Accountency
  • Home
  • About
    • Book An Appointment
  • Accounting
    • Dashboard
    • Xero+Accountency
    • Xero Intro
    • AutoMagical Accounting
    • QuickBooks >
      • QuickBooks Updates
    • Store
  • Payroll
  • Taxes
    • Dashboard
    • Individuals
    • Businesses
    • Tax Stuff >
      • Individuals >
        • Income >
          • Debt Forgiveness
          • Foreign Income
          • Gambling Income
          • Unemployment
          • Other Income
        • Deductions & Credits >
          • Adoption
          • Charitable Contributions
          • Earned Income Tax Credit
          • Educational Expenses
          • Energy Tax Credits
          • Employee Business Expenses
          • Other Deductions and Credits
        • Affordable Care Act - Individuals
        • Children and Dependents
        • Death
        • Disabled Taxpayers
        • Educators
        • Health Care
        • Identify Theft
        • Marriage and Divorce
        • Military
        • Real Estate
        • Retirement Savings
        • Seniors
        • State Taxes
        • Record Keeping
        • Who Must File
        • Other Topics
      • Businesses >
        • Affordable Care Act - Businesses
        • Year-end Reporting Obligations >
          • 1099's
          • Health Insurance Premiums
          • Depreciation
          • Reimbursed Employee Business Expenses
          • Company Automobiles
        • Employment Tax Credits
        • Independent Contractors
        • Tax Credits and Deductions for Businesses
        • Other Business Topics
        • Required Business Posters
      • Amended Returns
      • IRS Notices and Problems
      • Tax Plan >
        • All About the Earned Income Tax Credit
        • 5 IRS Audit Red Flags
        • Retirement Plans for Sole Proprietors
        • Are You Claiming All of Your Tax-Deductable Business Expenses for 2015?
        • All About Past Due Tax Returns
        • Do You Need to File Form 1099s?
        • How to File an Appeal with the IRS
        • Why You Might Get a Letter from the IRS, and What to Do
        • How to File an Amended Tax Return
        • Should You Claim the Home Office Deduction?
        • How to Avoid -- And Deal with -- Identify Theft
        • Q & A: IRS Audits
        • Are You Using the Right Business Structure?
        • Starting Planning for 2015 Income Taxes Now: 5 Tips
        • What You Need to Know About Estimated Taxes
        • Contractor or Employee? How the Income Tax Obligations Differ
        • The New Form 1095-A: Reporting Health Insurance Coverage
        • Are Your Social Security Payments Taxable?
        • Do You Qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit?
        • Are You Eligible for Health Insurance Tax Credits
        • Employee Retirement Plans - Tax Advantages and Other Benefits
        • 5 Business Tax Credits You May Be Missing
        • New Business in 2012
        • Is it a Bad Debt or a Simple Revenue Loss? Telling the Difference
        • Business Taxes Add Complexity: How Will This Affect You?
      • Tax Scams

Tips on Deducting Charitable Contributions

3/24/2014

 
If you are looking for a tax deduction, giving to charity can be a ‘win-win’ situation.  It’s good for them and good for you.  Here are eight things you should know about deducting your gifts to charity:

1.  You must donate to a qualified charity if you want to deduct the gift.  You can’t deduct gifts to individuals, political organizations or candidates.

2.  In order for you to deduct your contributions, you must file Form 1040 and itemize deductions.  File Schedule A, Itemized Deductions, with your federal tax return.

3.  If you get a benefit in return for your contribution, your deduction is limited.  You can only deduct the amount of your gift that’s more than the value of what you got in return.  Examples of such benefits include merchandise, meals, tickets to an event or other goods and services.

4.  If you give property instead of cash, the deduction is usually that item’s fair market value.  Fair market value is generally the price you would get if you sold the property on the open market.

5.  Used clothing and household items generally must be in good condition to be deductible.  Special rules apply to vehicle donations.

6.  You must file Form 8283, Non-cash Charitable Contributions, if your deduction for all non-cash gifts is more than $500 for the year.

7.  You must keep records to prove the amount of the contributions you make during the year.  The kind of records you must keep depends on the amount and type of your donation.   For example, you must have a written record of any cash you donate, regardless of the amount, in order to claim a deduction.  It can be a cancelled check, a letter from the organization, or a bank or payroll statement.  It should include the name of the charity, the date and the amount donated.  A cell phone bill meets this requirement for text donations if it shows this same information.

8.  To claim a deduction for donated cash or property of $250 or more, you must have a written statement from the organization.  It must show the amount of the donation and a description of any property given.  It must also say whether the organization provided any goods or services in exchange for the gift.

Comments are closed.

    RSS Feed


    Categories

    All
    2018 Tax Changes
    Adoption
    Affordable Care Act Businesses
    Affordable Care Act Individuals
    Affordable Care Act - Individuals
    Amended Returns
    Auto Expenses
    Business Tax Credits
    Capital Gains & Losses
    Charitable Contributions
    Children & Dependents
    Deductions And Credits
    Dept Forgiveness
    Educational Expenses
    Employee Business Expenses
    Employers
    Energy Tax Credit
    Estimated Tax Payments
    Filing Status
    Foreign Income
    Gambling Income
    Health Care
    Identity Theft
    Income
    Irs Notices And Problems
    Marriage And Divorce
    Medical & Dental Expenses
    Military
    Moving
    New Business
    Other Business
    Other Deductions & Credits
    Other Income
    Other Tax Credits
    Other Topics
    Real Estate
    Record Keeping
    Retirement
    Retirement Savings
    Seniors
    Tax Law Changes
    Tax Plan
    Tax Problems
    Unemployment
    Veterans
    Who Must File


    Author

    Accountency, LLC


  • Home
  • About
    • Book An Appointment
  • Accounting
    • Dashboard
    • Xero+Accountency
    • Xero Intro
    • AutoMagical Accounting
    • QuickBooks >
      • QuickBooks Updates
    • Store
  • Payroll
  • Taxes
    • Dashboard
    • Individuals
    • Businesses
    • Tax Stuff >
      • Individuals >
        • Income >
          • Debt Forgiveness
          • Foreign Income
          • Gambling Income
          • Unemployment
          • Other Income
        • Deductions & Credits >
          • Adoption
          • Charitable Contributions
          • Earned Income Tax Credit
          • Educational Expenses
          • Energy Tax Credits
          • Employee Business Expenses
          • Other Deductions and Credits
        • Affordable Care Act - Individuals
        • Children and Dependents
        • Death
        • Disabled Taxpayers
        • Educators
        • Health Care
        • Identify Theft
        • Marriage and Divorce
        • Military
        • Real Estate
        • Retirement Savings
        • Seniors
        • State Taxes
        • Record Keeping
        • Who Must File
        • Other Topics
      • Businesses >
        • Affordable Care Act - Businesses
        • Year-end Reporting Obligations >
          • 1099's
          • Health Insurance Premiums
          • Depreciation
          • Reimbursed Employee Business Expenses
          • Company Automobiles
        • Employment Tax Credits
        • Independent Contractors
        • Tax Credits and Deductions for Businesses
        • Other Business Topics
        • Required Business Posters
      • Amended Returns
      • IRS Notices and Problems
      • Tax Plan >
        • All About the Earned Income Tax Credit
        • 5 IRS Audit Red Flags
        • Retirement Plans for Sole Proprietors
        • Are You Claiming All of Your Tax-Deductable Business Expenses for 2015?
        • All About Past Due Tax Returns
        • Do You Need to File Form 1099s?
        • How to File an Appeal with the IRS
        • Why You Might Get a Letter from the IRS, and What to Do
        • How to File an Amended Tax Return
        • Should You Claim the Home Office Deduction?
        • How to Avoid -- And Deal with -- Identify Theft
        • Q & A: IRS Audits
        • Are You Using the Right Business Structure?
        • Starting Planning for 2015 Income Taxes Now: 5 Tips
        • What You Need to Know About Estimated Taxes
        • Contractor or Employee? How the Income Tax Obligations Differ
        • The New Form 1095-A: Reporting Health Insurance Coverage
        • Are Your Social Security Payments Taxable?
        • Do You Qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit?
        • Are You Eligible for Health Insurance Tax Credits
        • Employee Retirement Plans - Tax Advantages and Other Benefits
        • 5 Business Tax Credits You May Be Missing
        • New Business in 2012
        • Is it a Bad Debt or a Simple Revenue Loss? Telling the Difference
        • Business Taxes Add Complexity: How Will This Affect You?
      • Tax Scams