Retirement account gifts

The assets you have accumulated in a tax-deferred retirement account such as an IRA, 401(k), 403(b), or SEP, can fund a tax-wise gift that will come to Virginia Tech after your lifetime – with minimum paperwork, maximum flexibility, and no impact on your retirement fund or other lifetime finances.

It’s easy to designate the Virginia Tech Foundation Inc. as a beneficiary of your IRA or other retirement fund. Simply sign a form supplied by the firm that administers your retirement account. This form, not your will or trust, governs your beneficiary designation. Should you decide to change your gift, you can sign a new form.

Since retirement accounts are subject to both income taxes and possible estate taxes, they are less valuable to heirs than to charities, which pay no income taxes or estate taxes.

Choosing these assets for your deferred charitable gift, and passing more tax-favored assets to heirs, can benefit both your heirs and Virginia Tech.

While no attorney is required when you make a beneficiary designation, you are encouraged to consult your attorney or other advisor to ensure your retirement account gift is consistent with your overall estate plan.

You can also make beneficiary designations using assets other than retirement plans.

Questions?

If you or your attorney have questions, or if you wish to use your retirement account beneficiary designation to establish an endowment or to support a particular area or initiative at Virginia Tech, please e-mail giftplanning@vt.edu, call 800/533-1144 or 540/231-2813, or contact a development officer for the area you wish to support.