Charitable contributions are deductible only if they are made to a qualified organization. Qualified organizations include organizations that are operated solely for religious, charitable, scientific, literary or educational purposes, for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals or for the development of amateur sports. See Publication 526 – Charitable Contributions to determine if an organization qualifies to receive deductible contributions.
Types of Qualified and Non-Qualified Organizations
Examples of Deductible and Non-Deductible Charitable Contributions
Cash Contributions – Enter the total value of contributions that were made by cash or check to include out of pocket expenses that were incurred performing services for a charitable organization. Include the taxpayer’s actual cost of gas and oil used while performing the services on this line, or enter the taxpayer’s charitable mileage below.
To create an itemized statement, press the F10 key on your keyboard, select New, then enter a description of the contribution and the amount.
Charitable Mileage – Taxpayers can deduct the actual cost of gas and oil used while performing services for a qualified charitable organization or can deduct the standard charitable mileage rate. Enter actual expenses above, or total charitable miles driven on this line.
Qualified Disaster Cash Contributions Made in 2018 – Taxpayers can elect to treat gifts by cash or check as qualified contributions if:
- The gift was paid in 2018 to certain qualified charitable organizations
- The gift was made for relief efforts in the disaster area of a federally declared disaster
- The taxpayer obtained a written statement from the qualified charitable organization that the contribution was used for relief efforts
Qualified disaster cash contributions are not subject to the adjusted gross income limitation.
Non-Cash More than $500 – Form 8283 must be completed and attached to the tax return for any non-cash deduction over $500. For information on filling out Form 8283, click here.
Non-Cash Less Than or Equal to $500 – Enter the total value of contributions of property other than by cash or check. The deduction is limited to the fair market value of the contributed property on the date it was donated.
Total Current Year Contributions – Keystone Tax Solutions Pro calculates this amount based on the entries from the lines above.
Carryover from Prior Year – If the taxpayer’s contribution amount is limited based on their adjusted gross income, the unallowed portion can be carried forward to each of the next 5 years. The program will pull forward the carryover amount from the prior year return. If the return was not pulled forward from the prior year, these amount can be manually entered.
Current Year Contribution Limits – The program will calculate the total current year cash and non-cash contribution limits.
Additional Information: