Don’t miss out on your 2015 charitable tax credit

The year is winding down and it’s time to relax a little. But before you settle down entirely you should make sure you maximize your 2015 tax credit with a donation to the Canadian Red Cross before midnight EST on December 31. And for first-time donors, there's an added incentive.

Available until 2017, the first-time donor’s super credit (FDSC) gives you an additional 25 per cent of your total donation (up to $1,000) refunded back.

Charitable donations already have two tiers of benefits, with the $200 rule in place. The $200 rule means that you receive a 15 per cent federal credit for your first $200 in donations and then 29 per cent federally for every dollar over $200. So if you donate $500 in 2015, you get $117 in federal tax savings.

Do you qualify as a first-time donor?

According to the Canada Revenue Agency, an individual is a first-time donor if neither that person nor a spouse or common-law partner has claimed a standard charitable donation tax credit in the past five tax years.

Some rates may vary by province, but the Canadian Red Cross can help you figure out your credit estimates with the tax credit calculator. Enter your intended donation, note whether you're a first-time donor and the calculator delivers the good news.

Why the Red Cross?

The Red Cross has more than a century of disaster management and conflict response experience around the world, a global network of staff and volunteers and a local presence in over 185 countries. It was also recently named one of the Financial Post’s 2015 Charities of the Year.

By supporting the Canadian Red Cross, you'll be helping emergency responders provide humanitarian aid where it's needed most in local communities like yours and around the world. The Canadian Red Cross provides a vast range of services and is committed to a number of causes, from violence, bullying and abuse prevention to migrant and refugee services.

By making your donation a year-end gift, you will also help the Canadian Red Cross prepare for 2016 with the resources required to help anyone who needs it, anywhere it is needed.

But you can only maximize your 2015 tax credits by donating by midnight EST on December 31.