TB team and 501c?

[SCDad]

I stand corrected, and will change how I do it this year. I am not much a travel guy anyways.

The high school booster club is tax deductable though right? They don't send me any special forms either, and the money I give them goes directly to the players (eventually).

 

[SoCal_Dad]

According to IRS Topic 506 - Charitable Contributions, you need additional documentation from the organization for contributions of $250 or more.

For any contribution of $250 or more (including contributions of cash or property), you must obtain and keep in your records a contemporaneous written acknowledgment from the qualified organization indicating the amount of the cash and a description of any property contributed. The acknowledgment must say whether the organization provided any goods or services in exchange for the gift and, if so, must provide a description and a good faith estimate of the value of those goods or services.

It doesn't say anything about a special form, so a receipt or thank-you letter/note with the required info should suffice.

 

[SCDad]

The same for a church? I do not get anything from them either.

 

[Doug Romrell]

It's not a charitable contribution if you're paying for your daughter's softball.

 

[FrozenRope]

The same for a church? I do not get anything from them either.

My Church sends me a letter with the amount of my contributions. I have been a member of a few different congregations over the years and every one sent me a letter. That letter also contains their EIN, which you can enter on your form, or in the Tax Program if you do it yourself. Now that I think about it....I don't think it is an actual form. It usually contains language about nothing being gained by the donation......whether product or service. Yeah...booster club donations should be deductible.

 

[SoCal_Dad]

The same for a church? I do not get anything from them either.

The $250 trigger amount is for a single contribution. It is not required for multiple contributions that total $250+.

Publication 526 covers everything.

Contributions of $250 or More
You can claim a deduction for a contribution of $250 or more only if you have an acknowledgment of your contribution from the qualified organization or certain payroll deduction records.

If you made more than one contribution of $250 or more, you must have either a separate acknowledgment for each or one acknowledgment that lists each contribution and the date of each contribution and shows your total contributions.

Amount of contribution. In figuring whether your contribution is $250 or more, do not combine separate contributions. For example, if you gave your church $25 each week, your weekly payments do not have to be combined. Each payment is a separate contribution.

If contributions are made by payroll deduction, the deduction from each paycheck is treated as a separate contribution.

If you made a payment that is partly for goods and services, as described earlier under Contributions From Which You Benefit , your contribution is the amount of the payment that is more than the value of the goods and services.

Acknowledgment. The acknowledgment must meet these tests.
1. It must be written.

2. It must include:

a. The amount of cash you contributed,

b. Whether the qualified organization gave you any goods or services as a result of your contribution (other than certain token items and membership benefits),

c. A description and good faith estimate of the value of any goods or services described in (b) (other than intangible religious benefits), and

d. A statement that the only benefit you received was an intangible religious benefit, if that was the case. The acknowledgment does not need to describe or estimate the value of an intangible religious benefit. An intangible religious benefit is a benefit that generally is not sold in commercial transactions outside a donative (gift) context. An example is admission to a religious ceremony.

3. You must get it on or before the earlier of:

a. The date you file your return for the year you make the contribution, or

b. The due date, including extensions, for filing the return.

If the acknowledgment does not show the date of the contribution, you must also have a bank record or receipt, as described earlier, that does show the date of the contribution. If the acknowledgment shows the date of the contribution and meets the other tests just described, you do not need any other records.

 

[SoCal_Dad]

... Yeah...booster club donations should be deductible.

It's same as travel ball - only the portion above any mandatory pay-to-play fees/dues is deductible. We're not allowed to require pay-to-play fees in CA, but they are allowed in other states.

 

[coach james]

In Indiana it costs $300 to just apply for status...

 

[Doug Romrell]

We're not allowed to require pay-to-play fees in CA...

ARE YOU SERIOUS?? Isn't this a free country where mutually beneficial voluntary transactions can be consummated by the persons involved???

 

[SCDad]

It's not a charitable contribution if you're paying for your daughter's softball.

You are avoiding the question. I am trying figure out if contributing $1000 to a travel organization. or a $1000 to a booster club for high school softball. or $2000 to a church. Neither with any associated paperwork.

Folks here are call me a tax cheat ... tax fraud !!!

And consider the IRS does not really care for tax deductions, documented with canceled checks, to charitable organization totaling under $5000.

Please advise me directly.