End-of-Year Charity Giving Tips from the IRS

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As 2012 comes to a close, individuals and businesses need to remember some key tax provisions for making contributions to charity. The IRS offers these reminders for year-end giving:

To deduct monetary donations you must have a bank record or written document from the charity stating the name of the charity, the contribution amount and the date.
Contributions are deductible in the year made, even if the credit card bill isn't paid or the check isn't cashed until 2013.
Only donations made to qualified organizations are tax deductible. Make sure the organization you want to donate to is qualified before making any contribution.
Individuals must itemize their deductions on Form 1040 Schedule A or use a short form (Form 1040A and 1040EZ) to claim the standard deduction.

Find more year-end giving tips from the IRS.

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