If this giving strategy sounds appealing to you, bear a few things in mind:
- To qualify, your donations must be directed from your IRA to the charity, and cannot be distributed to you first. Ask the account custodian to send the distribution directly to the charity.
- Your donations cannot go to donor-advised funds, supporting organizations or private non-operating foundations. Otherwise, the money can go to any organization to which you can make a gift that would qualify as a charitable deduction on your tax return.
For more information on charitable contributions please visit my estate planning website.
