IRS Publication 526: Charitable Contribution Limits and Substantiation

The charitable contributions deduction rules in IRS Publication 526 govern which gifts reduce your federal tax, how much you can write off in a year, and what paperwork you need to keep the deduction if the IRS asks. In broad terms: you can deduct donations to qualified organizations up to a percentage of your adjusted gross income that varies with the type of gift and the type of charity, but only if you itemize or claim a new limited above-the-line deduction, and only if your substantiation meets specific thresholds.

Itemizing, or the New Above-the-Line Deduction

Charitable giving traditionally produces a federal tax benefit only if you itemize on Schedule A, which means your combined itemized deductions have to exceed the standard deduction before your gifts save you anything. For 2026, the standard deduction is $16,100 for single filers and $32,200 for married couples filing jointly.¹ Mortgage interest, state and local taxes, medical expenses, and charitable gifts have to clear that floor together before any of them generates savings.

Starting in 2026, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill added Section 170(p) of the Internal Revenue Code, allowing non-itemizers to deduct up to $1,000 in qualifying cash charitable contributions ($2,000 for married couples filing jointly) above the line.² That reduces your adjusted gross income directly. Overstating this deduction carries a 50% penalty, so the numbers you report need to match the receipts.³

Which Organizations Qualify

Your gift is deductible only if it goes to a qualified organization. The main category is entities recognized as tax-exempt under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3): religious, educational, scientific, literary, and charitable organizations, plus groups that prevent cruelty to children or animals.⁴ Gifts to federal, state, and local governments also qualify when made exclusively for a public purpose.

You can verify any organization’s status through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search before you give.⁵ A gift to an entity that isn’t qualified produces no deduction, no matter how careful your records are.

Contributions to foreign charities generally are not deductible, because the recipient has to be organized in the United States. A narrow treaty exception applies to some Canadian charities for taxpayers with Canadian-source income, subject to the same percentage limits that apply domestically. Taxpayers claiming a treaty-based deduction must disclose it on Form 8833.

What Counts, and What Doesn’t

Deductible contributions include cash, checks, electronic transfers, and property of every kind. Property gifts are valued at fair market value on the date of the gift, subject to the rules described below.

If you receive something back for your donation, only the amount above the value of what you received is deductible. A $500 payment for a charity dinner worth $150 produces a $350 deduction. The charity must give you a written disclosure for any quid pro quo payment over $75, estimating the value of what you received and stating the deductible portion.⁶

Several common payments never qualify:

Gifts to individuals, including paying someone’s rent or medical bills directly.
Political contributions to candidates, campaigns, or parties.
Raffle and lottery tickets, because you are buying a chance to win.
Tuition payments, which are payments for services.
The value of your time or services.

Volunteers can deduct out-of-pocket costs paid in service of a qualified organization. The charitable mileage rate for 2026 is 14 cents per mile, plus parking and tolls.⁷ Reasonable meals and lodging on overnight charitable travel are deductible when there is no significant element of personal vacation or recreation in the trip.

Valuing Property You Donate

Fair market value is the anchor for property gifts: what a willing buyer would pay a willing seller, both reasonably informed and neither under pressure. How much of that value you can actually deduct depends on what kind of property it is.

Ordinary Income Property Versus Capital Gain Property

Ordinary income property includes inventory, creative works you produced, and anything you have held for one year or less. Your deduction is the lesser of fair market value or your cost basis.⁸

Capital gain property is anything held more than one year that would produce a long-term capital gain if sold.⁹ You generally deduct the full fair market value and owe no tax on the built-in gain. For tangible personal property such as furniture, art, and collectibles, the charity has to use the item in a way related to its exempt purpose. A painting donated to a museum that displays it qualifies for full fair market value. The same painting donated to a hospital that sells it at auction limits your deduction to basis.

Publicly traded securities held more than one year always get full fair market value treatment regardless of how the charity uses the proceeds, which makes appreciated stock one of the most tax-efficient assets to give.

Vehicles, Boats, and Aircraft

If your claimed deduction for a donated vehicle exceeds $500, the deduction is generally limited to what the charity actually receives when it sells the vehicle. The charity has to give you Form 1098-C showing the sale price, and you need that form in hand before claiming the deduction.

Digital Assets

Cryptocurrency and other digital assets follow the same framework as other property. Held more than one year, they are capital gain property eligible for full fair market value. Digital assets do not qualify for the publicly traded securities exemption from appraisal rules, so a qualified appraisal is required any time the claimed deduction exceeds $5,000. Report digital asset donations in Section B of Form 8283.¹⁰

How Much You Can Deduct in One Year

Even generous givers hit a ceiling. The overall cap on all charitable deductions combined is 60% of adjusted gross income.⁸ Within that ceiling, four tiers apply based on what you gave and to whom:

60% of AGI for cash contributions to public charities (churches, schools, hospitals, and other “50% limit organizations” in IRS terminology).
50% of AGI for non-cash contributions of ordinary income property to public charities, reduced by cash contributions already claimed under the 60% tier. Qualified conservation contributions fall here as well.
30% of AGI for cash or ordinary income property given to private non-operating foundations, and for appreciated capital gain property given to public charities at full fair market value.¹¹
20% of AGI for appreciated capital gain property donated to private non-operating foundations.

Amounts above your limit are not lost. Excess contributions carry forward for up to five years and keep their original character, so a 30%-limit gift remains a 30%-limit gift in every carryover year.¹¹ Current-year gifts always come off the top before carryovers, so if you continue to give at a high level, older carryforwards can expire unused after the fifth year. Track them yourself. Neither the IRS nor the charity will.

Documentation and Substantiation

Most disallowed charitable deductions fail on paperwork, not substance. The rules are strict, the deadlines are real, and there is no reasonable-cause exception that rescues you from missing the required documentation.

Cash Contributions of Any Amount

For every cash donation, you need a bank record (canceled check, bank statement, or credit card statement) or a written receipt from the charity.¹² Without a written record, there is no deduction.

Contributions of $250 or More

Any single contribution of $250 or more (cash or property) requires a contemporaneous written acknowledgment from the charity stating the amount contributed or describing the property, and confirming whether the organization provided goods or services in return.¹³ You have to have this document by the earlier of the date you file your return or the filing deadline including extensions.¹² Courts have upheld disallowance even when the gift itself was not in dispute. Get the letter before you file.

Non-Cash Contributions Over $500

When your total deduction for non-cash contributions exceeds $500, you have to complete and attach Form 8283. Section A requires the property description, date and manner of acquisition, cost basis, and fair market value. A missing or incomplete Form 8283 generally results in disallowance.¹⁴

The $5,000 Appraisal Threshold

For any single item or group of similar items with a claimed value above $5,000, you need a qualified appraisal from a qualified appraiser and a completed Section B of Form 8283. The donee organization has to sign Section B to acknowledge receipt.¹⁴ Publicly traded securities are exempt from the appraisal requirement at any value because market quotes establish fair market value directly.⁸

Where It Goes on Your Return

Itemized charitable contributions are claimed on Schedule A of Form 1040.¹⁵ The 2026 above-the-line deduction for non-itemizers is reported as an adjustment to income on Form 1040 rather than on Schedule A.

Qualified Charitable Distributions From IRAs

Taxpayers 70½ or older have a separate route that doesn’t require itemizing. A qualified charitable distribution lets you transfer up to $111,000 in 2026 directly from a traditional IRA to a qualified charity.¹⁶ The transfer is excluded from taxable income and counts toward any required minimum distribution.

A regular IRA withdrawal followed by a donation is taxable income first. A QCD never enters your adjusted gross income, which matters for Medicare premium surcharges, Social Security taxation, and other income-based thresholds. Married couples with separate IRAs can each contribute up to $111,000.

Donor-advised funds, private foundations, and supporting organizations are not eligible QCD recipients. The distribution must move directly from the IRA custodian to the charity, not through you. Report QCDs by entering the total distribution on Form 1040 Line 4a and zero (or the non-QCD portion) on Line 4b.¹⁷

Penalties for Overvaluation

Inflated property valuations trigger escalating penalties. If your claimed value is 150% or more of the property’s actual value, you face a 20% accuracy-related penalty on the resulting tax underpayment. At 200% or more, the penalty doubles to 40%.³

You can avoid the 20% penalty for a substantial valuation misstatement by showing you obtained a qualified appraisal and made a good-faith investigation of value.¹⁸ That defense disappears at the gross valuation level of 200% or more. Appraisers who help overstate value face separate penalties and possible disbarment from IRS practice.¹⁹ A legitimate appraisal from an independent appraiser, with documentation kept, costs far less than a disallowed deduction plus a 40% penalty on the tax you already owe.

1
Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026
2
Internal Revenue Service. One, Big, Beautiful Bill Provisions
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 US Code 6662 – Imposition of Accuracy-Related Penalty on Underpayments
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Internal Revenue Service. Exempt Purposes – Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3)
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Internal Revenue Service. Tax Exempt Organization Search
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Internal Revenue Service. Charitable Contributions – Quid Pro Quo Contributions
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Internal Revenue Service. 2026 Standard Mileage Rates
8
Internal Revenue Service. Publication 526 (2025), Charitable Contributions
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1222 – Other Terms Relating to Capital Gains and Losses
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Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8283 (12/2025)
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 170 – Charitable, Etc., Contributions and Gifts
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Internal Revenue Service. Charitable Organizations – Substantiation and Disclosure Requirements
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Internal Revenue Service. Charitable Contributions – Written Acknowledgments
14
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8283 (Rev. December 2025)
15
Internal Revenue Service. About Schedule A (Form 1040), Itemized Deductions
16
Internal Revenue Service. 2026 Amounts Relating to Retirement Plans and IRAs
17
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1040
18
Internal Revenue Service. Reasonable Cause and Good Faith
19
eCFR. 26 CFR 1.170A-17 – Qualified Appraisal and Qualified Appraiser