Individual retirement accounts

Traditionally, assets held in an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) or in a qualified retirement plan such as a 401(k) account have been very appropriate for leaving to Medical Teams International upon death by means of a beneficiary designation.

This is because these assets are often fully taxable when received by surviving family members or other individuals, but not when received by Medical Teams International, which is a tax-exempt organization. By contrast, drawing upon such assets during your lifetime in order to make a gift to Medical Teams International can sometimes result in having to pay extra tax.

Now, however, if you are over age 70 ½, you can make a transfer from certain types of IRAs directly to Medical Teams International without any of the gift being included in your taxable income.

The IRS has extended this option through 2009. Various conditions must be met. However, you may find a direct transfer attractive if you:

• do not itemize your deductions,
• would not be able to deduct all of your charitable contributions because of deduction limitations,
• may lose some of your itemized deductions because of your income level, or
• are required to take distributions but do not need them for living expenses.

If you would like additional information, please contact us.

Mary Lee Alder
mlalder@medicalteams.org
(503) 624.1210