Is Tithing Tax Deductible?

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If you give regularly to your church as a tithe, you might be wondering if it’s tax deductible. It can be, but there are a few things you need to know first. Here’s how to determine if your tithe is tax deductible, how much you can deduct and what requirements must be met.

How to Claim Tithing on Your Taxes

Tithing is tax deductible, but only if you meet certain requirements:

• You must itemize your tax deductions for the year.
• You must give to a qualified charitable organization, which is usually a 501(c)(3).
• Tithing over $250 at a time requires written acknowledgement from your church to be deductible.
• You must not receive goods or services in return for your donation.
• If you do receive any goods or services for your donation, you must subtract the value of those goods or services from your deduction.

If you’re unsure whether your church has tax-exempt status, you can use the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search tool to look up your church.

Tax Laws Surrounding Charitable Donations

The only way to qualify for itemization is to have enough deductions to exceed your standard deduction.

Currently, the standard deductions are as follows:

• Single: $14,600
• Married, Filing Jointly: $29,200
• Head of Household: $21,900

If your Schedule A deductions, including tithing donations, exceed these amounts, then you can claim your tithe as a deduction on your tax return.

Deduction Limits

There’s also a limit on how much giving you can deduct on your tax return. The IRS stipulates that you can only deduct charitable giving up to 50% of your adjusted gross income. This means if your AGI is $100,000, you can only deduct up to $50,000 of charitable giving on your taxes. Any cash donations exceeding this amount can be rolled over and deducted on your next five tax returns.

Differentiating Between Tithing and Other Donations

Tithing is treated the same from a tax perspective as cash contributions to other nonprofit organizations. Tithing is deductible when itemizing your tax return — up to 50% of your adjusted gross income — while other cash and property donations may be more limited.

If you give something other than money to a nonprofit, such as donating to a thrift store or donating your car to a church, the IRS treats these donations a bit differently. 

• You can deduct the fair market value of items donated
• You can deduct up to $500 in noncash donations without providing receipts to the IRS, though, you must keep them for your records.
• For donations over $5,000 in value, you must get an official appraisal and include it with your tax return as proof of value.
• Certain types of property have specific documentation requirements to be deductible.

Is Tithing Considered a Charitable Contribution?

Tithing is considered a cash donation or cash charitable contribution as long as the church you are donating to is an accredited 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

There are limits on the amount of charitable contributions you can deduct for the year. Church donations have the highest limit of 50% of your adjusted gross income. If your giving exceeds this amount, don’t worry; you can rollover the deductions for the next five years.

Charitable contributions as a whole are usually deductible on your tax return if you itemize. However, some deductions are more limited than church tithing. If you’re sticking to the strict definition of tithing and are giving 10% of your gross income to the church, you’ll most likely stay under the 50% AGI limits for deductibility.

The 10% Rule: How Much Should You Tithe?

The term “tithing” is based on the Biblical principle of giving 10% of your income (tithe means 10) to the church. Many churches advocate that you attempt to give 10% of your income as a baseline, but most Bible-believing churches don’t use 10% as a hard and fast rule anymore.

Did You Know?

Tithe means tenth, or 10, which comes from the principle of giving a tenth of your income to the church.

When giving, if you choose to tithe 10% of your income, you can base it on your gross income or take-home pay. And if you can’t give 10%, most churches encourage giving what you are able with a cheerful heart.

Bottom line on tithing — give what you can and do so cheerfully.

Calculating Your Tithing Deductions

If you’re tithing to the church regularly and have enough deductions to itemize your deductions for the year — here’s how you calculate your tithing deductions:

1. Total Up Your Donations for the Year

Most churches allow you to give online or in person these days. If you donate cash in person, you’ll need to create a receipt of your cash gifts — and any cash donations over $250 will need a written receipt from the church. If you give online, many churches will keep records and send a letter with your total tithing amount for the year.

2. Add Any Other Cash Contributions

If you contributed cash to the church for anything outside of your regular tithe, make sure to add that to your giving total. The IRS does not differentiate between cash gifts to your church. Cash gifts to other organizations may be subject to limitations.

3. Add In Any Property Given

In addition to cash gifts, you may have donated property to your church or other nonprofit organizations. Make sure to add up the fair market value of those gifts–and be mindful of the noncash gift limitations.

4. Combine With Other Itemized Deductions

After adding up all of your eligible cash and property donations, make sure to add those to Schedule A on your tax return. Schedule A will combine your donations with other deductions to give you a total for the year. Your itemized deductions must exceed the standard deduction for you to write off your tithing donations.

The Bottom Line

Tithing is not automatically deductible. Since the passing of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017, many individuals and families have not been able to deduct tithing at all. To get a deduction for your church giving, you must itemize your tax deductions. With the standard deduction at all-time highs, many people don’t qualify for itemization.

Tithing must be done to a qualified nonprofit organization. Some religious organizations don’t qualify for tax-exempt status; therefore your tithes are not deductible.

Finally, tithing is not only about the tax deduction. Many churches still encourage giving, even if you can’t deduct it.

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