How are NTMC missionaries supported?
NTMC missionaries are not salaried. In faith they look to the Lord for provision of their financial needs. They are encouraged to tell others about their needs when asked. Support comes from sending churches, with additional help from other churches and individuals.
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How much support does an NTMC missionary require?
This is a very difficult question to answer, as there are many factors which affect the answer.
Each country and type of ministry have unique and varied living expenses. For example, overseas missionaries must plan for home assignment, increased travel and higher ministry expenses. On the other hand, living expenses might be higher for personnel living in Canada – especially if they are home owners.
Recommended monthly support levels cover both ministry expenses as well as personal expenses.
Ministry expenses include costs such as: travel to and from field of service, travel within field to and from tribal location, computer systems, office supplies, visa & consular fees, supplies for socio-economic development, communications with donors (i.e. prayer letters), and travel expenses while on home assignment (furlough).
Personal expenses include costs such as: food, clothing, housing (including solar power systems), miscellaneous taxes & source deductions, vehicle, children’s schooling, insurance, retirement savings, and vacations.
Missionaries are also personally responsible to cover expenses which are normally covered by an employer’s benefits package.
For more information regarding an average breakdown for a country or specific missionary please send an email to NTMC’s Finance Office or call us 519-369-2622.
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How can I support a missionary or project?
You have three options: credit card, cheques, automatic withdrawal
Credit Card
You can make a one-time online contribution here, via Canada Helps! You can also arrange for automatic monthly charges to you credit card also via Canada Helps!. If you prefer to make a credit card donation over the telephone, click here for more information.
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Cheques
Make your cheques payable to “NTMC”.
On a separate slip of paper indicate which missionary, ministry, or project your donation is intended for and whether or not you are expecting to be receipted for your contribution.
Be sure to use the missionary’s full name (husband and wife) to help ensure that the contribution is processed correctly.
In response to cheques NTMC will mail out a computer-generated statement which indicates to which ministry your contribution has been credited. Please review this carefully and contact us if there is a discrepancy. The bottom portion is for your records; the top portion can be returned to NTMC with any future contributions.
If you send post-dated cheques, we will send you a letter of confirmation at the time the cheques are received. Your bank statement indicates that your cheques have been processed.
Use the following address:
Finance Office
NTMC
P.O. Box 707
Durham, ON N0G 1R0
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Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)
If you would rather give a set amount every month and not have to deal with cheques, you may prefer to arrange an EFT with us. Click here for more information.
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How can I support a non-Canadian NTM missionary or project?
Many of our missionaries - both Canadian and American - receive support from donors in both countries. The NTM-USA office in Florida handles all the contributions from American donors, while our office here in Ontario takes care of the Canadian donors.
Therefore, if you are a donor living in Canada, all contributions that you make to any NTM missionary, regardless of nationality, must be made through the Canadian office.
Simply follow the general giving instructions laid out here.
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What makes a donation to NTMC qualify for a receipt?
The intent of the donor.
As a charitable organization, NTMC is bound by the regulations established by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). The CRA authorizes NTMC to issue receipts only for contributions which are intended to support the work that we do (i.e. our charitable objectives). Consequently NTMC must make a distinction between ministry support and personal gifts.
Therefore all contributions which are intended to support the ministry of a missionary qualify for a receipt and are placed into the missionary’s ministry account.
All cheques which are personal in nature (birthday, anniversary, or Christmas gifts, loan repayments, rent) do not qualify for a receipt, are placed into the missionary’s personal account and are forwarded to them during our regular month-end procedures.
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Does “receiptable” or “non-receiptable” affect the missionary?
Yes. It affects their taxes. An official receipt from NTMC allows the donor to receive a tax credit, i.e. to pay less taxes. Consequently the CRA will not permit NTMC to simply give the funds to missionaries. Rather, missionaries are considered employees, and receive their ministry support as employment earnings. As with all employees, these employment earnings are subject to (applicable) source deductions such as CPP, EI, and Income Tax.
In other words, when a receipt is issued for a donation, the missionary must take the funds as taxable income.
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Can I be receipted for contributions to students in the training?
It depends. The laws that govern charitable organizations in Canada only permit NTMC to issue official receipts for contributions in support of missionaries who are employees of NTMC. When candidates enter the training program, they are students, not employees, and therefore contributions in support of them do not qualify for a receipt.
However, if a Canadian student successfully completes the first year of the training and indicates a commitment to serve with NTMC in missionary service by continuing into the second year of the training, NTMC accepts them as official employees. We make this distinction since much of the first year course is spiritual/Biblical in nature and allows the candidate to demonstrate growth and maturity in Bible truths and in the Christian life. The second year course is generally more technical in nature. Therefore we view the first year course as that which is necessary for candidates to qualify for missionary service, and the second year course as professional development.
Consequently, the following distinction has been set:
Contributions in support of first-year students do not qualify for official receipts.
Contributions in support of second-year students do qualify for official receipts.
NTMC is able to receive and process contributions to all students, but only those in support of second-year students qualify for an official receipt.
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Can I be receipted for contributions to an Interface participant?
Regretfully, no.
Here's why: The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) authorizes NTMC to issue receipts for contributions to the work that we do. NTM has a short-term work program through which individuals can go to the mission field and contribute physical labour for a month or so
Our Interface program is different in that participants are not going to PNG to work, but to learn. The Interface program is a college level course of study which introduces people to the needs, challenges, methods, and issues involved with global missions. Individuals participate in the Interface program so that they might learn, i.e. that they might receive a personal benefit; whereas individuals who participate in work teams do so in order that NTM might receive the benefit of their labours.
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Can I be receipted for contributions to a Destination Summit participant?
Yes.
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When does NTMC issue receipts for income tax purposes?
Receipts for income tax credit are mailed in January for the total of the previous year's qualifying contributions.
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Will NTMC deduct a portion of my contribution for administration costs?
No. When an individual or church contributes to a missionary’s ministry, the entire contribution is credited to that missionary’s ministry account with NTMC. No portion is withheld to cover our administrative costs. These financial needs are met by contributions to NTMC’s general fund.
This has been the policy of NTMC for many years, and it has been exciting to see the Lord’s faithfulness in providing for the needs of both NTMC and our missionaries.
(Most NTM fields, however, do charge missionaries for an administrative fee which is used to cover the expenses pertaining to maintaining the NTM field office.)
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How is the NTMC office financed?
NTMC does not deduct a percentage from designated contributions to cover the expenses of the NTMC’s office in Durham, Ontario. The operations are financed by contributions given for that specific purpose (for “NTMC’s General Fund”), and by undesignated contributions.
Fees paid by students in the missionary training course help to offset the cost of running the program and maintaining the property, but do not cover the costs completely.
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How are NTMC home staff financed?
NTMC does not deduct a percentage from designated contributions to pay salaries to home personnel. All NTMC personnel, whether serving overseas or in Canada, are full-time missionaries and are supported in the same way – by churches and individuals.
NTMC has a “Needy Personnel Fund” to which donors can contribute, and from which funds can be transferred to the ministry accounts of home staff who are facing unusual financial pressures.
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How are corporate overseas operations financed?
The general expenses and overhead of each field and of cooperative field ventures (such as NTM schools for the children of missionaries) and field head headquarters are borne by the missionaries on that field.
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How long does it take for the missionary to receive my contribution?
NTMC processes contributions throughout the month. They are held until the month-end processing, at which time the funds are paid to the missionary as earnings. Any applicable source deductions (i.e. income tax, CPP, EI etc.) are withheld and, during the first few business days of the following month, the remainder is forwarded to the missionary via the NTM office in the field of service. This is accomplished through safe and efficient international banking routes.
Also during our month-end procedures, funds from Canadian donors designated for American missionaries are forwarded to the NTM office in Florida. These funds are then processed through their books and then sent on to the fields in a similar fashion as here.
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How do missionaries know who their donors are?
Each missionary receives a monthly statement which shows all activity within their account for the given month. Names and addresses of each donor are provided, unless a gift was given with the expressed desire to remain anonymous.
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How can I send a Christmas gift to a missionary?
Simply send a cheque to our office, made payable to NTMC, and include a note stating that “this cheque is a Christmas gift for [your missionary] and I acknowledge that I will not be receipted for this gift”.
If you would like to have your gift in the hand of your missionary before Christmas, it must arrive at NTMC by the afternoon of the second-to-last business day of November. Christmas gifts to American missionaries must arrive at NTMC before the end of October. Click here for information regarding how funds are processed to missionaries.
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To whom is NTMC financially accountable?
NTMC is audited annually by an independent certified accountant. The auditor ensures that NTMC adheres to the standards and regulations for charitable organizations, as established by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
Copies of the auditor’s report are available upon request.
Please call the NTMC office at (519) 369-2622 or send us an e-mail .
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What is NTMC’s Charitable Registration Number?
Our Charitable Registration Number (sometimes referred to as a Business Number) is 10777 2139 RR0001.
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WAYS TO GIVE
