Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, which extends the IRA Charitable Rollover for 2012 and 2013. If you are age 70½ or older, you can once again distribute funds, tax-free, directly from your IRA to Wheaton College.
The advantages of the IRA Charitable Rollover include all of the following:
- You can contribute up to $100,000 per year, tax-free, directly from your IRA.
- The charitable distribution counts toward your annual minimum required distribution.
- The transfer is not reported as taxable income on your tax return, so you may save income taxes, even if you do not itemize deductions.
- If your state taxes retirement distributions but limits charitable deductions, an IRA charitable rollover may save you state income taxes as well.
- Your gift will provide significant support for the ministry of Wheaton College.
For 2012, you may retroactively take advantage of the IRA Charitable Rollover through the following provisions:
- If you authorized a distribution from your IRA directly to a qualified charity during 2012, you may elect to treat the distribution as an IRA charitable rollover.
- If you make a distribution directly from your IRA to a qualified charity during January 2013, you may elect to treat the distribution as a 2012 qualified charitable distribution.
- If you took a distribution from your IRA in December 2012, you may treat a cash gift (up to the amount of the distribution) made to a qualified charity after the IRA distribution and before February 1, 2013, as a direct charitable transfer from your IRA.
Please consult with your tax advisor before making a distribution to ensure that you receive your tax benefits.
If you would like to make a gift to Wheaton through your IRA, please contact Gift Planning Services at 1.800.525.9906 or gift.plan@wheaton.edu for assistance.