How can life insurance policies be used to make a gift to a nonprofit?

Summary:

This is one of several ways of making a planned gift.

An Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust using an existing policy or a newly
purchased policy may be used to accomplish this end.

Advice from a tax attorney or a personal tax advisor will probably lead to several other possibilities.

The field of planned giving has expanded a lot in recent years. For a general introduction, see the Nonprofit FAQ section on the topic at http://www.idealist.org/en/faqcat/115-244 or the National Committee on Planned Giving at http://www.ncpg.org