Year-end holiday giving and cleaning tend to get
people thinking about a little year-end tax planning, say extra tax
breaks for charitable contributions. To count for the 2009 return,
individuals and businesses must make their donations to a charity by
But remember, the tax rules for those deductions
have turned a bit more stingy. So if you’re giving cash, cars or
clothes, make certain to consider what will and what won’t work next
April.
Cash: You’ll need a record.
It’s not good enough to say you put a
You could use a canceled check, a credit card
statement, a written letter from the charity stating the amount and the
date of the contribution or a pay stub if you’re contributing weekly to
a charity, say through payroll like the
For any single contribution of
If you paid
Cars: Don’t overstate value.
Things get more complicated, though, if you’re
claiming a larger deduction for donating a car, a truck, a boat or an
airplane to a charity.
Then, “as a general rule, your deduction is what the charity sold the car for,” Luscombe said.
Was the charity really able to sell that car for
You would need to get a Form 1098-C, or a similar
statement, from the charitable organization and attach it to your 2009
tax return.
If you donated that car in late 2009, you still
could claim it on the 2009 tax return even if you received the
paperwork in January to outline the sale price of the car.
Was the vehicle repaired after you donated it and then sold for charity?
If you donate a car that’s worth
Clothes: Don’t give junk.
Donated clothing and household items — furniture,
electronics, appliances and linens — must be in “good used condition or
better.”
If the thrift shop is selling shirts for
However, the
appraisal in lieu of meeting the good used standard on household items
for which a taxpayer claims a deduction of more than
Via McClatchy-Tribune News Service.