What do Canadians think about how quickly donations should be put to charitable use?
Two-thirds of Canadians prefer a quick distribution of donations within ten years.
Donations to registered charities receive preferential tax treatment through charitable tax credits or deductions. The public therefore has a legitimate interest in how quickly that tax-assisted capital is ultimately deployed for charitable purposes.
GIV3 commissioned Ipsos in 2022 and again in 2026 to explore how Canadian adults think about the timing of charitable use.
In the June 2026 survey;
- 65% of respondents said such charitable donations should be put to charitable use within 10 years. This contrasts to 29% which favored no required time limit.
- More Canadians (34%) prefer to see donations used within 2.5 years than held indefinitely (29%).
% of Canadians who feel donations should be applied within…
% of Canadian adult population
2022
2026
View as table
| Donations should be applied… | 2022 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Within 2.5 years | 36% | 34% |
| Within 5 years | 54% | 56% |
| Within 10 years | 64% | 65% |
| Within 20 years | 68% | 68% |
| Within 50 years | 70% | 71% |
| No requirement. Holding money for the long term is preferable | 30% | 29% |
Methodology — Ipsos poll for GIV3. n=1,000 Canadian adults aged 18+, weighted to national demographics. Fieldwork: late June 2026. The draft reports accuracy of ±3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. Full question wording: Research, data sources and methodology.