Tsunami Relief Contributions Tax Deductable

A new law allows taxpayers who itemize to deduct on their 2004 tax returns certain contributions to charities to aid the victims of the tsunami even if the contribution was made during January 2005. For more information, see New Law Encourages Tsunami Relief Contributions.

Generally, contributions are deductible for the year in which they are actually made.

Contributions to domestic, tax-exempt, charitable organizations that provide assistance to individuals in foreign lands qualify as tax-deductible contributions for federal income tax purposes provided the U.S. organization has full control and discretion over the uses of such funds.

Publication 3833, Disaster Relief: Providing Assistance through Charitable Organizations (PDF 507K), explains how the public can use charitable organizations to help victims of disasters, and how new organizations can obtain tax-exempt status.

New Organizations

New organizations seeking tax-exempt status to provide relief to victims of the December 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia should apply by filing Form 1023, Application for Recognition of Exemption (PDF 882K) and write "Tsunami Relief" at the top of the form. The IRS will give these applications immediate attention.