Is anyone seeing the $300 charitable donations deduction for non-itemizers?

[cjlang]

I've entered well over $300 in charitable donations in itemized deduction but don't have enough to itemize, so I'm taking the standardized deduction.  The amount I entered for charitable deductions is showing on the 1040 but I'm not getting credit for the $300 deduction.

[MinhT1 · Accepted solution]

For 2020, you are allowed to deduct up to $300 ($150 if Married filing Separately) of cash donations to 501(c)3 organizations even if you do not itemize your deductions.

In order to take this above-the-line deduction, enter your donation(s) under Deductions & Credits > Charitable Donations > Donations to Charities in 2020.  The deduction will be added above-the-line by TurboTax after you have completed the  Wrap up tax breaks interview in TurboTax if you take the Standard deduction.

On your form 1040, this deduction appears on line 10b - Charitable contributions if you take the standard deduction.

[zacknauth]

Thank you! After I completed the "interview" step, the deduction was applied.

[Irene2805]

Just follow the directions Minh posted above and TurboTax will automatically post the deduction on line 10b of the 1040,

[cjlang]

Thank you.  It worked!

[ingridgschnell]

I entered the $300 donation in error and I can not find it in turbotax to remove it.  How do I find this to remove it?

[BillM223]

Since this deduction is valid only if you have $300 or more in cash contributions and if you take the Standard Deduction, try going back into charitable contributions and removing the cash contributions.

This should not affect your tax return because you are taking the Standard Deduction anyway, right? 

Then make sure you go all the way through the Federal Review again (where the last time it told you about this deduction) - TurboTax may or may not tell you that the $300 deduction is not valid, but you will check your 1040 to make sure that it is gone.

@ingridgschnell

[slowreader]

You say: "The deduction will be added above-the-line by TurboTax after you have completed the  Wrap up tax breaks interview"

I don't like and don't use the interview. It's faster and easier for me to enter directly on the forms since I have been filing taxes since the late 1940s. I have filled out two Charitable Organization Worksheets, and the $200 shows up on Schedule A but does not transfer to Form 1040, line 10B, even though Line 12 shows the $27,400 Standard Deduction.

How do I fix that? (Or rather: how does TurboTax fix that?)

Thanks!

[DMarkM1]

You will need to click through the "Charitable Donations" interview topic and "Wrap up tax breaks" to trigger the update on the forms.

[slowreader]

That seems to be another way of saying that TurboTax won't be fixing the glitch this year.

Same thing happened with the ACA when it was first introduced: the information wouldn't transfer for at least one, maybe two, years before it got fixed.

And then there was the mess TTax made of the Kiddie Tax!

Grin and bear it, I guess. And give the software a three-star rating.

[DoninGA]

@slowreader Just go to the Form 1040/1040SR Worksheet and enter the contribution amount on Line 10b

[cjlang]

Refer to very first reply from MihnT.  It wasn't a glitch but you need to finish the process by hitting "Wrap up deductions." 

[cjlang]

I don't know which version of TurboTax you're using but I am using the online version where everything ids done via interview.  There is no capability that I am aware of to enter data directly to tax forms.

[jhalonenm]

I entered that I donated $2000 in cash.  Turbotax allowed $2000 deduction, without reducing it to $300.  Is this an error in their program?

[slowreader]

Well, it doesn't get reduced on Schedule A. But when I went through the irritating Step-by-Step, the higher figure didn't carry over to Form 1040. Indeed the $300 didn't carry over, either! (No, no glitches here! Move along now!) It's supposed to appear on Line 10b, but it doesn't. But it does show up on line 10c, which adds 10a and 10b.

Of course the fault lies with the Congressfolk who keep changing the laws and the IRS bureaucrats who try to keep up with the changes. TurboTax EVENTUALLY gets this stuff right, but it may take a year or two, by which time of course the laws will be changed again. My only gripe is that TurboTax Help generally denies there IS a problem.