The following information is provided to assist you in developing your charitable gift and estate plans in consultation with your attorney, accountant, and/or other advisers.
USC’s Legal Name
The legal name to be used when making gifts to USC via wills, trusts, and other gift-transfer documents is:
“University of Southern California, a California not-for-profit corporation, with its principal place of business at Los Angeles, California.”
Confirmation of USC’s Tax-Exempt Status
Confirmation of USC’s tax-exempt status is provided in the form of a letter from the district director, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Department of the Treasury. To download a copy of this document (in PDF format), please click here.
USC’s federal tax I.D. number is 95-1642394.
Designating Your Gift
Gifts made through wills and revocable trusts are often directed to the university’s permanent endowment. Endowment is a particularly effective way to leave a lasting legacy, since the earnings accrued on your gift will support USC in perpetuity.
Your bequest may be unrestricted — to be used at the discretion of the president or a dean for the university’s highest priorities — or you may designate your bequest to support a specific program, such as a student scholarship, an endowed faculty chair or professorship, or Trojan athletics. You may make your gift in your own name, or you may memorialize a loved one with your contribution.
Language for Including USC in Your Will or Living Trust
We recommend the following language for making a gift to USC by will or revocable trust:
“I hereby give to the University of Southern California, a California not-for-profit corporation, with its principal place of business at Los Angeles, California:
- The sum of $________________ [amount] AND/OR
- The following described property: ________________ [description] AND/OR
- ________% [percent] of the residue of my estate.”
For bequests to the university’s permanent endowment, please add:
“This gift shall be added to the permanent endowment of the university.”
If your gift will be more than $250,000, you may wish to create a named endowment fund by including the following language:
“The property comprising this gift may, for investment purposes, be merged with any of the university’s investment assets. However, the gift shall be entered in the university’s books and records as the ________________ [name] Fund, shall always be so designated, and the income therefrom, but not the principal, shall be used for ________________ [stated purpose] of the University of Southern California.”
If you or your advisers have any questions about this information, please contact a member of the USC Office of Planned Giving staff.