Are business donations to charities deductible?

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Subject Author Date Are business donations to charities deductible? Mr. Nonsense 07-05-2009   Re: Are business donations to charities deductibl... Steve Pope 07-05-2009  Re: Are business donations to charities deductible... Arthur Kamlet 07-05-2009  Re: Are business donations to charities deductible... Mr. Nonsense 07-06-2009  Re: Are business donations to charities deductible... Benjamin Yazersky CPA 07-06-2009  Re: Are business donations to charities deductible... Seth 07-06-2009
Posted by Mr. Nonsense on July 5, 2009, 5:14 pm Please log in for more thread options If my business makes a donation to charity that is completely unrelated to my business, is that tax deductible? I understand that if your donation gives you some advertising, then you can deduct a portion of it. But if the charity just take your money with a simple thank you, is there anything you can deduct from that as a business expense? -- << ------------------------------------------------------- >> << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, >> << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties >> << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. >> << >> << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts >> << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy >> << are at www.asktax.org. >> << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. >> << ------------------------------------------------------- >> Posted by Steve Pope on July 5, 2009, 5:23 pm Please log in for more thread options >If my business makes a donation to charity that is completely >unrelated to my business, is that tax deductible? In many cases, yes. How it is reported depends on the type of entity. If you are an individual reporting business activity on a Schedule C, your donation is reported on your Schedule A, just as if it were an individual donation. If your business is a corporation, it is reported on your corporate tax return form 1120, line 19, and is limited to 10% of adjusted taxable income. (So taking the above into account, the owner of a closely held corp might often want to make an individual donation instead a corporate donation.) Now is a very good time to be giving money to charities -- they really need it in this economy. Steve -- << ------------------------------------------------------- >> << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, >> << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties >> << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. >> << >> << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts >> << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy >> << are at www.asktax.org. >> << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. >> << ------------------------------------------------------- >> Posted by Arthur Kamlet on July 5, 2009, 5:23 pm Please log in for more thread options >If my business makes a donation to charity that is completely >unrelated to my business, is that tax deductible? I understand that if >your donation gives you some advertising, then you can deduct a >portion of it. But if the charity just take your money with a simple >thank you, is there anything you can deduct from that as a business >expense? Are you a sole proprietor, who files a schedule C? If so, charitable contributions are reported on Schedule A not Schedule C. If you have another form of business, please add those details. -- ArtKamlet at a o l dot c o m Columbus OH K2PZH -- << ------------------------------------------------------- >> << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, >> << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties >> << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. >> << >> << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts >> << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy >> << are at www.asktax.org. >> << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. >> << ------------------------------------------------------- >> Posted by Mr. Nonsense on July 6, 2009, 2:30 pm Please log in for more thread options On Jul 5, 4:23 pm, kam...@panix.com (Arthur Kamlet) wrote: > Are you a sole proprietor, who files a schedule C? If so, > charitable contributions are reported on Schedule A not > Schedule C. > Correct, I am a sole proprietor. Since my itemized deductions never exceed the standard deduction, then my charitable donations ( from either personal or business funds ) are not going to impact my bottom line... -- << ------------------------------------------------------- >> << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, >> << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties >> << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. >> << >> << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts >> << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy >> << are at www.asktax.org. >> << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. >> << ------------------------------------------------------- >> Posted by Benjamin Yazersky CPA on July 6, 2009, 8:14 am Please log in for more thread options > If my business makes a donation to charity that is completely > unrelated to my business, is that tax deductible? I understand that if > your donation gives you some advertising, then you can deduct a > portion of it. But if the charity just take your money with a simple > thank you, is there anything you can deduct from that as a business > expense? > > -- First of all, you need to distingquish between a marketing or advertising expense and a charitable donation. Presuming that you are talking about a donation of cash (check) as opposed to a donation of inventory or other property, it is generally deductible. Where it gets reported and limitations that may apply depend on the form of your business. A sole proprietorship, partnership, S corp or c corp will report these deductions differently and different limitations can be applicable. You should consult your own CPA/tax advisor to find out how it applies to your situation. ___________________________________ <<< Benjamin Yazersky, CPA [NJ & NY] >>> -----> real address on hobokeni or hobokenx <----- "This written advice was not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by any taxpayer, for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer." (The foregoing legend has been affixed pursuant to U.S. Treasury Regulations governing tax practice.) The information transmitted is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential and/or privileged material. Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of, or taking of any action in reliance upon, this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. If you received this in error, please contact the sender and delete the material from any computer. -- << ------------------------------------------------------- >> << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, >> << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties >> << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. >> << >> << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts >> << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy >> << are at www.asktax.org. >> << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. >> << ------------------------------------------------------- >> Similar Threads Posted Are campaign donations deductible business expense? April 25, 2008, 3:52 pm Voluntary page charges as deductible donations? April 10, 2007, 10:25 am Are alma mater donationd business deductible? 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