The year is wrapping up and tax time is on the horizon. Taxpayers have hopefully been proactive throughout the year in preparing for filing the year’s taxes, and perhaps they are considering ways they might lighten their tax burden. It’s also the holiday season and giving is on our minds. Making donations to tax-exempt charities can be a win-win: It certainly benefits the charitable organization (and those whom they help) and can be helpful to the taxpayer in the coming year.

Qualified Charities

It’s important to make sure your donations accomplish those things, especially in this era of fraudulent charities and financial scams. Is your preferred charity tax-exempt and eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions? Has it had its tax-exempt status revoked? What is its federal tax filing status? Perhaps you’re looking for a charity to give to and would like to see who is operating in your state. The IRS has a tool that can help.

Tax Exempt Organization Search

The Tax Exempt Organization Search (TEOS) on IRS.gov can assist in answering these questions, and more. It’s mobile device friendly, and you can sort results by various criteria. The Interactive Tax Assistant can also help you determine if a charitable contribution you’d like to make is deductible. So before you make your year-end giving decisions, double-check to ensure your donations will be doing the most good, for everyone involved.