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To “Give It Away” and get credit from the IRS in the form of a charitable contribution deduction, a few requirements must be met.
No charitable deduction is allowed for any contribution of $250 or more unless you substantiate the contribution with a contemporaneous written acknowledgment of the contribution by the donee organization.  The receipt must be in-hand by the time you file your return or you will not be able to claim the deduction.
The acknowledgement must include the amount of cash and a description of any property other than cash contributed, whether the donee provided any goods or services in consideration for the contribution, and a good faith estimate of the value of any such goods or services.  If you receive goods or services, such as a dinner or theater tickets, in return for your contribution, your deduction is limited to the excess of what you gave over the value of what you received.
If you make separate contributions of less than $250, you will not be subject to the requirement to get a written receipt, even if the sum of the contributions to the same charity totals $250 or more in a year. Also, if you have contributions withheld from your wages, the deduction from each payment of wages is treated as a separate contribution for purposes of the $250 threshold.
In general, if the total charitable deduction you claim for noncash property is more than $500, you must attach a completed Form 8283, Noncash Charitable Contributions, to your return or the deduction is not allowed.  Additionally, if you donate property with a value of $5,000 or more, you are required to obtain a qualified appraisal for donated property and attach an appraisal summary to the tax return.
Although you cannot deduct the value of services you perform for a charitable organization, some deductions are permitted for out-of-pocket costs incurred while performing the services. You should keep track of your expenses, the services you performed and when you performed them, and the organization for which you performed the services. Keep receipts, canceled checks, and other reliable written records relating to the services and expenses.
If you have questions about any of the information presented above, please contact the experts listed below at PYA, (800) 270-9629.
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