Making a Will

Making a Will is one of the most practical ways we can prepare for our death. It is also one of the most significant and lasting ways we can express our love and care for those things that matter most to us in our life—our families, friends and loved ones, and our ideals and values. In general, it is most helpful if your gift to the Tertön Sogyal Trust is not designated for any specific purpose. This allows the Board of Trustees maximum flexibility to allocate grants where they will have the greatest effect and benefit, at any given moment in time.

A True Spirit of Generosity – According to the Buddhist teachings, it is extremely important to give up all our worldly attachments at the moment of death, in order that we can die in peace and equanimity. Furthermore, giving away our wealth and possessions, in a true spirit of generosity, can be an act of profound spiritual significance—one that will help ensure we accumulate tremendous merit for our future lives.

If we neglect to make a Will, this can cause unnecessary anxiety and confusion for those closest to us, at a time when they need to take care of all the arrangements following our death. Furthermore, our wealth may not be distributed as we would have wished; at worst it may even be reclaimed by the government.

General Information about Legacies – An individual can decide to leave all or part of his/her cash, bank accounts, apartment, stocks and shares, antique furniture, jewelry or other articles of monetary value to The Tertön Sogyal Trust after they die in the following ways.

Written Document – The written document that makes this clear is a will or testament which describes the gift, called a legacy or bequest, of money or property that the individual wants to make to a person or organization.
Estate – The money and property that are left after a person’s death are known as the estate of the person. The will is the legal instrument that permits a person to make decisions on how his estate will be managed and distributed after his death, which individuals and organizations inherit all or part of his estate, and who will be the executor of the will, that is: who will distribute the estate to the beneficiaries.
If a person does not leave a will, this can create a lot of anxiety and difficulties for their family. Every country has laws that define what will be done if a person dies intestate (without leaving a valid will): for example, in the UK only married or civil partners and some other close relatives can inherit under the rules of intestacy.

How to Make a Will – There are several ways you can choose to remember the Tertön Sogyal Trust in your Will:

Fixed Sum bequest — you choose to leave the Tertön Sogyal Trust a specific sum of money.
Residuary bequest — once you have provided for your family and friends, and all other bequests and estate-related costs have been deducted, you leave the remainder of your estate to the Tertön Sogyal Trust.
Property bequest — you choose to leave the Tertön Sogyal Trust a specific asset or valuable possession, such as real estate, stocks or bonds, jewellery, or a work of art.1
Reversionary bequest — in which you place your assets in a trust for the benefit of a loved one, during their lifetime. After their passing, the trust assets are donated to the Tertön Sogyal Trust.

Your bequest to the Tertön Sogyal Trust will be free of Inheritance Tax and may even help reduce the total tax burden on your estate.

How your gift supports the Trust’s work – In general, it is most helpful if your legacy or donation to the Tertön Sogyal Trust is not designated for any specific purpose. This allows the Board of Trustees maximum flexibility to allocate funds where they will have the greatest effect and benefit, at any given moment in time.

If you like personal advice or would like to talk about leaving the Tertön Sogyal Trust in your will, please send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

You may find the following suggested wordings helpful when discussing a new Will:

Fixed Sum Bequest – I give £[……….] to the Tertön Sogyal Trust, a charitable company registered in England and Wales under company number 3245152 and registered charity number 1059323 respectively and having its registered office at 4b Printing House Yard, Hackney Road, London, E2 7PR, UK (the “Charity”) for its general charitable purposes.

I direct that the receipt of a person who appears to be the treasurer or other proper officer of the Charity shall be a sufficient discharge to my executors and that if at my death the Charity has ceased to exist or amalgamated with another charity or has changed its name my executors shall pay this legacy to the charitable organization which in their discretion they consider most nearly fulfils the objects of the Charity.

Residuary Bequest – I give all the rest of my estate both real and personal whatsoever and wheresoever subject to the payment of my debts funeral and testamentary expenses and legacies to the Tertön Sogyal Trust, a charitable company registered in England and Wales under company number 3245152 and registered charity number 1059323 respectively and having its registered office at 4b Printing House Yard, Hackney Road, London, E2 7PR, UK (the “Charity”) for its general charitable purposes.

If you name a number of residuary beneficiaries in your Will, not all of which are charities, you may also wish to include the following clause, to ensure The Tertön Sogyal Trust receives the full value of your gift, free of inheritance tax.

I declare that if the share in my Estate of any beneficiary named in clause […………] does not qualify for exemption from inheritance tax, that share shall bear its own inheritance tax so that the amount received by each beneficiary named in that clause, before the payment of inheritance tax, is the same.

Property Bequest – I give [insert description of property] 4 [free of tax] and [free from all costs of packing carriage and insurance] to the Tertön Sogyal Trust, a charitable company registered in England and Wales under company number 3245152 and registered charity number 1059323 respectively and having its registered office at 4b Printing House Yard, Hackney Road, London, E2 7PR, UK (the “Charity”) for its general charitable purposes.

Your pledge – You may wish to inform The Tertön Sogyal Trust of your planned bequest. This will be of tremendous help in planning our future development and will enable us to acknowledge and dedicate your gift in the most appropriate way. Please let us know at the below address.

It is important to identify the property clearly and ensure that the description is accurate, as an error of detail may cause the gift to fail. If however the property is of a replaceable or non-specific nature, it may be more useful to refer to the property generically as that of its type existing in the estate at the date of death.

To find out more about the process of making a will and details of some of the people who can help you make one, please go to: www.rememberacharity.org.uk