Maaser from Gifts

Question: Does one need to take maaser from gifts?

Answer: Tosafos (Taanis 9a) quotes the Sifri (Devarim 14:22), which states that the mitzva of maaser, tithing one’s crops, applies equally to other forms of income. Although this statement is not found in our editions of the Sifri, R’ Baruch Epstein (Torah Temima, Devarim 14:22) explains that this is one of many examples of statements from the Sifri that the rishonim saw but are now lost to us.

The Shulchan Aruch (YD 249:1) extends this principle, instructing that one should give between ten and twenty percent of one’s earnings to help the poor. The Taz (YD 331:32) elaborates that this obligation applies equally to wedding gifts, even those received from one’s own parents (see Rabbeinu Yona, Sefer Hayira 213).

While this applies to money gifts, R’ Shmuel Wosner (Shevet Halevi 5:133:7) writes that if one inherited property or if one’s parents contributed towards buying them a flat, one would not need to give maaser on these gifts.

R’ Moshe Feinstein (Igros Moshe YD 2:112) and R’ Moshe Sternbuch (Teshuvos Vehanhagos 3:282) discuss a stipulation that can be made when giving a gift. They explain that one can specify that the gift should be used for a specific purpose, thereby exempting it from maaser. For example, parents supporting their children can stipulate that the money they provide should not be subject to maaser.

In conclusion, one should give maaser from any monetary gifts received, as well as from earnings, unless the gift was explicitly given for a specific purpose that exempts it from maaser.