Tax Deduction for Food Donations?

[NiftyThrifty]

Has anyone ever done this? If so, is it off the price before or after coupons? And, do you get receipt from whomever you donated to or save the grocery store receipts?

Thanks!

[kllydnvn]

I've always been told to take the actual value of the product for charity purposes not what you can buy it for. HTH

[SavingInLakewood]

I just took some stuff down to the women's shelter. They got a ton of Kotex, BioInfusion, and Sunsilk. :-) On their receipt they had me fill out which they sign and provide and my receipt, they had me list my appx value I was donating.

[vagabond2]

one thing I would suggest is take a picture of your donations....this way you have something to show.........I just attach this to my list of donated items which I then staple to the receipt

[flmomof2]

I think the tax deduction is "fair market value". So, I would use value before any discounts or Qs.

[lucid]

I asked my tax pro and he said you take EITHER the fair market value OR the cost, whichever is LOWER. And he has to do it that way at his office.

Also, keep in mind that when you itemize donations, you need to have something substantial (such as a receipt) to back up your claim. And even then, cost remains a factor. For example, if you have a receipt showing you paid $9 for an item, but you get a rebate later on from the manufacturer for $9, you have an actual cost of 0, not $9.

If you have any questions, I recommend that you check with your tax pro and/or read the IRS code. And if you use a pro, be sure it is one who will sign your return and be willing and able to represent you to the IRS in case of any reviews of your return by the IRS.

[ShortyQ]

Originally Posted by lucid

I asked my tax pro and he said you take EITHER the fair market value OR the cost, whichever is LOWER. And he has to do it that way at his office.

Also, keep in mind that when you itemize donations, you need to have something substantial (such as a receipt) to back up your claim. And even then, cost remains a factor. For example, if you have a receipt showing you paid $9 for an item, but you get a rebate later on from the manufacturer for $9, you have an actual cost of 0, not $9.

If you have any questions, I recommend that you check with your tax pro and/or read the IRS code. And if you use a pro, be sure it is one who will sign your return and be willing and able to represent you to the IRS in case of any reviews of your return by the IRS.

That's great to know, thanks for sharing that info! Luckily we are early in the year so we can keep track of the receipts where we've purchased things that we've donated for next year's tax returns.

[NiftyThrifty]

My tax consultant just told me I can only deduct the actual amount paid for the grocery items I donate, not the fair market value

[Sylvia]

I'd get another tax person and refuse to pay this one...


Read page 12 of this publication from the IRS... on the right it says "fair market value of the food you donate.

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p526.pdf