Will 2026 tax changes reduce your charitable deductions?
A new set of federal giving laws takes effect on January 1, 2026, and for many donors, it will reduce how much of your charitable giving is deductible. We want our BASIC Fund community to have clear information—and the opportunity to maximize your 2025 giving before the rules change.

What’s Changing in 2026

1. A new “universal charitable deduction” is capped at $1,000:
   ($2,000 for married couples)—available only to those who take the standard deduction. (OBBBA Sec. 70424)

2. Itemizers face a new hurdle:
   Your charitable gifts will be deductible only after they exceed 0.5% of your AGI. (OBBBA Sec. 70425)

3. High-income donors will see a cap on itemized benefits:
   Taxpayers in the top 37% bracket will face newly limited deductions. (OBBBA Sec. 70111)

4. Standard deductions are rising in 2025—making itemizing even less likely:
   For the 2025 tax year, the standard deduction increases to:

• $15,750 for single filers and married filing separately,
• $31,500 for married filing jointly, and
• $23,625 for heads of household.

This means even fewer taxpayers will itemize in 2026, and even fewer charitable gifts will qualify for full deductibility under the new rules.

What This Means for You

More than 90% of Americans don’t itemize, meaning that for most donors, 2025 may be the last year that your full charitable contributions deliver the greatest tax benefit.

If you plan to:

• give more than $1,000, or
• contribute through a DAF, or
• make a multi-year pledge,

you may want to increase or accelerate your gifts before December 31, 2025, to take advantage of current deduction rules.

We’re here to help.

If you’d like to discuss the implications for your giving—or explore high-impact opportunities to support more BASIC Fund students in 2025—please reach out anytime: development@basicfund.org.