Giving Tuesday with points and rewards

Every year,Giving Tuesdayalso known as Mardi Je Donne, is the world’s most important day dedicated to generosity. This day follows Black Friday and Cyber Monday to highlight the importance of supporting causes, organizations and people that matter to you.

Moreover, it is possible to do it with the help of points, or to earn points by giving. Here’s how.

Did you know that most point donations are also eligible for the donation tax credit? It will usually take a few weeks before you receive your tax receipt, but be aware that your points have a monetary value for the organizations and that you should, in most cases, receive a receipt eligible for a tax credit following your donation. Please note that most non-profit organizations only issue a tax receipt for donations over $25.

Here are some programs that offer the option of redeeming points for charitable donations.

Aeroplan partners with more than 300 organizations to allow you to donate points. You can choose from the causes that are important to you and donate 1,000, 2,500, 5,000, 20,000 points or simply select the amount of your choice.

The choice is more limited, but if your American Express credit cards allow you to earn a lot of Membership Rewards points, you can donate them to Save the Children for a redemption rate of 1,000 points per $10.

Please note: In this case, it is specified that no tax receipt will be issued for these donations in points.

Most other loyalty programs such as HSBC Rewards offer similar options for redeeming points for charitable donations. To participate in Giving Tuesday, we invite you to visit the points redemption page of your rewards program of choice to verify the organizations they support.

The beauty of online donations is that it is also possible to earn rewards points since credit card payments are often accepted.

We invite you to visit the Giving Tuesday website and find the organization(s) you wish to support today.

Paying by credit card can help you reach a minimum spending threshold to unlock a welcome bonus. Some organizations even give the option to contribute monthly to a cause; this can help you reach the monthly target for welcome offer on cards like the American Express Cobalt^® Card For example, in addition to supporting a cause on an ongoing basis.

That way, everyone wins!

A reminder that your donations to charitable organizations are eligible for a tax credit, upon presentation of a tax receipt. You can view the charitable tax credit rates here. For example, in Quebec, donations of less than $200 are eligible for a 20% tax credit and this amount increases to 24% above $200.

We give first and foremost to make a difference and have a positive impact, but it’s good to know that our actions are in turn rewarded, whether it’s in terms of taxes or reward points.

Whether it’s points or money, supporting and contributing to causes and organizations is something we can do all year long, but Giving Tuesday is a great time to do it, especially with the holidays approaching. It is often said that every cent makes a difference, but we really mean it. In this case, we would even say that every point can make a difference!

In fact, Milesopedia will soon be announcing a partnership to provide ongoing support to an important cause… That’s all we can tell you for now, stay tuned!