Charitable Giving in Your Estate Plan: Bequests, Trusts, and Tax-Smart Gifts

When people want to leave a legacy, honor a loved one, or support a cause, they often give to charities that share their values. Charitable giving can be built into an estate plan the same way, and the method you choose changes both the impact and the tax result.

This page compares the main options. Tax rules here changed in 2026, so treat it as a starting point for a conversation with your attorney and your tax advisor.

Benefits of Charitable Giving

• Leaving a legacy and supporting causes you care about.
• Possible income tax deductions for lifetime gifts, subject to the limits described below.
• An estate tax charitable deduction for gifts at death, which matters most for estates above the federal exemption.
• Avoiding capital gains tax on appreciated assets given directly to charity.

Not every gift produces a tax benefit for every donor. Whether you itemize, your income, and the type of asset all affect the result.

Choose the Charity and the Asset

To receive a federal income tax deduction, the gift must go to a qualified organization, such as a public charity, a religious organization, or certain government entities. The IRS maintains a search tool for checking an organization’s status.¹

You can give cash, publicly traded securities, real estate, vehicles, privately held interests, or other property. Gifts of non-cash property often have appraisal and substantiation requirements, so plan them with your advisor. The difference between a will and a trust also matters here, because it determines where a charitable gift is written into your plan.

What Changed for Charitable Deductions in 2026

Beginning in 2026, taxpayers who take the standard deduction can deduct up to $1,000 of cash gifts to charity, or $2,000 for joint filers. Itemizers face a new floor, so only charitable gifts above 0.5% of adjusted gross income are deductible.² For donors in the top bracket, the tax benefit of the deduction is capped at 35%.

For many families, that makes timing more important. Bunching several years of giving into one year, often through a donor-advised fund, can help clear the new floor.

Charitable Giving Strategies

A Bequest in Your Will or Trust

The simplest option is to leave a specific asset, a dollar amount, or a percentage of your estate to a charity in your will or trust. You can also direct how the charity should use the gift, though restricted gifts should be discussed with the charity first.

Charitable Remainder Trust

A charitable remainder trust pays an income stream to you, or to people you name, for life or a term of years. When that period ends, the remainder goes to charity, and you may receive a partial income tax deduction when the trust is funded.

Charitable Lead Trust

A charitable lead trust works the opposite way. The charity receives payments for a set term, and when the term ends, the remaining assets pass to your family or other beneficiaries. That structure can reduce gift or estate tax on the transfer.

The right structure depends on whether you need income now, want to benefit family later, or simply want to give efficiently. Johnson Law Group offers a no-pressure consultation to compare the options with you and your advisor, so schedule a consultation before you sign a new plan.

Donating Appreciated Assets

Giving appreciated stock or property directly to charity, instead of selling it first, generally avoids the capital gains tax you would owe on a sale. If you held the asset long enough and itemize, you may deduct its fair market value, subject to percentage-of-income limits.

Qualified Charitable Distributions From an IRA

If you are 70½ or older, you can transfer up to $111,000 in 2026 directly from an IRA to a qualifying charity as a qualified charitable distribution. The transfer is not included in your taxable income, it counts toward any required minimum distribution, and donor-advised funds are not eligible recipients.³

Required minimum distributions now begin at age 73 for most people, rising to 75 in 2033, rather than the age 72 rule that applied before 2023.⁴ A qualified charitable distribution can begin before RMDs do.

Naming a Charity as Beneficiary

You can name a charity as the beneficiary of a retirement account, life insurance policy, or other account. Leaving a pre-tax retirement account to charity is often efficient, because the charity does not pay income tax on it, while a family member would.

That gift does not create an income tax deduction for you. Its benefit comes from the estate tax charitable deduction and from leaving other, more tax-favored assets to family.

Donor-Advised Funds

A donor-advised fund lets you make an irrevocable contribution, take the deduction in that year, and recommend grants to charities over time. The fund’s investments grow without tax, and many families use one to bunch gifts or to involve children in philanthropy.

Bringing It Together

Charitable gifts are most effective when they are coordinated with the rest of the plan, including who receives the family home and which accounts go to which beneficiaries. Passing on the family home shows how one major asset fits into that picture.

Talk With an Estate Planning Lawyer

If you have philanthropic goals, raise them when you build or update your estate plan so the gifts and the rest of the plan fit together. Johnson Law Group is here to help.

The attorneys at Johnson Law Group help clients build charitable gifts into their plans and will give you a clear read on the options worth discussing. Schedule a free consultation through our Colorado offices, and we will serve as your North Star from here.

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