Grace Charitable Contributions: What YOU need to Know…..
There are some questions that come up every year and we hope this FAQ sheet will be helpful to you when deciding how and when you are able to make a donation to Grace Baptist Church and if it is considered Tax Deductible.
1. If I make a contribution in early January, can I claim it on the previous year taxes? No. Charitable contributions must be claimed in the year in which they are received.
2. If I mail my contribution in December of this year, but it doesn’t reach the church until January of next year, for which tax year can it be claimed? On the return for this year. A check that is mailed to a charity is deductible in the year the check is mailed (and postmarked), even if it is received early in the next year.
3. Can I deduct the value of volunteer work I did for the church? No. The value of personal services is never deductible as a charitable contribution. However, unreimbursed expenses you incurred in performing services on behalf of a church or other charity may be. For example, 2009 as well as in 2010 you can use a “standard mileage rate” of 14 cents to compute a deduction for any miles you drive in performing services for your church. Be sure to maintain accurate records.
4. Retreats such as Journey, Guys & Girls Retreat, Women of Grace Spring Retreat- are the payments I make to attend the retreat deductible? No, assuming you received benefits (lodging, instructions, materials) worth the cost of the retreat or more. Charitable contributions generally are deductible only to the extent they exceed the value of any premium or benefit received by the donor in return for the contribution.
5. Is there any limit to the amount of my contributions I can deduct on my taxes? Yes. A contribution ordinarily cannot exceed 50% of a donors adjusted gross income (a 30% rule applies in some cases). Donors who exceed these limits may be able to “carry over” their excess contribution and deduct in future years.
6. I designated my contribution to the church Benevolence Fund. Is it deductible? That depends. “Designated contributions” are those made to a church for a specified purpose. If the purpose is an approved project or program of the church, you can deduct the contribution (if you claim itemized deductions on Schedule A). For FY 2010 Benevolence is an approved designated fund.
7. Which church funds can I designate contributions to in 2010? There are currently 4 church funds to designate your contributions to. They are: General Budget, IAP (Imagine A Place building fund), Grace Missions and Benevolence.
8. How can I donate to the church? Upon request, the church provides offering envelopes. These are assigned to the donor by number and are used to ensure accurate posting of the donated funds. Donations can be made by cash, check , or online thru your banks web-bill pay. In addition, donations of stock are also accepted. Please contact our Financial Secretary for instructions or to ask for offering envelopes at 703-670-5032 or via email at
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.
****Please note, if there are any discrepancies in your annual statement, please contact Lisa Glidwell (Grace Baptist Church Financial Secretary) at 703-670-5032 or email at
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. Any correction requests must be reported to the Financial Secretary no later than April 15th of the current year for the donations & contributions made from 1 January thru 31 December of the previous year being filed for. After April 15th, no further adjustments can be made for the previous or subsequent years.****
Thank you for being a part of Grace Baptist Church and supporting the many needs in our community and around the world. Your generous donations are used to fund many ministries such as Benevolence –assisting those in the community needing food and help with utilities, Helping Hands of Grace- working with the Homeless, Mops (mother’s of Preschoolers), GA’s (girls in action), DSM (driven student ministries), AWANA (3 years old thru 8th grade children’s discipleship program), Adult discipleship, community groups as well as local and overseas missions. There are over 60+plus ministries here at Grace that your donations help support and the ones listed above are just a few of them. Your time, donations and prayers really do matter. When we seek God’s intent for His church each year and follow His direction, we are all blessed to see what miracles He can do with what we are able to offer no matter the amount.
Lisa Glidwell
Financial Secretary
Grace Baptist Church
· Reference List:
Hammar, Richard. (2009, December). Church Law & Tax Report: Your Charitable Contributions-7 Things Every Church Member Needs to Know. Published by Christianity Today International.
