Is IRA Charitable Giving Right for You?
By Josh Epps, Vice President of Advancement
Throughout my career, I’ve worked with many donors and families who use thoughtful giving strategies. One that keeps growing in popularity is giving directly from an IRA through a Qualified Charitable Distribution, or QCD.
How a QCD Works
Once you reach age 70½, you can transfer money directly from your traditional IRA to a qualifying charity. In 2026, you can give up to $111,000 per person. The limit goes up each year with inflation; in 2025 it was $108,000. Because the gift goes straight from your IRA to the charity, it isn’t counted as taxable income, and you don’t need to itemize deductions to benefit.
QCDs can be especially useful once you’re required to take minimum distributions (RMDs) from your IRA, which typically begins at age 73 or 75, depending on your birth year. A QCD can count toward all or part of your RMD, so you can give more to the causes you care about while possibly lowering your tax bill.
Recent tax changes make QCDs even more valuable. Starting in 2026, itemized charitable deductions only count for the portion of giving above 0.5% of your adjusted gross income. As an example, if your income is $100,000, you can only deduct charitable contributions that exceed $500. A QCD is excluded from your income instead of being claimed as an itemized deduction, therefore the 0.5% floor doesn’t apply. A few things to keep in mind: the transfer must go directly from your IRA custodian to the charity, and you can’t receive anything in return for the gift, such as event tickets. QCDs also can’t be used to establish or add to a donor advised fund. However, the Community Foundation offers several other fund types that can receive QCDs, depending on your interests.
Field of Interest Funds
A field of interest fund lets you focus your giving on a subject like education or health care, or on a specific geographic area. One couple we work with is passionate about the arts, so they direct QCDs from their IRAs to the Fund for Community Vibrancy. The Community Foundation uses that fund to make grants each year supporting our region’s arts and cultural organizations. The couple trusts our knowledge of local arts groups to make sure their dollars have the greatest impact.
Designated Funds
A designated fund is a great way to support specific nonprofits you care about. One of our donors used QCDs to establish a
designated fund for her favorite nonprofits, so they’ll receive support during her lifetime and beyond. Now she doesn’t have to remember to write annual checks, because her fund makes the grants for her.
Community Impact Fund
For donors who want to meet our region’s most urgent needs, an unrestricted gift to our Community Impact Fund is the most popular choice. These gifts strengthen the Foundation’s ability to make strategic grants each year to support the economic mobility of individuals and families in the region.
Let’s Talk
The Community Foundation has helped many individuals and families give through their IRAs in ways that match their philanthropic goals. If you’d like to learn more, please reach out to your Philanthropic Advisor.
This article is for general information only and isn’t tax or legal advice. Please consult your tax or financial advisor about your situation.