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January 12, 2005 --
The
Internal Revenue Service alerted taxpayers who itemize
deductions that they may claim, on their 2004 tax returns,
charitable donations made during January 2005 for relief of
the victims of the Indian Ocean Tsunami.
The
new law enacted on January
7, 2005
allows these donations to be deducted as if they were made
on
December
31, 2004.
“There
are no extra forms to fill out or any additional burdens for
taxpayers,” said IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson. “As
long as you send your check by the end of the month,
the donation will be treated just like it was still 2004.”
The
new law only allows for cash contributions. The
contributions must be made specifically for the relief of
victims in areas affected by the
December 26, 2004
,
tsunami in the
Indian
Ocean.
The new law gives taxpayers the option of deducting the
contributions on either their 2004 or 2005 returns, but not
both.
The
IRS
advises taxpayers to be sure their contributions
go to qualified charities. Taxpayers who have a specific
charity in mind can make sure that it is a qualified charity
by doing a search on www.
IRS
.gov. or
from contacting agencies such as USAID and USA Freedom Corp.
Some organizations, such as churches or governments,
may be qualified even though they are not listed on www.
IRS
.gov.
When donors make
contributions to assist the victims of the tsunami, they
should notate their records to that effect, such as on the
memo field of checks they send.
The
IRS
reminds donors that contributions to foreign
organizations generally are not deductible.
IRS
Publication 526, Charitable Contributions,
provides information on making contributions to charities.
Publication 3833, Disaster Relief: Providing Assistance
through Charitable Organizations, explains how the public
can use charitable organizations to help victims of
disasters, and how new organizations can obtain tax-exempt
status. Both publications are available on www.IRS.gov.
For more information, contact an Asher
tax professional at
215-564-1900.
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