Can You Make a QCD From an Inherited IRA Under 70 1/2?

A Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) allows individuals to donate funds directly from their Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) to a charity. An inherited IRA is an account a beneficiary receives after the original owner’s death. A common question is whether a beneficiary under age 70½ can direct a payment from an inherited IRA to a charity. This article addresses this question and the specific implications of such a transaction.

Beneficiary Age and QCD Eligibility

The ability to make a tax-free Qualified Charitable Distribution is governed by age. For a distribution to be considered a QCD, the individual directing the payment from an IRA to a charity must be at least 70½ years old at the time of the transfer. In the context of an inherited IRA, this age requirement applies to the beneficiary, not the deceased original owner. The annual limit for QCDs is $108,000 per person for 2025.

If a beneficiary is younger than 70½, they are not eligible to make a QCD. The age of the deceased owner has no bearing on this rule; even if the original owner was over 70½, a beneficiary under this age cannot make the same type of tax-free distribution. While a younger beneficiary can still direct funds from an inherited IRA to a charity, the transaction is not classified as a QCD by the IRS and will have different tax consequences.

Tax Treatment for Distributions to Charity

When a beneficiary under age 70½ directs a payment from an inherited IRA to a charity, the transaction is treated as a taxable distribution. The amount is included in the beneficiary’s gross income for the year and is subject to ordinary income tax rates. This is a significant difference from a true QCD, which is excluded from income.

After including the distribution in income, the beneficiary may be able to offset the tax by claiming a charitable deduction. This requires the beneficiary to itemize deductions on Schedule A of their Form 1040. The ability to take this deduction depends on whether the taxpayer’s total itemized deductions exceed the standard deduction for their filing status.

This method has limitations. Cash contributions to public charities are deductible up to 60% of a taxpayer’s Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). If the distribution is a large amount, the beneficiary might not be able to deduct the full contribution in a single year and may have to carry over the excess deduction for up to five years.

Information Needed for the Distribution

Before contacting the financial institution holding the inherited IRA, a beneficiary must gather specific details about the charity. The IRA custodian will require this information to issue the payment correctly. To prepare, you should collect the following:

• The charity’s exact legal name
• The charity’s full mailing address
• The charity’s Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)
• Confirmation that the organization is a qualified public charity

The IRS provides an online tool, the Tax Exempt Organization Search, to verify a charity’s status and eligibility to receive tax-deductible contributions.

The Process of Directing the Payment

After collecting the charity’s information, the beneficiary must contact the IRA custodian to initiate the distribution. This is done by calling the custodian or filling out a distribution request form, which may be available online or by mail. The beneficiary must state their intention to send a distribution directly from the inherited IRA to the charity.

The most common method is for the custodian to issue a check made payable directly to the charity. The custodian can mail the check to the charity or send it to the beneficiary to forward. The beneficiary must not deposit the check into their own account.

Some custodians may offer an IRA checkbook, allowing the beneficiary to write a check directly to the charity. The funds must move from the IRA custodian to the charity without first being deposited into the beneficiary’s personal accounts.

Reporting the Distribution on Your Tax Return

After the distribution, the IRA custodian will issue Form 1099-R to the beneficiary. This form will report the total amount of the distribution, and the full amount will be shown as taxable in Box 2a because the custodian does not know the funds went to charity.

The beneficiary must report this total distribution as taxable income on their Form 1040. To counteract the tax liability, the beneficiary must then report the charitable contribution on Schedule A, Itemized Deductions. The amount given to the charity is entered on the line for gifts to charity.

This two-step process of reporting income and then taking a separate deduction is different from a true QCD, where the distribution is simply excluded from income from the start.