I paid $50 to ride my horse in a fundraiser Poker Ride, an event where you ride and collect cards. The best hand wins a prize. Is the entry fee deductable?

[Carl]

Why bother? If $50 changes your tax liability (it most likely won't) then it would only reduce it by $1 at the absolute most. But even so, no, your entry fee is not deductible unfortunately. However, if you won a prize in excess of the entry fee, then the amount in excess of the entry fee "may" be taxable income. It just depends on to many factors to list here.

[xmasbaby0]

Your $50 was not a charitable donation.  You got something in return--the chance to win a prize.  It is not deductible.

[mindimouse]

Thank you. I participate in many horse events for non-profit groups and had always wondered about this.

[Opus 17]

That's not to say that all charity events are non-deductible.  It's the prize aspect that makes this the equivalent of a nondeductible raffle.  If you have a riding event with no prize, where are you are paying for a dinner, or the use of a particular facility, then the value of the deduction is your donation minus the value of any tangible benefit you received.  For example, if you paid $50 for a charity dinner, and the fair market value of the dinner was $25, you could take a charitable deduction for the other $25.   (If the dinner includes a raffle, or a Chinese auction, the additional money you spent for that would not be deductible because of the gambling aspect.)

[Opus 17 · Accepted solution]

Raffles and other forms of gambling are not tax deductible even when the proceeds go to charity.