Amounts You Can Deduct

Contributions can be in cash, property, or out-of-pocket expenses you paid to do volunteer work for the kinds of organizations described earlier. If you drove to and from the volunteer work, you can take the actual cost of gas and oil or 14 cents a mile. Add parking and tolls to the amount you claim under either method. But don't deduct any amounts that were repaid to you.

Gifts from which you benefit.

If you made a gift and received a benefit in return, such as food, entertainment, or merchandise, you can generally only deduct the amount that is more than the value of the benefit. But this rule doesn't apply to certain membership benefits provided in return for an annual payment of $75 or less or to certain items or benefits of token value. For details, see Pub. 526.

Example.

You paid $70 to a charitable organization to attend a fundraising dinner and the value of the dinner was $40. You can deduct only $30.

Gifts of $250 or more.

You can deduct a gift of $250 or more only if you have a contemporaneous written acknowledgment from the charitable organization showing the information in (1) and (2) next.

The amount of any money contributed and a description (but not value) of any property donated.

Whether the organization did or didn’t give you any goods or services in return for your contribution. If you did receive any goods or services, a description and estimate of the value must be included. If you received only intangible religious benefits (such as admission to a religious ceremony), the organization must state this but it doesn't have to describe or value the benefit.

In figuring whether a gift is $250 or more, don't combine separate donations. For example, if you gave your church $25 each week for a total of $1,300, treat each $25 payment as a separate gift. If you made donations through payroll deductions, treat each deduction from each paycheck as a separate gift. See Pub. 526 if you made a separate gift of $250 or more through payroll deduction.

To be contemporaneous, you must get the written acknowledgment from the charitable organization by the date you file your return or the due date (including extensions) for filing your return, whichever is earlier. Don't attach the contemporaneous written acknowledgment to your return. Instead, keep it for your records.

Limit on the amount you can deduct.

See Pub. 526 to figure the amount of your deduction if any of the following applies.

Your cash contributions or contributions of ordinary income property are more than 30% of the amount on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 11b.

Your gifts of capital gain property are more than 20% of the amount on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 11b.

You gave gifts of property that increased in value or gave gifts of the use of property.