Page 2

deduct contributions earmarked for relief of a particular individual or family. See Pub. 976, Disaster Relief, for more information. Pub. 3833, Disaster Relief, Providing Assis- tance Through Charitable Organizations, has more information about disaster relief, including how to establish a new charitable organization. You can also find more information on IRS.gov. Enter “disaster relief” in the search box. Qualified disaster area. A 2020 qualified dis- aster area is any area in which a major disaster was declared before February 26, 2021, by the President under section 401 of the Stafford Act and that occurred after December 27, 2019, and before December 28, 2020. However, a qualified disaster area doesn’t include any area declared a disaster only because of the Coro- navirus Disease (COVID-19). See Temporary suspension of limits, later, for additional infor- mation about 2018 and 2019 disasters. Temporary suspension of limits. Certain cash contributions you made for relief efforts for 2019 and 2020 disasters are not subject to the 60% limit for cash contributions. See Qualified contributions for relief efforts for 2018 and 2019 disasters, later. Virginia Beach Strong Act. A special rule ap- plies to cash contributions made on or after May 31, 2019, and before June 1, 2021, for the relief of the families of dead or wounded victims of the mass shooting in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on May 31, 2019. See Contributions You Can Deduct, later. Reduced deductibility of state and local tax credits. If you make a payment or transfer property to or for the use of a qualified organiza- tion and you receive or expect to receive a state or local tax credit or a state or local tax deduc- tion in return, your charitable contribution de- duction may be reduced. See State or local tax credit, later. Photographs of missing children. The IRS is a proud partner with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children® (NCMEC). Pho- tographs of missing children selected by the Center may appear in this publication on pages that would otherwise be blank. You can help bring these children home by looking at the photographs and calling 800-THE-LOST (800-843-5678) or visiting www.missingkids.com if you recognize a child. Introduction This publication explains how individuals claim a deduction for charitable contributions. It dis- cusses the types of organizations to which you can make deductible charitable contributions and the types of contributions you can deduct. It also discusses how much you can deduct, what records you must keep, and how to report chari- table contributions. A charitable contribution is a donation or gift to, or for the use of, a qualified organization. It is voluntary and is made without getting, or ex- pecting to get, anything of equal value. Qualified organizations. Qualified organiza- tions include nonprofit groups that are religious, charitable, educational, scientific, or literary in purpose, or that work to prevent cruelty to chil- dren or animals. You will find descriptions of these organizations under Organizations That Qualify To Receive Deductible Contributions. Schedule A (Form 1040) required. Gener- ally, to deduct a charitable contribution, you must itemize deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040). The amount of your deduction may be limited if certain rules and limits explained in this publication apply to you. Exception: You may be eligible to deduct a cash contribution even if you don’t itemize de- ductions on Schedule A (Form 1040). See Cash contributions for individuals who do not itemize deductions next. Cash contributions for individuals who do not itemize deductions. For the 2021 tax year, cash contributions up to $600 can be claimed on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 12b. Enter the total amount of your contribution on line 12b. Don’t enter more than: • $300 if single, head of household, or quali- fying widow(er); • $600 if married filing jointly; or • $300 if married filing separately. In order to claim the contribution, you must meet the following requirements. 1. You cannot itemize deductions on Sched- ule A (Form 1040); and 2. The charitable contribution must be: a. Paid in cash or by check. b. Be paid to an organization described later under First category of qualified organizations (50% limit organiza- tions) (other than certain private foun- dations described in section 509(a)(3) or for the establishment of a new, or maintenance of an existing, donor ad- vised fund, as described in section 4966(d)(2)). Contributions of noncash property and contribu- tions carried forward from prior years don’t qualify for this deduction. For records you must keep, see Substantia- tion Requirements, later. Note. You cannot claim the deduction on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 12b, and file Schedule A (Form 1040). You may benefit from itemizing deductions if your itemized deduc- tions are greater than the standard deduction. If you have a choice, you should generally use the method that gives you the lower tax. Comments and suggestions. We welcome your comments about this publication and sug- gestions for future editions. You can send us comments through IRS.gov/FormComments. Or, you can write to the Internal Revenue Service, Tax Forms and Publications, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Although we can’t respond individually to each comment received, we do appreciate your feedback and will consider your comments and suggestions as we revise our tax forms, instruc- tions, and publications. Don’t send tax ques- tions, tax returns, or payments to the above ad- dress. Getting answers to your tax questions. If you have a tax question not answered by this publication or the How To Get Tax Help section at the end of this publication, go to the IRS In- teractive Tax Assistant page at IRS.gov/ Help/ITA where you can find topics by using the search feature or viewing the categories listed. Getting tax forms, instructions, and pub- lications. Go to IRS.gov/Forms to download current and prior-year forms, instructions, and publications. Ordering tax forms, instructions, and publications. Go to IRS.gov/OrderForms to order current forms, instructions, and publica- tions; call 800-829-3676 to order prior-year forms and instructions. The IRS will process your order for forms and publications as soon as possible. Don’t resubmit requests you’ve al- ready sent us. You can get forms and publica- tions faster online. Useful Items You may want to see: Publication 561 Determining the Value of Donated Property 976 Disaster Relief Forms (and Instructions) Schedule A (Form 1040) Itemized Deductions 8283 Noncash Charitable Contributions See How To Get Tax Help near the end of this publication for information about getting these publications and forms. Organizations That Qualify To Receive Deductible Contributions You can deduct your contributions only if you make them to a qualified organization. How to check whether an organization can receive deductible charitable contributions. You can ask any organization whether it is a qualified organization, and most will be able to tell you. You can also check by going to IRS.gov/TEOS. This online tool will enable you to search for qualified organizations. Types of Qualified Organizations Generally, only the following types of organiza- tions can be qualified organizations. 1. A community chest, corporation, trust, fund, or foundation organized or created in or under the laws of the United States, any state, the District of Columbia, or any pos- session of the United States (including Pu- erto Rico). It must, however, be organized and operated only for charitable, religious, 561 976 Schedule A (Form 1040) 8283 Page 2 Publication 526 (2021)