The Ecogift Program

Black oaks on the prairie and savannah, Rice Lake Plains, Ontario (Photo by NCC)

Many land and conservation agreement donations to the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) are processed through the federal Ecogift program, which is administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Created in 1995, the Ecogift program provides added tax incentives to landowners wanting to protect their ecologically sensitive lands.

Key points when making an ecogift:

• The land must be certified by the Minister of the Environment as ecologically sensitive.
• The appraised value of the gift must be reviewed and approved by a panel on behalf of the Ministry of the Environment.
• Once the land's value is certified by Environment and Climate Change Canada and approved, it is "defended" by the Ministry of the Environment if questioned by the Canada Revenue Agency.
• Any modification must be approved ahead of time by Environment and Climate Change Canada.

For more information, please visit the Ecogift website.

Interested in giving land?

Follow the related links on this page for more information on gifts of land, conservation agreements and important tax benefits of gifts of land.

For more information on donating land or conservation agreements, please contact the NCC Regional office near you.
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Due to limited resources, we must assess and prioritize potential land/agreements donations to ensure that they fit within our programs and science-based priorities.