#GivingFeelsGood: Tips for Holiday Giving
Holiday giving feels good! With so many ways to give this holiday season, we at the Nepal Youth Foundation (NYF) are excited to share some of our best tips and tricks to make the most out of your giving. We’ve included shareable graphics and links to more information with each holiday giving tip — so that when you’re ready to donate, giving feels good for you too.
1. The CARES Act
The CARES Act, passed earlier this year in response to COVID-19, allows individual taxpayers to deduct $300 of charitable giving from their taxes without itemizing. This includes donations made by cash, check, credit card or debit card, but does not include securities, household items, or other property. Read more from the IRS here.
2. Gifts of Stock
Donating long-term and appreciated assets — like gifts of stock, bonds, or mutual funds — is perhaps the most effective way to increase your gift and tax deduction. This is because when you donate these appreciated assets, you’ll receive a tax deduction for the full fair market value of the gift, while avoiding any capital gains taxes. We’ve seen donors increase their tax deduction up to 20%!
3. Workplace Matching Gifts
Many workplaces have corporate giving programs through which they will “match” the charitable contributions made by their employees. Through these programs, you can easily double or triple the impact of your support.
78% of match-eligible donors are unaware that their company offers a matching gift program. If this sounds like you, we recommend asking your employer — most times, all you have to do is submit a request after you’ve made your gift. Check out this list of the Top 20 Matching Gift Companies!
4. IRA Qualified Charitable Distributions
If you are over the age of 70.5, you can make a tax-free charitable gift of up to $100,000 per year from your individual retirement account (IRA) —without paying income tax on the transaction!
The CARES Act also relaxed the income-based deduction limit on charitable gifts. Previously, the deduction was limited to 60% of AGI (adjustable gross income). This year, however, the deduction limit is 100% of AGI, which may be particularly beneficial if use your IRA to make larger charitable donations.
5. Year-End Gift
And lastly, one of the most important tips of this holiday season: To qualify for 2020 tax deductions, gifts have to be made on or before December 31, 2020. Check gifts can arrive after the 31st and still be counted for 2020 deductions as long as they are dated on or before Dec. 31st.
All of us at NYF wish you a happy holidays and joyful giving!
If you have any questions about any of these, we’ll be happy to help you. Please e-mail info@nepalyouthfoundation.org or call us at 415-331-8585.