If it's tax deductible, why are people always complaining about it driving them broke? I know you don't get it all back, but still it would be a sizable off-set.
It's a deduction, not a credit. Most TBM's filing a joint return might get 15% of it back. Child tax credits and deductions, and mortgage interest deductions are far more valuable.
Not correct. Generally you can deduct up to 50% of your AGI as charitable donations, and you can carry them forward if you donated more than 50%, so if the next year you only donated 30 percent, you could use up the donations from the prior year you were previously unable to claim.
It's tax-deductible, but so is everything else sent to a 501c3.
If you wish to state that the general public is propping up the Mormon church, you must also recognize that the general public is propping up all of the following:
-- The NRA -- Greenpeace -- The Sierra Club -- The Club for Growth -- PETA
If you wish to deal with tax deductions, better to eliminate them entirely than to just target churches.
I don't mind propping up humanitarian causes and universal health care, but I seriously object to supporting ANY religious organization -- which are mega-rich money-making corporations based on lying to and frightening their constituents.
It bothers me that there is no requirement for public financial disclosure. If donations to an organization are tax deductible, there should be a requirement for transparency as to how those donations are used.
My last "calling" in the church was being the financial clerk. I liked the job since I could show up during Sunday School and start counting the collections, and not have to go to other meetings. No one seemed to miss me.
Believe me that tithing is deductible. At the end of the year, each member or family got a statement of what they's donated during the year and I'm sure lots of them rounded up.
If I recall correctly, charitable deductions can only be claimed if you file the long form. If you own a home and have mortgage interest and insurance deductions any way, then tithing would be even more of a deduction, well worth it. But if you rent a home then most of the time you want to file the short form. If you rent your home and go long form anyway, you probably don't have enough deductions even with tithing deductions to come out ahead. Better off using the short form in that case and taking just the standard deduction, and getting no value from tithing deductions. Of course everyone's situation is different. But in most cases, this is how it is. I think!
It depends on your income. I believe the standard deduction for joint returns was $11,700 last year. If that's more than your charitable donations and other deductions, you wouldn't itemize. Most renters with incomes below $100K and no kids probably wouldn't itemize.
The US Government with its #1 rule which says "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion" subsidizes religions in this country by allowing charitable donations to religions to be free from taxation and by not requiring churches to pay any taxes.
In the US, maximum charitable deduction is 50% of AGI (amount on bottom of page 1 of form 1040). If you are donating property, the max deduction may be 20 or 30% of AGI depending on type of property and type of organization.
Excess contributions may be carried forward and deducted in succeeding years.
How much the deduction actually saves you in taxes depends on your tax bracket and the total amount of your deductions. Remember that you get the standard deduction regardless of any itemized deductions, so it is only the amount of itemized deductions above and beyond the standard deduction amount that lower your tax bill. Most people don't save as much in taxes by itemizing as they think they do.
No, it's because they don't take into account the standard deduction. SD for a married couple, both over 65 is $14,600. If they itemize $16,000 in expenses, and are in the 25% tax bracket, their taxes only go down $350 over not itemizing.
While that is better than a sharp stick in the eye, they are not getting back 25% of $16,000, they are getting 25% of $1,400. The rest they were getting anyway.
Not surprisingly, most retired couples don't come anywhere near the threshold for itemizing deductions. This is actually a very good thing. They get the standard deduction without having to actually spend the $14,600.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/20/2014 05:03PM by Brother Of Jerry.
Be careful! Contributions to the Sierra Club, and other organizations, like NOW, aren't tax-deductible because they do political lobbying. At least that's the reason I was given. Check out the tax exempt status before you give.
Not only is it deductible, but you can donate in-kind by signing over stocks to the church, claim it as a charitable donation, and not pay a good chunk of the penalty for cashing it out on top of claiming the deduction. For folks that get stock options as benefits for work, you can really make out like a bandit. It's not much more than legal money laundering.