QCD

[Franeteller]

I will be turning 70 1/2 next year in November.  Can I do a QCD (from my traditional IRA)  anytime during next year or do I need to wait until I am exactly 70 1/2?  

[leeloo]

You need to actually be age 70 1/2.

If you are over age 70½ and have an amount transferred directly from an IRA to charity, the otherwise taxable amount (up to $100,000) is excluded from your taxable income as a Qualified Charitable Distribution.

The Form 1099-R from the financial institution will report a regular distribution.  Nothing on this form will indicate that the distribution was transferred to charity.  When entering this Form 1099-R into TurboTax, in the follow-up questions you'll need to enter the amount that was transferred to charity. TurboTax will exclude this amount from the amount reported on Form 1040 line 15b or Form 1040A line 11b and will include the notation "QCD" next to the line.