Are Arizona School Tax Credits deductible on my Federal Return?

Arizona School Tax Credits

January 14, 2014

If you make a donation to a public school or private school you can qualify for a great tax deduction on your Arizona return.  However if you recommend a student to benefit from it then you cannot claim a Charitable deduction on your Federal return.

Here are the rules from the IRS website.

Contributions to Individuals

You cannot deduct contributions to specific individuals, including the following.

• Contributions to fraternal societies made for the purpose of paying medical or burial expenses of members.
• Contributions to individuals who are needy or worthy. You cannot deduct these contributions even if you make them to a qualified organization for the benefit of a specific person. But you can deduct a contribution to a qualified organization that helps needy or worthy individuals if you do not indicate that your contribution is for a specific person.
  Example. You can deduct contributions to a qualified organization for flood relief, hurricane relief, or other disaster relief. However, you cannot deduct contributions earmarked for relief of a particular individual or family.
• Payments to a member of the clergy that can be spent as he or she wishes, such as for personal expenses.
• Expenses you paid for another person who provided services to a qualified organization.
  Example. Your son does missionary work. You pay his expenses. You cannot claim a deduction for your son's unreimbursed expenses related to his contribution of services.
• Payments to a hospital that are for a specific patient's care or for services for a specific patient. You cannot deduct these payments even if the hospital is operated by a city, state, or other qualified organization.

Help because you want to help.

David Oase CPA