Be sure to enter your charitable contributions in the charitable contributions section of your return. Then, any cash contribution amounts of at least $600 (for Married Filing Joint) will automatically be included as an adjustment on your return if you are using the standard deduction.
You can verify this by previewing your Form 1040 using these steps while you are working on your tax return:
- In the navigation area on the left side of your screen, click Tax Tools to expand your choices
- Click Tools, which will open the Tool Center
- Click View Tax Summary under “Other Helpful Links…”
- Click Preview My 1040 to see your actual tax form
Scroll down until you see line 12b. It should show $600 if your cash contributions were at least $600 and you are filing a joint return.