Why and how to leave a legacy to Enfants du Monde?

Including Enfants du Monde in your will allows you to extend your generosity and keep your values alive by sustainably supporting the education, health and protection of vulnerable children.
In order for your wishes to be fully respected, they must be in accordance with Swiss inheritance law.

Including Enfants du Monde in your will is much more than a philanthropic gesture. It is a structured legal act that allows you to sustainably support the education, health, and protection of vulnerable children, while strictly respecting Swiss inheritance law.

This process, often perceived as complex, is actually based on clear legal mechanisms. This guide explains What to transmit, how to do it, and within what legal limits.

What is a legacy and how does it differ from the institution of an heir?

In Swiss law, there exists two distinct ways to encourage organization by will:

The legacy

Le legs is a testamentary provision by which a person bequeaths to a beneficiary:

un well determined (sum of money, property, securities)
or an precise value taken from the estate.

The legatee is not an heir and is not liable for inheritance debts beyond what he receives.

The institution of heir

The heir institution allows you to designate an organization as heiress, for all or part of the estate (generally within the limit of the disposable portion).

The designated heir:

participates in the division of the inheritance,
receives a proportional share of the inheritance,
has rights comparable to those of a legal heir, within the limits set by the will.

📚 Legal basis: art_483 et art_484

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Why choose Enfants du Monde?

Founded in 1968 in Geneva, Enfants du Monde offers a better future to children and mothers in several countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia, in 2 areas:

Basic education : schooling for children, teacher training, creation of educational materials in local languages, construction of classrooms
Maternal and Child Health : training of healthcare staff, prevention campaigns for families

Recognized as a public benefit organization in Switzerland, Enfants du Monde is certified by the label ZEWO ensuring the transparent use of donations. 86% of funds are allocated directly to programs.

Why transfer funds through a will rather than through a gift?

A will allows you to:

de retain full control of his estate during his lifetime
to organize a sustainable and structured transmission,
to benefit from a tax exemption in the majority of Swiss cantons,
to extend his commitment beyond his lifetime.

The Swiss legal framework: reserved portions and disposable portion

Swiss inheritance law protects certain heirs through a hereditary reserve, while leaving a portion freely transferable.

Reserved portion of the estate (law in force since 2023)

Progeny : 50% of their legal share
Surviving spouse : 50% of its legal share
Parents no reservations

La quota available corresponds to the portion of the estate that can be freely allocated to Enfants du Monde, for example, by bequest or institution of heir.

📚 Source: art_471

Concrete example

Assets: CHF 600,000.–
Situation: spouse + two children

Legal share of the spouse: ½ → CHF 300,000.–
- Reserve: CHF 150,000.–
Children's legal share: ½ → CHF 300,000.–
- Reserve: CHF 150,000.–

Total reserves CHF 300,000.–
Available quota CHF 300,000.–
→ All or part of this sum can be donated to Enfants du Monde.

How to pass this on to Children of the World?

Choosing the right legal form

Institution of heir
You designate Enfants du Monde as the heir to all or part of your disposable portion.

"I hereby establish Enfants du Monde, a public benefit organization based in Geneva, as the heir to the full extent of my disposable estate."

Universal legacy
You are allocating an abstract fraction of your estate (for example, one third), without conferring the status of heir.

"I am bequeathing one-third of my disposable estate to Enfants du Monde."

Specific legacy
You are transferring a specific asset or amount of money.

“I am bequeathing the sum of CHF 50,000 to Enfants du Monde.”

Bequest with appropriation
You specify the intended use of the funds, provided it remains compatible with the organization's mission. It is preferable to designate a type of activity (for example: children's education) rather than a specific project (for example: education of Mayan children in the Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala); indeed, by the time your estate is settled, the project outlined in your will may no longer be relevant.

Drafting the will

A valid will in Switzerland can be:

holograph : entirely handwritten, dated and signed,
ou GENUINE : received by a notary.

The holographic will remains the most common form for this type of disposition.

📚 Source: art_505

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Taxation of bequests in Switzerland

Recognized public-benefit organizations such as Enfants du Monde benefit, in most cantons, from total exemption from inheritance tax.
In Geneva, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Fribourg or Valais, no inheritance tax is levied on a bequest to Enfants du Monde.
Conversely, a bequest to an unrelated person may result in high taxation depending on the canton.

???? Cantonal example (Geneva)

Inform your loved ones and the organization

Inform your heirs and, if applicable, Children of the World:

reduces the risk of dispute,
facilitates the execution of the will.
allows for prior dialogue, without any obligation.

Conclusion

Making a bequest or naming Enfants du Monde as your heir allows you to transform your estate into a sustainable lever for impact in favor of vulnerable children, within a safe and controlled legal framework.

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