The Qualified Charitable Deduction ("QCD") remains unchanged from 2017. If you are 70.5 years old, you may direct the trustee of your IRA account (bank, brokerage, etc.) to transmit directly to a charitable organization an amount from your IRA. Total distributions - whether all to one charitable organization, or to many - cannot exceed $100,000. The transfer must be direct out of your IRA account to the charitable entity, and you cannot be an intermediary and temporarily received the funds. A QCD, if done prior to any other distribution (withdrawal) that you make from the IRA, can count against the sum that you, at age 70.5 and older, must withdraw a a Required Minimum Distribution ("RMD").
As is true for any cash basis taxpayer, the QCD executed in 2018 would count against the RMD. However, if you have already withdrawn funds from the IRA in 2018, those first funds withdrawn first count against the RMD, and any remaining necessary RMD balance may be satisfied by a QCD.
Note that any funds transmitted by means of a QCD can be accounted from within the charitable organization as charity, such as against a pledge you had made, but the QCD amount cannot be reported on your tax filing as a charitable donation; that would be double counting since you would never have reported the monies of the QCD as income.
It is always best to also receive an official receipt from the charitable organization.
If this posted response is useful to you, please click on the upraised hand in the lower left of this post. Thank you. Scruffy Curmudgeon--PFFM/ IAFF, retired FireFighter/Paramedic - Locals 718/30, Veteran USAR O3 AIS/ASA '65-'67
NOT INTUIT EMPLOYEE
USAR 64-67 AIS/ASA MOS 9301 - O3
- Just donating my time
**Say Thanks by clicking the thumb icon in the lower left corner -it means nothing but makes those than answer feel wanted.
