A Donor’s Guide to - Internal Revenue Service

1 Before you give your car to a charitable organization: check out the charity see if you ll get a tax benefit check the value ofyour car see what your responsibilities are as a donor to a charityA Donor sGuide toInternal Revenue ServiceTax Exempt and Government EntitiesExempt Organizations1f a tax deduction is an important consideration for you when donating a car to a charity, you should check out thecharity; check the value of your car; andsee what your responsibilities are as a this Publication 4303, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and statecharity officials provide general guidelinesfor individuals who donate their companion brochure, Publication 4302, A Charity s Guide to CarDonations, provides guidelines for charities that receive donated :This publication is not intended as a Guide for corporate a CharityIf you are eligible to deduct charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes (see Qualifying for a Tax Deductionlater) and you want to claim a deduction for donating your car to charity, then youshould make certain that the charity is a qualified organization.

2 Otherwise, your donation will not be tax deductible. The most common types of qualifiedorganizations are section 501(c)(3) organizations, such as charitable, educational, or religious organizations. This publication refers to section 501(c)(3) organizationsgenerally as charities. To verify that an organization is a charity qualified to receive tax-deductible contributions, see IRSP ublication 78, Cumulative List of Organizations,anannual list of most charities. Publication 78 is availableonline at (under the Search for Charities23topic) and at many public libraries. You may also verifyan organization s status by calling the IRS CustomerAccount services division for Tax Exempt andGovernment Entities at (877) 829-5500 (toll-free). Besure to have the charity s correct name. It is also helpful to know the charity s all qualified organizations are listed in Publication example, churches, synagogues, temples, and mosquesare not required to apply to the IRS for recognition ofexemption in order to be qualified organizations and arefrequently not listed.

3 If you have questions, call CustomerAccount services at the above you want to learn more about a charity before donatingyour car, use the resources listed under AssistanceThrough the Charity, Through State Officials, andThrough the IRSat the end of this for a Tax DeductionYou can deduct contributions to charity only if you itemize deductions on your Schedule A of Form 1040. You must take into account certain limitations on chari-table contribution deductions. For example, your deduc-tion cannot exceed 50% of your adjusted gross limitations may apply. Publication 526, CharitableContributions, provides detailed information on claimingdeductions and the deduction limits. It also describes thetypes of organizations that are qualified to receive tax-deductible contributions. Publication 526 is availableonline at or by calling (800) 829-3676 (toll-free).

4 Determining the Value of Your CarThe maximum amount you can deduct on your incometax return is the fair market value of your car. Fair marketvalue is the price a willing buyer would pay and a willingseller would accept for the car, when neither party iscompelled to buy or sell, and both parties have reasonableknowledge of the relevant facts. Some fundraisers have mistakenly claimed that donorscan, in all cases, deduct the full value of their cars asfound in a used car Guide (such as blue book value). Aused car Guide may be a good starting point to value yourcar, but you should exercise caution. The IRS will onlyallow a deduction for the fair market value of the car,which may be substantially less than the blue book :You donate your car to the local high school for use by students studying car repair.

5 Your credit union representative told you that the blue book value of the caris $1,600. However, your car needs extensive repairs, andafter some checking, you find that you could only sell yourcar for $750. Your charitable contribution deduction maynot exceed $750, the fair market value of the information on determining the value of your car, see Publication 561, Determining the Value of DonatedProperty. If you used your car in a trade or business, seethe rules for contributions of capital gain property inPublication and Filing RequirementsDepending on the amount you are claiming as a charita-ble contribution deduction, you may need to get andkeep certain records and file an additional form to sub-stantiate your charitable contributions. See the chartRecordkeeping and Filing Requirementsthat ACKNOWLEDGMENT FROM THE CHARITY You must obtain a contemporaneous written acknowledg-ment from the charity if the total deduction you areclaiming for a donated car is $250 or more.

6 Thedue date (including extensions) of the return on whichyou first claim a deduction for the car. For a deductionfirst claimed on an amended return, the appraisal must be received before the date the amended return is you file your income tax return (Form 1040 orForm 1040X), you will need to complete Section B ofForm 8283, and attach it to your Section B is required and the charity sells or otherwisedisposes of a car within two years after the date of receipt,the charity must file Form 8282, Donee InformationReturn, with the IRS. On Form 8282, the charity reportsinformation identifying the donor and itself, and theamount it received upon sale or other disposition of thecar. The charity must provide you with a copy of the chart below provides items of recordkeeping and filing requirements, based on the amount you claim as a must include the name of the charity, a description (but not value) of your car, and one of thefollowing: a statement that no goods or services were provided bythe charity in return for the contribution, if that was the case, a description and good faith estimate of the value of goods or services , if any, that the charity provided inreturn for the contribution, or a statement that goods or services that the charity provided in return for the contribution consisted entirely of intangible religious benefits, if that was the case.

7 You must get the written acknowledgment on or before the earlier of the date you file your return for the year you make the contribution, or the due date,including extensions, for filing the return. A charity canprovide either a paper copy of the acknowledgment to the donor, or a charity can provide the acknowledgmentelectronically, such as via e-mail addressed to the not attach the acknowledgment to your income taxreturn; instead, retain it with your records to substantiateyour 8283, NONCASH CHARITABLECONTRIBUTIONS Depending on the amount of thededuction you claim for the car, you may have to file anadditional form with the IRS with your Form 1040. Ifthe deduction you are claiming for a donated car is greaterthan $500, you must complete Section A of Form the deduction you are claiming is greater than $5,000,you must get a written appraisal of your car (see WrittenAppraisalbelow).

8 You must also complete Section B of Form 8283, which must include the signature of anauthorized official of the charity, and attach it to your APPRAISAL Your written appraisal mustbe from a qualified appraiser. See Publication 561,Determining the Value of Donated Property. The appraisalmust be made no more than 60 days before you con-tribute the car. You must receive the appraisal before theDEDUCTIONS DEDUCTIONS OF $250 OR GREATER THANDEDUCTIONSDEDUCTIONSMORE, BUT $500, BUT NOTGREATEROF LESSNOT MOREMORE THANTHAN REQUIREMENTTHAN $250 THAN $500$5,000 $5,000 Recordkeeping Requirements name/addressXX X Xof charity date of donationXX X X place where you XX X Xdonated car description of carXX X X contemporaneous XXXwritten acknowledgment from charityFiling Requirements Form 8283, Section AX Form 8283, Section BX Written AppraisalXRECORDKEEPING AND FILING REQUIREMENTS67 State Law Requirements Car TitleGenerally, state charity officials ask the donor to transferthe car title to the charity, to make a copy of the titletransfer.

9 And to notify the state motor vehicle administra-tion by updating the information on the donor s car regis-tration about any sale or transfer. In some states, however,there are exceptions to this titling process, and a thirdparty, such as the charity s agent, may be able to hold anopen title or insert a dealer sname. Before donating thecar, you should remove the license plates, unless state lawrequires otherwise. This may help you avoid any liabilityproblems after the car is Through the Charity, ThroughState Officials, and Through the IRS CHARITY ASSISTANCE A charity must make availablefor public inspection its application for tax exemption, its determination letter, and its most recent annual infor-mation returns (Forms 990). A charity also must providecopies of these documents upon request (unless it makesthe documents widely available).

10 A charity may not chargeyou for inspecting the documents, but it may charge areasonable fee for copying and mailing the :Certain charities, including churches, synagogues, and mosques, arenot required to file exemption applications and annual information CHARITY OFFICIAL ASSISTANCE Manystates require charities that solicit contributions to registerand file certain documents with a state charity regulator,such as the state attorney general or the secretary of charities must file in their state of incorporationand in other states where they have activities. Many of the state charity officials provide useful informationabout charities and fundraisers on Web sites and inbrochures and listing of state charity offices is available through theNational Association of State Charity Officials A listing of state attorneys general isavailable through the National Association of AttorneysGeneral at your state charity official if you have a concernor complaint that a charity or fundraiser is not complyingwith state laws.