different systems.
If the gift involves a valuable asset, a foreign charity or unusual conditions, take tax and legal advice before finalising it.
Tell your executor where the signed original will is stored and keep any useful charity correspondence with your planning records. You can also inform the charity if you wish, but your will remains your decision and should be reviewed as circumstances change.
A clear, properly completed gift gives the organisation the best chance of using your legacy as you intended, while making the executor's work more straightforward.
Sources and further reading
General information, not advice on your individual circumstances. Laws and tax rules can change; check the linked official guidance and obtain professional advice where needed.