Year-end giving season is here, and there is one small piece of paperwork that protects your donors — and your organization: the written donation acknowledgment.
A thank-you note is kind. It is not always enough for the IRS.
Here is the rule that matters most:
1. Gifts of $250 or more need a written acknowledgment. Without one, your donor generally cannot claim the deduction — even if the gift was real. The acknowledgment should show your organization's name, the date, and the cash amount (or a description of a non-cash gift).
2. It must say whether anything was given in return. If no goods or services were provided in exchange for the gift, say so in writing. That one sentence is the part most often missing.
3. Fundraiser tickets and dinners are different. When a payment over $75 is part gift and part payment — for a dinner, event, or item — you must give a written disclosure that separates the deductible gift part from the value of what the donor received.
4. Timing matters. Donors need the acknowledgment by the time they file their tax return, so send receipts promptly — ideally right after the gift, and always early in the new year for December gifts.
Keep a copy of every acknowledgment you send. Good receipts build donor trust, make year-end giving easier, and show funders and the IRS that your organization handles money carefully.
Small paperwork, done right, protects a big deduction.
— 501c3 Expert
We handle all your 501(c)(3) paperwork — nonprofits set up from start to finish, and Form 990s prepared every year.
Call/text 561-212-1192 · 501c3expert.com
Questions are welcome — that’s how our podcast topics are chosen.