how to chartible donations work on your taxes and whats the max you are allowed to deduct?

Answer 1

Donations to registered 501(c)3 charities are deductible if you itemize your deductions. If your total itemized deductions are less than the standard deduction amount for your filing status then you get no deduction for them at all.

Charitable donations are limited ot 50% of your Adjusted Gross Income in any one tax year. Any excess may be carried forward to the next tax year and used then, assuming that you itemize in that year.

If you make a donation of cash you must have a receipt from the charity to claim the deduction.

If you make donations of property the rules can quickly get complicated. See IRS Pub 526 for more information. Here's a link: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p526.pdf

Answer 2

The max is the lesser of what you actually donated that year, or half of your income. You need receipts for the items you donated, and your deduction is usually the fair market value at the time of the donation - for some items like cars, there are special rules. You can only deduct charitable contributions if you itemize, not if you take the standard deduction.

The amount of your itemized deductions is subtracted from your income before your tax is calculated.

Answer 3

Charitable donations are a deduction on Schedule A. Most donations are subject to 50% of your adjusted gross income, but some are limited to 30%. As of this year, you will need a receipt for most of your contributions.