Q & A on the IRA Rollover

The Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) permitted individuals to roll over up to $100,000 from an individual retirement account (IRA) directly to a qualifying nonprofit without recognizing the assets transferred to the qualifying charity as income.  On January 2, 2013, President Obama signed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (H.R. 8) into law, extending the provision until December 31, 2013. The new law extends the charitable rollover and other than some modifications regarding timing for 2012 distributions, did not make substantive changes to the operations of the provision.

What is an IRA charitable rollover?
The law uses the term “qualified charitable distribution” to describe an IRA charitable rollover. A qualified charitable distribution is money that individuals who are 70½ or older may direct from their traditional IRA to eligible charitable organizations. The provision has a cap of $100,000 for charitable distributions from individual IRAs each year. Individuals may exclude the amount distributed directly to an eligible charity from their gross income.

What is the new expiration date of this provision?
This provision is still time-limited. It applies only to qualified charitable distributions made before January 1, 2014.

Can donors still take advantage of the IRA charitable rollover for 2012?
Although the most recent extension was enacted on January 2, 2013, it was retroactive, dating back to January 1, 2012. The extension allows individuals who received an IRA distribution in December 2012 to elect to count that distribution (or a portion thereof) as a 2012 IRA charitable rollover if the individual transfers the amount in cash before February 1, 2013, to an eligible nonprofit as described below. Additionally, the extension allows donors to make distributions directly to eligible charities before February 1, 2013, and elect to have such distributions treated as qualified charitable distributions in 2012. Recognizing that the extension of the IRA charitable rollover provision occurred in 2013, this change may be a particular benefit to donors who would like to take advantage of the rollover in both 2012 and 2013.

Does a donor also receive a charitable deduction when they roll over assets to a charity under this provision?
No. Under this provision, donors benefit by not having to recognize the amount contributed directly from their IRA to a qualifying charity. However, because donors exclude this contribution from their gross income, they cannot take a charitable contribution deduction for the contribution; to do so would result in a double benefit for donors and that is explicitly prohibited.

To which nonprofits may donors make qualified charitable distributions?
Most contributions to public charities—other than supporting organizations—are considered qualified charitable contributions. However, distributions from IRA accounts to Donor Advised Funds held by public charities are not considered qualified charitable distributions under this charitable rollover provision. Individuals can make qualified charitable distributions to a private operating foundation or to a private foundation that elects to meet the conduit rules in the year of the distribution. Neither private non-operating foundations nor split interest trusts are eligible for special treatment as qualified charitable distributions under the law.

Will an IRA distribution to a fund held by a Community Foundation qualify for this special treatment?
Yes, distributions to almost all types of funds typically held by community foundations—such as scholarship, field-of-interest, and designated funds—qualify. The exception to this general statement is that a distribution to a donor advised fund will not qualify for this special treatment.

What if donors want to contribute more than $100,000 to a qualified charity from an IRA?
The law limits the amount that donors are able to exclude from their income to $100,000. If donors wish to take funds from their IRA to contribute more than $100,000 to charity, they cannot exclude the
additional amount from their gross income. Rather, they must follow the general rules pertaining to percentage limitations and itemized contribution reductions.

Can donors contribute IRA assets to a Donor Advised Fund?
Yes. However, since such distributions do not count as qualified distributions from IRAs under these special rules, donors will have to first recognize those distributions as income. They then must calculate their charitable deduction according to the general rules pertaining to percentage limitations and item-ized contribution reductions discussed below.

Under what circumstances will this special treatment of an IRA charitable rollover most likely benefit donors?
Generally, this new provision benefits donors who itemize deductions and whose charitable contributions are reduced by the percentage of income limitation. Traditionally, when individuals receive a distribution from their IRA and make a corresponding charitable contribution, they must count the distribution as income and then receive a charitable deduction for any amounts they transferred to charity. For higher income taxpayers the charitable contribution deduction they receive may not totally offset the taxes they must pay for receiving the distribution from their IRA. In such cases, donors would potentially benefit more by using the charitable rollover provision when making a charitable donation.

Other donors who may benefit: individuals who do not usually itemize their deductions andindividuals in states where the operation of state income tax law would offer greater benefits as a result of a charitable rollover. Donors will need to work with their professional advisers to determine the effect of these rules on their specific tax situation. This provision will also likely benefit donors whose charitable contributions are reduced by the itemized deduction reduction.

How do individuals make a qualified charitable distribution?
Individuals must instruct their IRA trustee to make the contribution directly to an eligible charitable organization.

How will charitable distributions impact the minimum required distributions from a taxpayer’s IRA?
Shortly after individuals reach the age of 70½, they are generally required to receive distributions from their traditional IRA. For the purposes of minimum required distributions, the IRS treats distributions from an IRA the same, whether individuals use the distribution for personal purposes or direct the
distribution to a charity.

DISCLAIMER
This information is based on our continuing analysis of the relevant legislation and regulations. We make every effort to ensure accuracy of this document. The information is not a substitute for expert legal, tax, or other
professional advice, and we strongly encourage grantmakers and donors to work with counsel to determine the impact of this legislation on their particular situations. This information may not be relied upon for the purposes of avoiding any penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code.