For contributions, according to the Tax Court, a couple made regular gifts of $250 or more to the church that they belonged to. However, the acknowledgment from the church failed to state that no goods or services were given for the donations. After the Service denied their write-off because of the faulty acknowledgment, they got a letter from the church saying they received no benefits for the contributions.
But that came far too late. The deduction was properly denied because the donors didn’t have valid substantiation in hand before filing the tax return.
From:
The Kiplinger Tax Letter
1100 13th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 • kiplinger.com • Vol. 87, No. 11
