Guide to Year-End Giving
Thank you for choosing to support Rice students and faculty this holiday season!
Our staff is here to assist you with your year-end giving, but certain assets take longer to contribute. To ensure contributions are received by year-end to qualify for 2025 tax deductions, please follow the guidelines below to meet your charitable giving goals.
USPS Update: The U.S. Postal Service is updating how postmarks work starting December 24, 2025. Under the new policy, a postmark will reflect the date your mail is first processed by USPS machinery, which can be later than the day you dropped it off at a post office or blue collection box, especially during peak periods. This change means that dropping your gift in a mailbox could result in a postmark date after the intended mailing date. For gifts that must be postmarked by a specific date (such as year-end giving), donors should plan to take their mail to a retail counter and request a hand-stamped postmark or use services that provide an official date of mailing to ensure their gift is recorded as mailed on the day they deliver it to USPS.
Winter Recess Closure: Please be advised that Development and Alumni Relations offices will be closed starting Wednesday, December 24, to Friday, January 2, for winter recess. Normal business hours will resume Monday, January 5.
Happy holidays, and thank you for your support of Rice University.
2025 Year-End Giving Deadlines
|
Contribution Type |
Donor Deadline |
Contribution Guideline |
|---|---|---|
|
Marketable Securities |
Wednesday, |
Please check with your brokerage firm to ensure transfer to Rice is initiated by 12/31/2025. It is the responsibility of the donor to ensure gifts are received by Rice by 12/31/2025. Please see https://giving.rice.edu/gift-securities for additional information. |
|
Wire Transfers |
Wednesday, |
Please check with your financial institution to ensure wire/ACH transfers are successfully deposited into Rice’s account by 11:59 p.m. (CST) on 12/31/2025. Please contact Melanie Boyd at mboyd@rice.edu for the letter of instruction that includes the bank account information. |
|
Credit Cards (Mail) |
Wednesday, |
On 12/31/2025 the Development Office will process credit card gifts received via US mail. Credit card gifts received in the mail after noon on 12/31/2025 will be processed in January 2026 business and will not be deductible for calendar year 2025. |
|
Credit Cards (Online) |
Wednesday, |
Online gifts must be made by 11:59 p.m. (CST) on 12/31/2025. |
|
Checks |
Wednesday, |
Checks should be made out to Rice University. Please include a note telling us how you’d like your gift to be used. Checks should be sent to: |
|
IRA Qualified Charitable Distributions (IRA Charitable Rollover Gifts) |
Wednesday, |
Qualified Charitable Distributions from an IRA by individuals with check writing privileges must be received in the Rice office no later than noon on 12/31/2025 in order to be deposited before the end of the calendar year. In the case of wire transfers - see instructions above. It is the responsibility of the donor to check with their IRA plan administrators to determine the necessary time it will take to make a direct distribution to Rice. Please see https://giving.rice.edu/ira-charitable-rollover for more information. Please use the following address to insure check delivery:
|
Giving to Rice
Development & Alumni Relations
P.O. BOX 1892
Houston, Texas 77251-1892
Phone: 713-348-4991
Email: giving@rice.edu
