--- title: Charitable Estate Planning Options description: Explore charitable estate planning options, from immediate gifts to long-term strategies, and learn how to maximize your impact while navigating tax benefits. image: https://blog.mansourgavin.com/hubfs/estate%20planning%208.jpeg --- [![MansourGavinLPA](https://blog.mansourgavin.com/hs-fs/hubfs/MansourGavinLPA%20-Jan2018/Images/mg-logo.png?width=325&height=33&name=mg-logo.png "MansourGavinLPA")](http://mansourgavin.com/) - [ABOUT US](http://mansourgavin.com/about-us/) - [PROFESSIONALS](http://mansourgavin.com/professionals/) - [PRACTICE AREAS](http://mansourgavin.com/practice-areas/) - [BLOG](https://blog.mansourgavin.com) - [NEWS & EVENTS](http://mansourgavin.com/news-and-events/) - [CONTACT US](http://mansourgavin.com/contact-us/) - [ABOUT US](http://mansourgavin.com/about-us/) - [PROFESSIONALS](http://mansourgavin.com/professionals/) - [PRACTICE AREAS](http://mansourgavin.com/practice-areas/) - [BLOG](https://blog.mansourgavin.com) - [NEWS & EVENTS](http://mansourgavin.com/news-and-events/) - [CONTACT US](http://mansourgavin.com/contact-us/) # Blog [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.mansourgavin.com%2Fcharitable-estate-planning-options%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on LinkedIn](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/linkedin-24x24.png)](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.mansourgavin.com%2Fcharitable-estate-planning-options%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dlinkedin) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.mansourgavin.com%2Fcharitable-estate-planning-options%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.mansourgavin.com%2Fcharitable-estate-planning-options%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Charitable%20Estate%20Planning%20Options) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fblog.mansourgavin.com%2Fcharitable-estate-planning-options%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fblog.mansourgavin.com%2Fcharitable-estate-planning-options%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) # Charitable Estate Planning Options [Estate Planning](https://blog.mansourgavin.com/tag/estate-planning) October 01, 2026 | 12: 13 PM By [Daniel McGuire](https://mansourgavin.com/people/daniel-j-mcguire/) In our last **[installment](https://blog.mansourgavin.com/estate-planning-for-seniors)**, we explored estate planning for seniors. This article takes a bit of a detour to examine charitable giving, a popular question as we approach the end of the year and we review options for immediate gifts as well as strategies for long-term gift planning. **Immediate Giving:** The simplest charitable gift is the one with which we are most familiar: writing a check or making an online gift directly to the organization. With the changes to the tax code nearly a decade ago, simple charitable gifts became much less about tax savings and much more about the donor’s actual intent to benefit the organization. Why? The standard deduction increased dramatically, so fewer people were able to itemize their deductions, and that itemized deduction was typically at least part of the donor’s motivation. Without the additional benefit of a tax deduction, many small gifts were no longer as attractive from a tax-planning perspective. Larger gifts that would raise a taxpayer’s other itemized deductions above the standard deduction certainly remained an option, but the pool of taxpayers for whom that was a reasonable option became much smaller. One common way to make the most of charitable gifts is through a Qualified Charitable Distribution (“QCD”) from one’s IRA. There are a few restrictions to qualify for the deduction. First, the gift must come from an IRA; a 401(k) is not eligible. Second, the donor must be at least 70½ years old. Gifts cannot be made to a Donor Advised Fund or private foundation. The benefit of making a QCD is that the distribution does not go to the taxpayer, the account’s owner, so it is not treated as taxable income. The gift simply must go directly from the account custodian to the charity. The QCD DOES count toward the taxpayer’s annual required minimum distribution. Additionally, each taxpayer can make QCDs up to $110,000 for the year. For example, a taxpayer with a required minimum distribution of $100,000 for the year could give the entire $100,000 through QCDs and eliminate the need to take that amount as a taxable distribution from the IRA. This could be beneficial for a taxpayer who would otherwise get bumped into a higher marginal tax bracket by taking the distribution directly. **Long-term gift planning:** In long-term charitable gift planning, the simplest technique is a specific bequest, either in one’s Will or Trust. The gift can be a dollar amount or percentage of the donor’s property, and restrictions can be put upon its use. For example, many charitable gifts are made for specific purposes, such as establishing a scholarship or supporting a particular area of study. The point being that if a donor intends the gift to be unrestricted, it is a good idea to be clear in the Will or Trust that this is the intent. Many donors do not want their gift to be used for a charity’s ongoing operations because the funds may be consumed in a short period of time with no lasting benefit. That is not to say that an unrestricted gift is a bad idea, it simply needs to be a conscious decision. Charitable trust planning can also include two “split interest” types of trusts: the “lead” trust and the “remainder” trust. With a “lead” trust, the charity receives the income (or annuity) stream for a term of years, and after the term expires, the trust principal is distributed to the beneficiaries identified in the trust document. With a “remainder” trust, the opposite occurs: an individual receives the income (or annuity) stream for a term of years or lifetime, and after the term expires (or the individual dies), the trust principal is distributed to the charity identified in the trust document. The use of a Donor Advised Fund (referred to as a “DAF”) has been a growing area of charitable giving. While establishing a private foundation has many requirements that essentially make it an option primarily for the extremely wealthy, a DAF is an option for a much broader range of donors. DAF’s can generally be funded with as little as $10,000 and a DAF is not required to make annual distributions. This allows a taxpayer to make annual contributions to the fund so it can grow and eventually make meaningful distributions. The annual costs of a DAF are typically restricted to the investment management fee, plus perhaps an administrative fee which would usually be rolled into one fee. An advantage of using a DAF is that the donor can make the contribution presently, when the donor needs the deduction, has the cash flow, or receives a large bonus, but does not need or necessarily want to make the distributions immediately. Instead, the donor may prefer to let the fund grow until retirement, when there may be more time to research and select charitable recipients. There are restrictions on the use of a DAF to avoid self-dealing. A donor cannot fund a DAF and then, for example, have the DAF “buy” the donor a table at an event or direct that a scholarship be given to a specific recipient. As year-end approaches, it is always a good idea to revisit one’s plans to support charitable organizations. Whether the solution is an ongoing approach of annual small gifts, larger gifts intended to provide a tax advantage, or long-term planning for how one might benefit a charity of choice, it is helpful to understand the available options, consider the benefits or restrictions of each, and then implement the plan. Waiting until the last week of the year or forgetting to do anything until the year has expired can result in making a hasty decision and failing to select the option that best aligns with the donor’s goals. Achieving one’s charitable intent requires thoughtful, careful planning with trusted financial advisors and estate planning professionals. If you would like to schedule a consultation to discuss your estate planning needs, Mansour Gavin’s **[Estate Planning team](https://mansourgavin.com/practice-area/estate-planning-and-probate/)** is here to help.   - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) ### Subscribe to Email Updates ### Related Articles #### [Estate Planning for Seniors](https://blog.mansourgavin.com/estate-planning-for-seniors) [Estate Planning](https://blog.mansourgavin.com/tag/estate-planning) July 02, 2026 | 11: 22 AM In our [last installment](https://blog.mansourgavin.com/estate-planning-for-the-established-family), we explored estate planning for established families. 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