FAQs about QCDs

by | Feb 10, 2022

The Old Man by Philipp Ramseier

How to donate part of your IRA required distribution to the Northern Center, tax-free

After you reach age 73, there are required minimum distributions (RMDs) from your Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). However, anyone over age 70½ can choose to give to charity directly from an IRA, without counting the distribution as taxable income. This is called a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD). 

Requirements for a QCD:

  • It must be transferred directly from your IRA to the charitable institution. Your financial  institution will have a form to fill out to request a QCD. (If you have the money sent to yourself, it will count as a taxable withdrawal instead of a QCD.)
  • It must come from your Traditional IRA or from an inherited IRA where the beneficiary is over the age of 70½.
  • The charitable institution must give you a receipt stating that no goods or services were received in exchange for the gift (the Northern Center will do this).
  • You can give up to $100,000 per year directly to a charity.

Benefits of a QCD:

  • The amount withdrawn as a QCD does not count as part of your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), so you aren’t taxed on it.
  • You get the tax benefit of charitable giving even if you don’t itemize your deductions.
  • You can count the amount of the QCD as part of your required minimum distribution, and you can split it between multiple charities.
  • Normally, charitable giving can only be deducted if it is less than 50% of your AGI. Giving directly from your IRA allows you to effectively reduce your AGI even if the gift amount would otherwise be greater than 50% of your AGI.

How to make a QCD:

  • Ask your IRA financial institution for their QCD form. You’ll fill that form out and give it back to them, and they’ll either send the funds directly to the Northern Center, or send you a check made out to the Northern Center that you can deliver to us. 
  • You’ll need this for the form: Our tax ID number is 23-7438038

Have your financial institution make the check out to:

Northern Alaska Environmental Center

830 College Rd.

Fairbanks, AK 99701-1535

If the financial institution prefers to wire funds: please direct them to contact our office manager at 907-452-5021 or email officemanager@northern.org.

Please let the Northern Center office know to expect the donation, so we can check and make sure it comes through.

THANK YOU!