While the car donation tax deduction you can get is the same everywhere, the way each state qualifies and verifies charities is not the same. But equally important, there are car donation scams in every state. Some may appear kosher but are actually crooked. Therefore you should do some detective work first. Good thing there is a site setup to make this a quick process.
But even well-meaning charities may not be operating legally. Often this is because they haven't paid a fee to the Attorney General's office for that state, or forgot to file some form. In some states the Secretary of State is the office that regulates charities. In any case, you should exercise 'due diligence' before selecting a charity to take your donation.
The bottom line is you won't get a car donation tax deduction if you use the wrong charity. But worse, the actual people who need the proceeds of your generous donation will not get squat. Just go to any state's Attorney General website - or its Secretary of State website - and you will find news of a local charity that got caught taking donations and keeping the money.
What is disturbing is that there is a never-ending supply of bogus charities forming all the time. One bogus charity gets shut down and another appears. So how can you quickly check out a charity beforehand? Many states have websites where you can type the name of a charity into a search box. Some have searchable databases of charities that have registered with them.
Note that most states' official websites stress the fact that registration in their charities database does not mean they endorse or recommend the charity in any way. The reality is a charity may be registered but is not necessarily a good charity, as it may give only a tiny percentage of donations to those in need. So the question is how can you find out if a charity is giving a good percentage of donations to those in need (in addition to being legit)?
You check with at least one of the online organizations that maintain a database of the "good" charities. These types of services maintain lists of charitable organizations that meet certain criteria. It is on these types of sites that you can find out if the charity you are considering is 'in good standing' or not.
Getting a vehicle donation tax deduction is probably one of the benefits you had in mind for donating your used vehicle to a charity. The bigger benefit, of course, is the satisfaction you will get from being a good deed doer. So make sure you are able to get both: Check out a charity the right way!
One good place to research eligible charities is on the IRS's website. A searchable list of charities able to take tax-deductible contributions is the IRS Pub 78. Everything you need to know about getting a car donation tax deduction can be downloaded as PDF documents from their site. The main one you would want to download is called, "A Donor's Guide to Vehicle Donation" (which is IRS Publication 4303).
While the car donation tax deduction you can get is the same everywhere, the way each state qualifies and verifies charities is not the same. But equally important, there are car donation scams in every state. Some may appear kosher but are actually crooked. Therefore you should do some detective work first. Good thing there is a site setup to make this a quick process.
But even well-meaning charities may not be operating legally. Often this is because they haven't paid a fee to the Attorney General's office for that state, or forgot to file some form. In some states the Secretary of State is the office that regulates charities. In any case, you should exercise 'due diligence' before selecting a charity to take your donation.
The bottom line is you won't get a car donation tax deduction if you use the wrong charity. But worse, the actual people who need the proceeds of your generous donation will not get squat. Just go to any state's Attorney General website - or its Secretary of State website - and you will find news of a local charity that got caught taking donations and keeping the money.
What is disturbing is that there is a never-ending supply of bogus charities forming all the time. One bogus charity gets shut down and another appears. So how can you quickly check out a charity beforehand? Many states have websites where you can type the name of a charity into a search box. Some have searchable databases of charities that have registered with them.
Note that most states' official websites stress the fact that registration in their charities database does not mean they endorse or recommend the charity in any way. The reality is a charity may be registered but is not necessarily a good charity, as it may give only a tiny percentage of donations to those in need. So the question is how can you find out if a charity is giving a good percentage of donations to those in need (in addition to being legit)?
You check with at least one of the online organizations that maintain a database of the "good" charities. These types of services maintain lists of charitable organizations that meet certain criteria. It is on these types of sites that you can find out if the charity you are considering is 'in good standing' or not.
Getting a vehicle donation tax deduction is probably one of the benefits you had in mind for donating your used vehicle to a charity. The bigger benefit, of course, is the satisfaction you will get from being a good deed doer. So make sure you are able to get both: Check out a charity the right way!
One good place to research eligible charities is on the IRS's website. A searchable list of charities able to take tax-deductible contributions is the IRS Pub 78. Everything you need to know about getting a car donation tax deduction can be downloaded as PDF documents from their site. The main one you would want to download is called, "A Donor's Guide to Vehicle Donation" (which is IRS Publication 4303).
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