#GivingTuesday - Making a Difference One Donation at a Time

Today, we recognize #GivingTuesday, a social movement which encourages others to give back by donating time, money or positive influence to a worthy cause that makes a difference. Generous efforts such as donating blood, providing financial support to a local organization, visiting a nursing home, or even helping out at a soup kitchen can touch the lives of many.

Even large organizations such as PayPal have “seized the season” and partnered with its users to celebrate the #GivingTuesday initiative, adding 1% of all donations made through their portal from now until the end of the year.

Since we’re talking about donating to charity, we’d love for you to share with us ways that you will donate! Are you a part of a charity or nonprofit organization who could use some donations to support the mission of the organization? If so, post the group name and information in the comments so other readers can donate!

For tax-exempt organizations, donations are a major component to its success and level of outreach. Thankfully, taxpayers have the ability to maximize their tax savings before the end of the year by giving to a charity and deducting it on their annual federal income tax return.

#GivingTuesday Tax Filing Reminders

With #GivingTuesday being an annual event, there are some reminders that taxpayers should be reminded of as they give money or good to an exempt charity or organization before December 31.

Donations to Eligible Organizations (Only) are Tax-Deductible

Churches, synagogues, temples, mosques, and government agencies are eligible to receive deductible donations. For a complete list of eligible organizations, click here.

Itemize to Claim Charitable Donations

Charitable deductions cannot be made if an individual chooses the standard deduction. Taxpayers must itemize their donations on Form 1040 Schedule A to claim deductions for charitable contributions.

Have Proof of Monetary Donations

Upon making a donation, be sure to receive a bank record or a written statement from the charity/organization to prove the amount and date given. Taxpayers using payroll deductions should retain a pay stub, a Form W-2 wage statement or other proof showing the total amount withheld for charity, along with the pledge card showing the name of the charity.

Donating Property

Donating items such as clothing and other household items come with a deduction amount that is normally limited to the fair market value of the item. These types of items must be in good or better condition to be considered tax-deductible.

Similar to monetary donations, those that donate property must get a written acknowledgment from the charity for all gifts that are worth $250 or more. This statement should include a description of the items contributed.

What Happens After You Donate?

Once you’ve donated and received the necessary paperwork for your deduction, all that’s left to do is simply file your annual tax return. However, tax-exempt organizations have a few more steps to take such as filing their required Form 990 each year.

Exempt organizations are required to file this return to ensure that their organization is not abusing its tax-exempt status. The IRS also utilizes the information reported on Form 990 and makes it available for public information.

Luckily, exempt organizations can handle all of their Form 990 filing needs right here at ExpressTaxExempt with our easy, simplified filing process, and can even instantly share their information with GuideStar, the world’s largest source of nonprofit organization information.

Give, Give, Give!

The ExpressTaxExempt team encourages you to take some time this holiday season and give back in some way in honor of #GivingTuesday. Once again, feel free to comment on ways that you or your organization are helping out today and days to come as well as providing your organization's information to gain support from fellow ExpressTaxExempt users.

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Give Now, Receive Later: Donate & Get Money Back

At ExpressTaxExempt we respect the services that nonprofits, charities, and exempt organizations provide to their community. These groups help so many from day to day, so “now let us help you!”

As expected, most nonprofit organizations and charities aim to receive donations and contributions from generous givers to support their philanthropic endeavors. One may ask, “Why would a tax company be concerned with donations?” To answer that question, all contributions and donations to an organization qualified by the IRS can be deducted from your tax return when filing. For those that are in charge of collecting donations for your organization(s), this is a great interesting fact to share with your potential donors.

We’ve listed some tips here for you and your donors to utilize to ensure that your contributions  will positively pay off during tax filing and tax return season.  

TIP #1: Make donations to a qualified organization. Deductions on your tax return cannot be made to specific individuals, political organizations and candidates.

(Exempt Organizations Select Check Tool)

TIP #2: Must file Form 1040 and itemize deductions on Schedule A. (Extension Form Available).

TIP #3: Benefits received from contributions, such as merchandise or tickets to a game, can only deduct the amount which exceeds the market value of the received benefit.

TIP #4: Non-cash property or stock donations are usually valued at fair market value. Clothing and household items should be in good used condition or better in order to be deducted.

• Fair Market Value: The agreed price at which property would change hands between a willing buyer and seller.

TIP #5: Regardless the amount, a bank record or payroll deduction record must be maintained for a contribution of cash, check, or other monetary gift. Written communication from the organization [that received the donation] with the name of the organization stated along with the date and amount of the contribution will also suffice for verification purposes.

TIP #6: For contributions of cash or property equaling $250 or more the following must be provided to claim a deduction:

• Bank record
• Payroll deduction record
• Written acknowledgement from organization
• **One document may satisfy these requirements**

TIP #7: If the total deduction for all non-cash contributions for the year is over $500, an

IRS Form 8283 must be completed and attached to your return.

TIP #8: Donating items or a group of similar items valued at more than $5,000 must also complete Section B of Form 8283, which will more than likely require an appraisal by a qualified appraiser.

Whether you are responsible for collecting donations for your charitable or nonprofit organization or considering to make a donation, ExpressTaxExempt is here to help you each step of the way and provide beneficial content for you and your organization. Also, be sure to visit ExpressTaxFilings for your personal e-filing needs as well as ExpressExtension to be granted extra time to gather all necessary information. If you need any help at all with the filing process, don’t hesitate to give us a call. We’re available Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EST, at (704) 839-2321 and through live chat on our site. We also offer 24/7 email assistance at support@ExpressTaxExempt.com.

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Increase Donations with Social Media

So you started a nonprofit organization, and now it's time to earn those donations. What do you do? The traditional route of holding fundraisers, networking with local businesses, and using postal mail to communicate with your potential donors are time-tested strategies that work. But marketing through social media is now a serious contender for nonprofits.

Just in the last few years, large scale nonprofit and tax exempt organizations have had successful campaigns through social media. Remember #GivingTuesday? Events like that are near impossible without the social aspect. 

With the ever-growing popularity of Twitter and Facebook, your tax exempt organization needs to have a social game plan. Follow these tips and tricks to boost donations to your nonprofit.

Inform Your Donors

Openness can take you far! Want to keep your donors interested in your mission? Update your followers on how you allocate donations. By tweeting your numbers or posting a photo to Facebook, you create an informed audience. When followers see their donations going to the mission, they’ll know your organization is trustworthy. What better way to inspire more donations than to show your donors with the fruits of their labor? You can also tweet out promotional images, keeping your followers informed of upcoming events.

When you update your donors on your mission, you keep things conversational. This is why for-profit businesses have such a strong presence on social. Best of all, social media is free, but it does have both organic and paid methods of boosting your reach.

Improve Interactivity and Engagement

Want to mobilize action fast? The high speed reaction time over social media lets donors know when you need funds, goods, or volunteers. Of course, for this you need engagement. With engagement and interactivity, your organization will take a campaign to the next level.

There are major benefits from social media for your organization, too. Not only can you interact with your audience, you can measure engagement and see what works best for messaging. When you engage your supporters, you create a conversation that you can use to refine your mission.

Improve your Fundraising and Crowdfund

When it comes down to it, you need to establish a relationship of communication with your donors so you don’t come off as another bill. By building a community, your donors will feel more inclined to give. With multiple channels, you can promote your fundraiser and crowdfund across Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and even LinkedIn. This increased reach will boost your fundraising without question.

Have questions about e-filing Form 990? Contact our US-based customer support team at 704.839.2321, or email us anytime at support@expresstaxexempt.com. And be sure to check out our social media footprint on Facebook and Twitter!

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Gifts and Contributions

Isn’t the holiday season the most special time of year? The streets and houses are adorned with festive decorations, holiday music plays through the radio, or through your streaming music service, and the television airs the annual list of holiday specials. While it may be a couple more weeks before we are all back around family and friends, these things are our first glimpse of the holiday season, and as the song pronounces, “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.”

One of the most common trends of this time of year is giving donations, and with the #GivingTuesday kickoff earlier this week, the act of giving is now in full effect. For those of you operating nonprofits and charities, it has to be an exciting time with all the contributions you’re receiving. In most cases, you’ll have to report those contributions when you file a tax return for your exempt organization.

With ExpressTaxExempt, reporting your contributions is as simple as waking up on Christmas morning.

After you’ve completed entering your organization details, prior year information, and your organization’s program service, you can begin to enter your contributions and gifts from the “Statement of Revenue” page.

1. Click the “Start” link for “Contributions, Gifts, Grants.”

2. Click “Start” if you need to list “Contributions from Fundraising Events” or “Contributions, Gifts, Grants, and Similar Amounts Received.”

Let’s say your organization has a holiday fundraiser, and it received contributions and donations from that fundraiser. Here, you can…

3. Enter the required income and contribution amount, and any expenses, from the fundraising event, then click the “Add” link.

If you didn’t host a fundraising event, and your organization accepted contributions as they were given, you can…

4. Click “Yes” for “Did you receive any contributions, gifts, grants and similar amounts received?”

5. Enter the required contribution details and click “Add Another” to list another contribution, or click “Add” to list only what you’ve just entered. That’s all there is to it.

“Do I have to list every individual contribution? I don’t have to with the paper form.”
We hear this quite often, and we understand that entering every single contribution can be tedious. While you might not have to do that with the paper form, please keep in mind that, with e-filing, you’re using sophisticated software with automated calculations and algorithms. The program even states the contribution will be factored into your public support percentage.

So if you tell a program that your organization receives at least 33% of its support from contributions, memberships fees, etc., then the program is going to automatically attempt to factor 33% from your list of contributions. If you list them as one large donation, that’s going to prompt an improper calculation, which will fail your public support test.


Bulk Upload

To compensate for having to sit within the program, and list contributions one by one, we do offer a bulk upload feature, which can list all your contributions at once.

All you need to do is

• Step 1 - Download our pre-set Excel template.
• Step 2 - Enter your contributions within the template and save.
• Step 3 - Upload your saved template from your computer.

In this merry time of year, as well as anytime of year, our jolly support team in Rock Hill, South Carolina is more than happy to answer any questions, or help with any assistance you may need with e-filing your tax return. Give us a call at (704) 839-2321 Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST. Email us anytime, 24/7 at support@expresstaxexempt.com, or live chat with us at www.expresstaxexempt.com.

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#GivingTuesday

We spend Thanksgiving reflecting upon what we’re thankful for, we have Black Friday and Cyber Monday to participate in some of the best shopping deals of the year, and now the consecutive day tradition continues on with #GivingTuesday - a dedicated, global day to giving back. Since 2012, the Tuesday following Thanksgiving has committed the world coming together to promote generosity, and to give back to communities and those less fortunate.

Humble Beginnings
#GivingTuesday began with the charitable organization, 92nd Street Y, as a way to connect diverse groups of people, organizations, and businesses worldwide to honor and support the act of giving. The movement utilizes the limitless capabilities of social media as a platform for donors, no matter how big or small, to encourage donations of resources, talents, or even just time towards local challenges.

Participation
Anyone, anywhere can become involved with #GivingTuesday. All it takes is just coming up with some way you, your family, your organization, or your business can give back to your community. While you are giving, inform as many as you can about how you’re giving through various social media channels. You can post text, a photo, or even a video with the #GivingTuesday in your post.

You can give as much or as little as your heart deems necessary; however, remember that if you’re giving considerably, you can deduct the amount during tax season. For more information about tax deductions from giving to charity, check out the following blog:
Year-End Gifts for Charity

Nonprofits & Charities
#GivingTuesday serves as the grand kickoff for the charitable season, when people have their attention set on holiday and end-of-year giving. On your end, your nonprofit or charity organization may have to report contributions and gifts received if they exceed a certain amount. With ExpressTaxExempt, you can report those amounts as simple as listing the name of donor, the type of donation, and the monetary value of the donation.

ExpressTaxExempt also offers a bulk upload feature so you can list all your received contributions at once. All you need is to have your contributions listed on a spreadsheet, and then upload that spreadsheet within the program. We even provide a pre-made spreadsheet that you can download directly from us.

It truly is the start of the giving season, and our live support team in Rock Hill, South Carolina is available to give any assistance you may need to e-file a tax return for your exempt organization. Contact us at (704) 839-2321, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST. We also offer 24/7 email support through support@expresstaxexempt.com, or feel free to live chat us at our website.


Don’t forget to share with us your acts of giving in the comment section below!

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