A donation receipt is given to a donor making a contribution to a 501(c)(3) non-profit charity. The receipt is required to be signed by the organization and kept by the donor for a period of at least 3 years. The receipt may be used at the end of the year when filing taxes and a portion may be deducted from the total amount owed to the IRS. In most cases, an individual filer may deduct up to 50% of their adjusted gross income.

By Organization (26)

• ACLU
• American Cancer Society
• American Red Cross
• ARC Thrift Store
• Arms of Hope
• Big Brother/Big Sister
• Boy Scouts of America
• Church
• Desseret Industries
• Epilepsy Foundation
• Feeding America
• Focus on the Family
• Girl Scouts
• Goodwill
• Habitat for Humanity
• JDRF
• MS Walk
• National MS Society
• Non-Profit (Charitable)
• Salvation Army
• Silent Auction
• Special Olympics
• St. Vincent De Paul
• United Way
• Vehicle
• YMCA

By Type (8)

• Cash ($)
• Clothing
• Food
• Furniture
• Hair
• In-Kind
• Personal Property
• Vehicle

Table of Contents

• Donation Receipt Templates: By Organization (26)
• Donation Receipt Templates: By Type (7)
• What is a Donation Receipt?
  • Requirements
  • Limits ($)
  • Tax Filing
• How to Donate to a Charity
  • Verify a Non-Profit
• Sample
• How to Write

What is a Donation Receipt?

A donation receipt is provided by a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that proves a contribution was made. Due to the tax benefits of a donation, the IRS has strict rules about cash payments and non-cash gifts made to charities. 

Requirements

The following must be included in all donation receipt of $250 or more:

• Organization’s name;
• Value ($) of contribution;
• Description of donation; ad
• A statement that the organization did not give any service or goods in exchange for the gift.

source: IRS – Charitable Contributions – Written Acknowledgments

Limits ($)

• Less than $250 – No receipt needed.
• $250 or more – Receipt needed (26 § 175(f)(8)(A))
• $500 or more – Full description of donation (26 § 175(f)(11)(B))
• $5,000 or more– A qualified appraisal is required (26 § 175(f)(8)(C))

Tax Filing

Donations allow an individual filer to claim they made less money on their annual tax filing with the IRS.

Up to 50% may be deducted off their adjusted gross income from IRS 1040 (line 8b). To claim a donation to the IRS, Form 1040 Schedule 1 (line 36) must be filed along with the individual’s personal tax records.

Source: 26 § 170(b)(1)(B)

How to Donate to a Charity

IRS 501(c)(3) Search – Lookup a non-profit and confirm its non-profit status.

Step 1 – How to Find a Charity

Step 2 – Verifying Non-Profit Status

Step 3 – Making the Donation

Step 4 – Getting the Receipt

Step 5 – Filing Taxes

Sample

Download: Adobe PDF, MS Word

How to Write

Download: Adobe PDF, MS Word

Step 1 –