Donation deduction glossary
The 33 terms that decide what a donated bag of clothing is worth on a tax return, and what paperwork it drags along with it. Every definition cites the IRS publication, form, or guidance page it came from.
Deduction basics
AGI limit (percentage limitation)
A ceiling on charitable deductions expressed as a percentage of adjusted gross income, varying by gift type and recipient.
Read the definition →Automatic revocation
Loss of tax-exempt status for failing to file a required annual return or notice for three consecutive years.
Read the definition →Bunching
Concentrating two or more years of charitable giving into one tax year so that year clears the standard deduction, then taking the standard deduction in the off years.
Read the definition →Capital gain property
Donated property that would have produced a long-term capital gain if you had sold it instead of giving it away.
Read the definition →Carryover
Charitable contributions you could not deduct this year because of a percentage limit, carried forward to future years.
Read the definition →Charitable mileage rate
The fixed per-mile amount you may deduct for driving your own car while giving services to a qualified charity: 14 cents a mile, set by statute.
Read the definition →Group exemption ruling
A ruling under which a parent organization's exemption covers affiliated subordinates that are not individually listed.
Read the definition →Itemized deduction
A deduction claimed by listing specific expenses on Schedule A instead of taking the standard deduction.
Read the definition →Non-itemizer charitable deduction (2026)
A deduction the IRS states is available beginning in tax year 2026 for up to $1,000, or $2,000 jointly, of cash contributions by taxpayers who do not itemize.
Read the definition →Noncash contribution
A charitable gift of property rather than money: clothing, furniture, electronics, books, a vehicle, or securities.
Read the definition →Ordinary income property
Donated property whose sale would not have produced long-term capital gain. Its deduction is generally reduced below fair market value.
Read the definition →Qualified organization
An organization eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions. Giving to anyone else is generous, not deductible.
Read the definition →SALT cap
The limit on the itemized deduction for state and local taxes: $40,000 for 2025 and $40,400 for 2026 for most filers, phasing down at higher incomes and returning to $10,000 in 2030.
Read the definition →Schedule A (Form 1040)
The Form 1040 schedule where itemized deductions, including charitable contributions, are reported.
Read the definition →Standard deduction
The flat amount you can subtract from income without listing individual expenses. Taking it means charitable gifts generally do not reduce your tax.
Read the definition →Tax Exempt Organization Search
The free IRS database for checking whether an organization is eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
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Valuation
Condition tier
The grade assigned to a donated item, which selects a value range. DeductiBee uses Like new, Good, and Fair, and deliberately has no lower tier.
Read the definition →Fair market value (FMV)
The price property would sell for on the open market between a willing buyer and a willing seller, both informed and neither under compulsion.
Read the definition →FMV factors
The four considerations Publication 561 lists for arriving at fair market value: cost or selling price, comparable sales, replacement cost, and expert opinion.
Read the definition →Good used condition or better
The minimum condition standard for deducting donated clothing and household items, with a narrow exception above $500 backed by a qualified appraisal.
Read the definition →Qualified appraisal
A formal written valuation, prepared by a qualified appraiser under professional standards, generally required for deductions over $5,000.
Read the definition →Thrift shop value
What buyers of used items actually pay in consignment or thrift shops, which Publication 561 treats as an indication of value for used clothing.
Read the definition →Valuation misstatement penalty
An accuracy penalty that applies when a claimed value substantially or grossly exceeds the correct value of donated property.
Read the definition →
Forms and filing
Donee
The organization receiving the donation. On larger noncash gifts, the donee has paperwork obligations of its own.
Read the definition →Employer identification number (EIN)
A nine-digit federal tax ID. A charity's EIN identifies it uniquely, which is why it is the reliable way to look one up.
Read the definition →Form 8282
Donee Information Return, filed by a charity that disposes of donated property within three years of receiving it.
Read the definition →Form 8283
Noncash Charitable Contributions, the form attached to your return once your deduction for noncash gifts is more than $500.
Read the definition →Form 8283 Section B
The part of Form 8283 for donations over $5,000, requiring a qualified appraisal, an appraiser declaration, and the donee's signed acknowledgement.
Read the definition →Group of similar items
Items of the same general category or type, which are aggregated when testing the $5,000 appraisal threshold.
Read the definition →
Records and receipts
Contemporaneous written acknowledgment (CWA)
The written statement from the charity required for any single contribution of $250 or more, obtained before you file.
Read the definition →Photo evidence
Photographs of donated property, kept with the record. Not required by the IRS, but the cheapest way to show condition years later.
Read the definition →Quid pro quo contribution
A payment that is partly a gift and partly payment for goods or services. Only the excess over what you received is deductible.
Read the definition →Substantiation
The evidence you must hold to support a claimed charitable deduction, escalating in formality as the amount rises.
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The rules these terms come from
Definitions are the index. The guides are the argument.
- GuideForm 8283: the complete guideThe $500 filing line, the $5,000 appraisal line, Section A versus Section B, and the paperwork the charity has to sign.
- GuideDonation receipts and substantiationEvery record the IRS expects, tier by tier, and the deadline that quietly makes a late receipt worthless.
- GuideThe 2026 charitable deduction for non-itemizersWhat the IRS has actually published about the 2026 non-itemizer deduction, including the word that excludes most donated goods.
- GuideDoes this organization qualify?The first test any donation has to pass, how to run it against the IRS database, and why churches and thrift-store affiliates come back blank.
- ValuesDonation value guideThe definitions applied: every category we price, by condition tier, with the source next to each range.
- CalculatorDonation calculatorPut a real donation through the same ranges and see which thresholds it crosses.
Put the vocabulary to work
DeductiBee values what you donated from a sourced dataset, keeps the photo with the record, and exports a Form 8283 worksheet at filing time.
