Planned giving for nonprofits is one of the most overlooked sources of long-term revenue in the entire sector, and for Muslim nonprofits specifically, it comes with an extra layer most fundraising guides never mention: Waqf, the Islamic endowment structure that predates modern planned giving by over a thousand years.
Bequests alone totaled nearly $46 billion in US charitable giving recently, and the average realized bequest runs close to $78,000, according to data reported by Blackbaud. For a masjid or Islamic nonprofit, a single planned gift or a well-structured Waqf can outweigh years of smaller recurring donations combined.
What Is Planned Giving for Nonprofits?
Planned giving is a category of donation that a supporter arranges during their lifetime but that is typically realized later, often through a will, an estate plan or a structured gift vehicle rather than a direct transfer today. Unlike a one-time or recurring donation, a planned gift usually involves legal paperwork, coordination with a donor’s attorney or financial advisor and a longer timeline before the nonprofit actually receives the funds.
For a nonprofit, this matters because planned giving donors tend to be an organization’s most loyal, longest-tenured supporters, not necessarily its wealthiest ones. A donor who has given modestly but consistently for fifteen years is a more realistic planned giving prospect than someone who gave once at a large gala.
What Are the Different Types of Planned Gifts?
| Gift Type | What It Is | Best For | Key Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bequest | A gift specified in a donor’s will or estate plan, received after death | Any nonprofit, especially as the most common and simplest planned gift | Requires no upfront legal cost to the nonprofit, but realization can take years |
| Charitable Gift Annuity | A donor gives an asset now in exchange for fixed income payments for life | Older donors wanting income plus a future charitable gift | Involves contractual and regulatory obligations and usually needs legal and financial guidance |
| Charitable Remainder Trust | Assets are placed in a trust that pays the donor income for a set period, with the remainder going to the nonprofit | Donors with significant appreciated assets such as stock or property | More complex to establish and typically requires an estate attorney |
| Waqf | An Islamic endowment where an asset is permanently dedicated, with only its income or usufruct used for charitable purposes | Muslim nonprofits and donors seeking a religiously rooted, perpetual giving structure | Requires both Islamic scholarly guidance and US legal structuring to be valid and properly recognized |
What Is Waqf and How Does It Work as a Planned Giving Vehicle?
Waqf is a charitable endowment under Islamic law where a donor permanently dedicates an asset, such as property, cash or shares, so that the asset itself is never spent, only its income or benefit is used for a specified charitable purpose indefinitely. This concept predates Western planned giving by centuries and carries deep religious significance for many Muslim donors, since it is tied directly to the idea of Sadaqah Jariyah, ongoing charity that continues to benefit the giver even after death.
In practice, setting up a Waqf in the United States means combining two separate processes: confirming the structure and terms align with Islamic guidance, which should always involve a qualified scholar, and establishing the legal vehicle correctly under US law, typically as a charitable trust or through a donor-advised fund structure, which requires an estate attorney familiar with both nonprofit law and religious endowment structures. Neither piece should be skipped, and neither piece substitutes for the other.
For a nonprofit, offering Waqf as a giving option signals a level of religious and cultural fluency that a generic bequest program does not, and it often resonates with donors who might otherwise never consider a Western-style planned gift.
How Can a Small Nonprofit Start a Planned Giving Program?
A small nonprofit does not need a dedicated gift planning department to begin. The starting point is usually simple: adding a short, clear planned giving page to the website with sample bequest language, mentioning the option in donor newsletters and having a designated staff member or board member who can have that first conversation when a donor asks.
The mistake most small nonprofits make is waiting until they feel “big enough” to start. Since planned gifts often come from long-tenured, modest donors rather than major gift prospects, an organization with a loyal donor base for even five to ten years already has a viable audience, whether or not it has a dedicated program in place yet.
Legal and Tax Considerations for Planned Giving
Planned gifts, whether a standard bequest, a charitable gift annuity or a Waqf, involve legal and tax mechanics that vary by donor situation, state and gift type. This is not an area where a nonprofit should rely on general guidance alone. Every organization considering charitable gift annuities, trusts or Waqf structures should work directly with an estate attorney and, where relevant, a tax advisor, since the rules governing these vehicles carry real legal weight and vary based on individual circumstances. This piece is educational, not legal or tax advice, and nothing here should be treated as a substitute for that professional guidance.
How to Track and Manage Planned Giving with a CRM
Planned gifts move slowly and quietly, sometimes over years, which makes them easy to lose track of without a proper system. A CRM built for donor management, not a spreadsheet, should record the expected gift type, estimated value, key dates and every touchpoint with the donor, since a planned giving relationship often depends on consistent, personal stewardship rather than a single ask.
This is also where many nonprofits underestimate the setup work involved. Configuring a CRM to properly flag and track planned giving prospects separately from annual donors, and to trigger the right stewardship reminders at the right times, takes more than turning on a feature, it takes someone who understands both the software and the fundraising strategy behind it.
How to Market Planned Giving and Legacy Gifts to Donors
Marketing a planned giving program successfully depends more on consistency and framing than on volume. A short mention in every newsletter, a dedicated page with real bequest language a donor’s attorney can use directly and personal outreach to long-tenured donors tend to outperform a single large campaign push. For Muslim donors specifically, framing options around Sadaqah Jariyah and, where relevant, Waqf tends to resonate far more than generic “leave a legacy” language borrowed from a template built for a different audience entirely.
Do You Need a Consultant for Planned Giving?
Not every nonprofit needs an outside consultant to accept its first bequest. But a nonprofit trying to build a real program, one that properly structures Waqf options, configures CRM tracking correctly, drafts donor-facing bequest language and coordinates with legal and religious guidance at the same time, is coordinating several specialized skill sets that rarely live inside one small staff. This is exactly the kind of cross-functional work our team supports for Muslim nonprofits, connecting the CRM setup, the donor communication strategy and the cultural fluency needed to make a planned giving program actually work for a Muslim donor base, rather than a generic one adapted after the fact.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. What is planned giving for nonprofits and how does it work?
Planned giving is a donation arranged during a donor’s lifetime but typically realized later, often through a will, trust or structured gift vehicle, rather than given directly today.
Q2. What are the different types of planned gifts?
The most common types include bequests through a will, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts and, for Muslim donors, Waqf, each with different legal structures and donor benefits.
Q3. How can a small nonprofit start a planned giving program?
Start with a simple webpage explaining the option, include sample bequest language, mention it in donor communications and designate one staff or board member to handle initial conversations.
Q4. What is a Waqf endowment and how does it work?
A Waqf is an Islamic endowment where a donor permanently dedicates an asset so that only its income or benefit is used for charity, with the asset itself preserved indefinitely, tied to the concept of Sadaqah Jariyah.
Q5. How do I use a CRM to track planned giving donors?
A donor CRM should record expected gift type, estimated value and every stewardship touchpoint, since planned gifts develop over years and are easy to lose track of without a dedicated system.
Q6. What are the tax benefits of bequests for donors?
Bequests and other planned gifts often carry estate and tax advantages, but these vary by individual circumstance and should always be confirmed with the donor’s own attorney or tax advisor rather than treated as general advice.
Q7. How can I set up a Waqf endowment in the United States?
Setting up a Waqf requires two parallel steps, confirming the structure with a qualified Islamic scholar and establishing the legal vehicle correctly under US law with an estate attorney, since neither step alone is sufficient.