Saving for college can seem overwhelming given the growing cost of college. Fortunately, it's not a task parents have to take on by themselves. Anyone in your child's life—friends, extended family members or grandparents—can open or contribute to an Advisor-Guided Plan. Giving the gift of education is a great way to celebrate a birthday, graduation or any other special occasion throughout a child's life.

Family members and friends can give the gift of education in two different ways:

• Open an account: Individuals looking to give a gift to a child can open the 529 account and name the child as a beneficiary. For grandparents with estate planning needs, opening an account offers the potential to reduce their taxable estate—without giving up control of their assets. Plus, New York state taxpayers who establish an account in the Advisor-Guided Plan may be eligible for additional state tax deductions.¹
• Contribute to an existing account: Family members and friends who do not want to set up their own account can contribute to an existing account with our online gifting tool—an easy, practical way to give the gift of a college education.

Invite family and friends to give the gift of college savings with Ugift®

Ugift® is an online program offered by the Plan that makes it easy for family members and friends to make gift contributions toward college savings for birthdays, graduations and other milestones. This innovative service allows you to connect with your loved ones and invite them to give one of the most important gifts your child can receive—help toward a college education.

How it works:

• Log in to your Advisor-Guided Plan account and click on the Ugift link, or, visit the Ugift homepage.
• Fill in the details of the celebration, your invitee list and their email addresses.
• With the click of a button, you can send an invitation and a specially coded gift coupon via email to your guests. You can also print gift coupons to hand out or mail to your guests.
• The invitation will inform your guests of the upcoming celebration — and suggest that they give the meaningful gift of college savings.
• When family and friends mail back the gift coupon with a check (minimum of $25), a code on the coupon links it to your account. Approximately five business days after the celebration date, the gift contribution will be invested directly into your account.
• If the email address was provided, we'll even email a thank you note to the contributor to acknowledge the gift.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ugift® 

¹ Contributions of up to $10,000 are deductible annually from New York State taxable income for married couples filing jointly; single taxpayers can deduct up to $5,000 annually.  New York State tax deductions may be subject to recapture in certain circumstances such as rollovers to another state's 529 plan, federal nonqualified withdrawals, withdrawals used to pay elementary or secondary school tuition, or qualified education loan repayments as described in the Disclosure Booklet and Tuition Savings Agreement.  State tax benefits for non-resident New York taxpayers may vary. Please consult your tax professional about your particular situation.