If you're retired and writing checks to charity, there's a good chance you're leaving money on the table.
A qualified charitable distribution, or QCD, lets you send money straight from an IRA to a nonprofit.
Done right, that transfer never shows up as taxable income.
For 2025, you can move up to $108,000 per person this way, up from $105,000 in 2024.
Couples with separate IRAs can each use the full limit.
You must be at least 70½ years old on the day the gift goes out.
You don't need to be taking required minimum distributions yet — those don't kick in until age 73 for most people now.
Because a normal withdrawal from a traditional IRA is taxed as ordinary income.
Write a $10,000 check to your church from your checking account, and you may get a deduction — if you itemize.
Take $10,000 out of your IRA and donate it, and the full amount lands on your tax return as income.
The money moves from your IRA custodian directly to the charity.
If you take the standard deduction, which most retirees now do, this is the rare break that still works for you.
There's a second benefit that surprises people.
Even though the QCD isn't included in your income, it still counts toward your required minimum distribution.
If you're 73 or older and staring down an RMD you don't need, a QCD can satisfy all or part of it while keeping your adjusted gross income lower.
That can matter if you're on Medicare and trying to avoid higher Part B and Part D premiums tied to income thresholds.
The check must go directly from the IRA to the charity.
If it lands in your checking account first, it's a taxable withdrawal, and the deduction rules change.
Ask your custodian for the right form — most major brokers have a specific QCD process.
You can't send a QCD to a private foundation, a donor-advised fund, or a supporting organization.
Gifts to a donor-advised fund don't count, even though that's a popular giving tool.
If you use a QCD, don't also claim a charitable deduction for the same dollars.
And keep the receipt from the charity — the IRS wants proof the gift was made.
For 2025, the limit is indexed, and one special rule lets you make a one-time election to fund a charitable gift annuity or remainder trust with up to $54,000.
That option gets less attention but can be useful if you want income back from the gift.
The takeaway: if you're 70½ or older, give from your IRA before you give from your bank account.
It's one of the few moves that lowers your tax bill without requiring you to itemize or jump through complicated hoops.
Talk to your custodian and your tax preparer before year-end, because the paperwork has to be right.
For retirees who give regularly, this isn't a loophole.
Final Thoughts
It's just the correct order of operations.