Charitable Giving

A donor-advised fund (DAF) is a private fund administered by a third party and created for the purpose of managing charitable donations on behalf of an organization, family, or individual. They are a simple, flexible, and efficient way to manage your charitable giving.

Donor-advised funds have become increasingly popular, primarily because they offer the donor greater ease of administration, while still allowing him or her to maintain significant control over the placement and distribution of charitable gifts. In addition, companies can offer this service to clients with fewer transaction costs than if the funds were handled privately. A DAF allows you to deposit money into an account now, receive the tax benefit and then make the donation at a later date. You can fund a DAF with appreciated asses such as stocks with a low basis.

Donor-advised funds democratize philanthropy by aggregating multiple donors and processing high numbers of charitable transactions. This process lowers financial barriers to entry and makes it possible for individuals with as little as $5,000 to participate in the giving process.

Furthermore, donor-advised funds offer abundant tax advantages. Unlike private foundations, donor-advised fund holders enjoy a federal income tax deduction of up to 50% of adjusted gross income for cash contributions, and up to 30% of adjusted gross income for the appreciated securities they donate.

When donors transfer assets such as limited partnership interests to donor-advised funds, they can avoid capital gains taxes and receive immediate fair-market-value tax deductions. According to the National Philanthropic Trust, donor-advised funds have become an increasingly efficient method for donating to causes.

A charitable remainder trust is a tax-exempt irrevocable trust designed to reduce the taxable income of individuals by first dispersing income to the beneficiaries of the trust for a specified period of time and then donating the remainder of the trust to the designated charity. This is a “split-interest” giving vehicle that allows a trustor to make contributions, be eligible for a partial tax deduction, and donate remaining assets.

A central idea of a charitable remainder trust is to reduce taxes. This is done by first donating assets into the trust and then having it pay the beneficiary for a stated period of time. Once this time-frame expires, the remainder of the estate is transferred to the charities deemed as beneficiaries.

Charitable remainder trusts are irrevocable. This means that they cannot be modified or terminated without the beneficiary's permission. The grantor or trustor, having transferred assets into the trust, effectively removes all of her rights of ownership to the assets and the trust upon creation of its irrevocable status. In contrast, a revocable trust allows the grantor modifications.

This charitable giving strategy also enables people to pursue philanthropic goals while still generating income. In addition to tax management, charitable remainder trusts can offer benefits for retirement and estate planning.

Money from an individual retirement account can be donated to charity. What’s more, if you've reached the age where you need to make required minimum distributions (RMDs) from your traditional IRAs, you can avoid paying taxes on them by donating that money to charity.

Normally, a distribution from a traditional IRA incurs taxes since the account holder didn’t pay taxes on the money when they put it into the IRA. But account holders 70-1/2 or older who make a contribution directly from a traditional IRA to a qualified charity can donate up to $100,000 without it being considered a taxable distribution. The deduction effectively lowers the donor's adjusted gross income (AGI).

To avoid paying taxes on the donation, the donor must follow the IRS rules for qualified charitable distributions (QCDs)—aka, charitable IRA rollovers. Most churches, nonprofit charities, educational organizations, nonprofit hospitals, and medical research organizations are qualified 501(c)3 organizations. The charity will also not pay taxes on the donation.

This tax break does mean that the donor cannot also claim the donation as a deduction on Schedule A of their tax return. Other donations to charity that don't use IRA funds, however, can still be claimed as an itemized deduction. Since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act increased the base standard deduction, for 2019, to $12,200 for individuals, $18,350 for heads of household, and $24,400 for married couples filing jointly, many fewer taxpayers will itemize on Schedule A, making the upfront deduction potentially even more important.

For 2023, the base standard deduction is $13,850 for individuals or married individuals filing separately, $20,800for heads of household, and $27,700 for married couples filing jointly. Taxpayers whose annual income affects their Medicare premiums might also find that this provision helps control the premium cost.