Islamic Relief USA Changes Its Name to IDEA Following Split From International Affiliate
Sep 27, 2026
Islamic Relief USA has changed its name to Islamic Development & Empowerment in America (IDEA) following a significant change in its longstanding relationship with UK-based Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) and the international Islamic Relief federation.
The new name was publicly launched on September 15, 2026, just days after Islamic Relief Worldwide announced that the federation’s governing body had voted to remove Islamic Relief USA from the international network.
For donors, an important distinction is that IDEA is not a newly created charity. It is the same U.S. 501(c)(3) organization that previously operated as Islamic Relief USA, with the same federal tax identification number, EIN 95-4453134. According to IDEA, its leadership and teams also remain unchanged.
What has changed significantly is the U.S. charity’s relationship with Islamic Relief Worldwide and the international network through which much of its overseas charitable activity historically was conducted.
Islamic Relief USA Historically Sent Significant Funds to Islamic Relief Worldwide
The distinction is particularly relevant to donors because Islamic Relief USA historically functioned in significant part as a U.S. fundraising arm for international humanitarian programs administered through Islamic Relief Worldwide.
According to Islamic Relief USA’s 2024 audited financial statements, the majority of its programs were administered through grants to Islamic Relief Worldwide, which is based in the United Kingdom.
This relationship affected CharityWatch’s ability to provide Islamic Relief USA with a complete financial-efficiency rating.
CharityWatch was able to analyze the U.S. organization’s fundraising efficiency and calculated that Islamic Relief USA spent $19 to raise each $100 in public support for the year ended December 31, 2024.
CharityWatch could not, however, calculate a meaningful Program Percentage for the U.S. charity because the majority of its cash program budget consisted of grants to Islamic Relief Worldwide. The two organizations published separate financial statements under different accounting standards, preventing CharityWatch from analyzing their combined financial activities as a single organization and determining the ultimate program, fundraising, and administrative expenses associated with the funds raised in the United States.
As a result, CharityWatch classified Islamic Relief USA as Not Ratable rather than assigning it a letter grade.
Congressional Scrutiny Focused on Islamic Relief Worldwide Ties
The relationship between the U.S. and international organizations came under heightened scrutiny in September 2024, when U.S. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith referred Islamic Relief USA to the IRS for investigation and possible revocation of its tax-exempt status (page 30).
The referral focused on Islamic Relief USA’s financial and organizational relationship with Islamic Relief Worldwide. It cited allegations by the Israeli government that IRW had allegedly provided financial support to Hamas, as well as reports of previous U.S. government investigations involving IRW, alleged antisemitic statements made by some former IRW leaders, and decisions by several major financial institutions to end relationships with the international organization.
The referral also pointed to the substantial amount of money flowing from the U.S. charity to IRW. According to the Committee, Islamic Relief USA contributed £54.3 million to Islamic Relief Worldwide in 2021, accounting for approximately 44% of IRW’s income that year.
The allegations concerning terrorism were allegations about Islamic Relief Worldwide and its relationships, not a finding that Islamic Relief USA itself had financed terrorism. Islamic Relief USA has said that the Committee identified no independent wrongdoing by the U.S. organization and that the threat to its tax-exempt status resulted from its affiliation with IRW.
Islamic Relief Worldwide has disputed allegations that it has supported terrorism and says that it and other members of the Islamic Relief federation have been subjected to what it describes as a longstanding campaign of misinformation and disinformation intended to undermine their humanitarian work.
The congressional scrutiny continued. In October 2025, Chairman Smith again referred Islamic Relief USA to the IRS for possible revocation of its tax-exempt status.
Islamic Relief USA Sued Islamic Relief Worldwide
The dispute eventually moved into federal court.
On March 23, 2026, Islamic Relief USA filed a lawsuit against Islamic Relief Worldwide in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York as the organizations disputed their contractual relationship and efforts by the U.S. organization to separate from the international network.
Islamic Relief Worldwide moved to compel arbitration or dismiss the case.
On July 15, 2026, U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer stayed the litigation and directed the organizations to first pursue the dispute-resolution procedures contained in their Membership and License Agreements. The judge stated that Islamic Relief Worldwide’s motion to compel arbitration “strongly appears meritorious,” but did not decide the motion or make findings resolving the underlying factual disputes between the organizations.
The dispute therefore remained unresolved when the international federation took action in September.
Islamic Relief Federation Votes to Remove Its U.S. Member
On September 12, 2026, Islamic Relief Worldwide announced that the International General Assembly, the federation’s highest governing body, had voted unanimously to remove Islamic Relief USA from the Islamic Relief federation with immediate effect.
Islamic Relief Worldwide said the vote followed concerns among federation members about the U.S. organization’s actions and their effect on the international network. It also said Islamic Relief USA no longer had the right to operate using the Islamic Relief name or participate in the federation’s global humanitarian delivery system.
The former Islamic Relief USA disputes Islamic Relief Worldwide’s characterization of events.
The U.S. organization said it had already been taking steps to formally disassociate from Islamic Relief Worldwide and characterized the September vote as an effort by the international federation to terminate its membership while court-ordered dispute resolution was underway.
The two organizations also dispute responsibility for disruptions in their funding relationship and have made competing allegations concerning each other’s conduct.
CharityWatch does not take a position on these unresolved disputes.
Islamic Relief USA Becomes IDEA
Three days after the federation vote, on September 15, Islamic Relief USA publicly announced its new identity: IDEA, short for Islamic Development & Empowerment in America.
IDEA says the new name reflects both its American Muslim identity and an increased emphasis on sustainable development and long-term resilience in addition to emergency humanitarian relief.
The organization also says the name eliminates confusion between the independent U.S. charity and UK-based Islamic Relief Worldwide.
Despite the new branding, IDEA emphasizes that donors are still giving to the same U.S. legal entity. Its EIN remains 95-4453134, and the organization says existing recurring donations will continue without donors needing to take action.
What the Split Means for Donors
The change is more significant than a rebranding.
Historically, donors giving to Islamic Relief USA were supporting a U.S. charity that transferred substantial amounts of money to Islamic Relief Worldwide to administer international programs through the Islamic Relief network.
That relationship has now ended.
Islamic Relief Worldwide says the former U.S. member no longer has access to or an association with the federation’s international humanitarian delivery network. IDEA, meanwhile, says its relief and development programs are continuing and that it remains active both in the United States and internationally through its own programs and partnerships.
This distinction is important for donors who previously understood their contributions to Islamic Relief USA as supporting programs conducted through the international Islamic Relief network.
A donation to IDEA today is not a donation to Islamic Relief Worldwide or the Islamic Relief federation.
Likewise, Islamic Relief Worldwide has stated that it intends to develop a way for U.S. donors who want to continue supporting the international Islamic Relief network to do so.
CharityWatch Will Evaluate IDEA’s New Financial Structure
CharityWatch’s historical financial information for Islamic Relief USA continues to pertain to IDEA because it is the same U.S. legal organization.
However, the separation from Islamic Relief Worldwide could significantly change IDEA’s financial structure and the way it conducts and funds international programs.
CharityWatch’s prior Not Ratable designation reflected Islamic Relief USA’s historical structure, under which a significant portion of its program spending consisted of grants to Islamic Relief Worldwide.
Future financial reporting may look very different.
Once audited financial statements and IRS tax filings reflecting IDEA’s operations following the separation become available, CharityWatch will be able to evaluate how the organization is now conducting its international programs, where significant grant funding is being directed, and whether its new financial structure allows CharityWatch to calculate a meaningful Program Percentage and assign the organization a complete rating.
In the meantime, donors researching the organization should understand that IDEA is the same U.S. charity formerly known as Islamic Relief USA, but it is no longer affiliated with Islamic Relief Worldwide or the international Islamic Relief federation.
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