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Make us a beneficiary of your IRA or other “non-probate” assets

Plan your beneficiaries

Why beneficiary designations are so powerful

Assets not included in your will are called non-probate assets. Examples are 401(k)s, IRAs, life insurance policies, and other accounts. Designating the Plan USA as a beneficiary can have a big impact and may avoid unwanted taxes for your heirs.

Charitable benefits

Receive an estate tax charitable deduction
Reduce the burden of taxes on your family
Continue to use assets or property during your lifetime
Leave a lasting legacy to Plan USA

Common gifted assets for beneficiaries

  • IRA
  • 401(k)
  • Life insurance
  • Joint real estate
  • Joint bank accounts
  • Joint property ownership

Designate Plan USA as a beneficiary to one or more of your accounts.

We have partnered with FreeWill to offer this free online platform that will walk you through the process of setting up your beneficiaries. These gifts have a big impact and can often prevent unwanted taxation.


Supporters Like You Make All the Difference

“The impact we can make on a child’s life will, we believe, have an enormous ripple, like a pebble dropped into a pool, whereby their improved health and education will have a positive impact on every person they come into contact with throughout their life.”

— Carol Rees and John Foley, Plan USA Legacy Circle members

Roberta FitzGerald’s story

“I saw the impact I was making over the years.”

When Roberta FitzGerald stepped off the plane in the Philippines more than 30 years ago, she felt someone tug on her skirt. She looked down and heard a little boy saying, “Mommy, mommy.” Poverty in the country at that time was extreme and widespread.

“I saw that the need was so great,” Roberta remembers.

Over the course of many international trips, that moment stuck with her. And when a friend mentioned sponsoring a child for an organization called Plan, she was interested in learning more. For Christmas of 1986, she made the decision to become a child sponsor. Her first child lived in the Philippines.

Now, Roberta sponsors two children: Jhonny, 3, from Brazil, and Ngoc, 11, from Vietnam. She’s made a difference in many children’s lives over the years. She remembers another child in the Philippines whose father was a seasonal fisherman. The job wasn’t enough to keep the family afloat. So, the child’s mother got involved in a small cooperative store organized by Plan, and the family became self-sufficient year-round.

Another child, Lap, lived in a modest wooden house when Roberta started sponsoring. But, over time, Plan helped the community and the child’s family learn new skills and flourish. Roberta watched their home transform in photos, from wood to much more stable, safe cinder blocks. Best of all, Lap got a bookcase and a small desk so he could do his homework.

“I saw the impact I was making over the years,” Roberta says.

Because Roberta has endowed one of her child sponsorships, she will provide access to life-changing sponsorship programs for generations of children even after the end of her lifetime. An endowed sponsorship pays the annual sponsorship fees for one child in perpetuity, and as one child graduates from the program another one can be added to take his or her place. In this way Roberta’s impact will continue, child after child, for years to come.

Roberta says that with Plan, you can be confident your contribution is going exactly where you intend.

“You see the progress and the accomplishments, how these families and communities change for the better,” she says. “It gives you great satisfaction to be part of the process.”

Read more

Frequently Asked Questions

A non-probate asset is an account or other asset that won’t be governed by the decisions you make in a will. Instead, these accounts commonly have an assigned beneficiary that you choose. Types of non-probate assets include many retirement accounts, life insurance, some bank accounts and some assets (like a house or vehicle) that you jointly own with another person.

The most commonly gifted non-probate asset is an IRA or 401(k). This is because these accounts are always taxed (even for people below the estate tax threshold). Giving these accounts to charity keeps your heirs from having to pay unexpected taxes.

Yes! Even if you have a will in place you still need to designate beneficiaries for your non-probate assets.

Yes! Gifts of any size are deeply appreciated. Many people choose to leave a percentage of their estate, which scales up or down with your estate size.

No. You can usually make these easily and at no cost to you. 

Yes. You are always free to revise or update your estate plans.

We’re here to help you meet your goals!

Our team would be happy to speak with you in confidence about your giving goals, with no obligation.

Name: Angelica Scanu

Title :Associate Director, Planned Giving

Phone: 401-562-8400

Email: angelica.scanu@planusa.org

Already included us in your estate plan? Let us know

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More ways to make an impact

Gifts in a will or trust

Donations in your will or trust are (by far) the most popular type of planned gift. Learn more, or get help starting your will (for free!).

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Popular tax-smart gifts

Many people are increasingly choosing to give non-cash assets, so they can have a bigger impact at less cost to them.

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Gifts that pay you back

Give assets while providing yourself or others with income for a period of time or distributions at a later date.

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