Stock donation to charity

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Topic Author
Rudie
Posts: 10
Joined: Mon May 28, 2007 10:28 pm

Stock donation to charity

Post by Rudie »

I donated some stock shares to a charity. I mailed the paperwork to the charity in late December of 2013. The shares I owned were class A and had to be converted to class B by the brokerage before they could be transferred to the charity. The transfer of the shares to the charity occurred on February 14 according to the brokerage records. I received a letter from the charity indicating the date of the donation as being December 27, 2013 and included a stated value as of December 27.
After reading IRS documents regarding stock donation it looks as though this should be treated as a donation for tax year 2014 as this is when the transfer to the charity actually occurred. Is this correct even though the charity sent me documentation indicating the donation was made in 2013?
It appears the valuation of the donation should be the fair market value of the stock on February 14, 2014.
Any thoughts from those knowledgeable in tax matters? Thank you in advance.
Sidney
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Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2007 5:06 pm

Re: Stock donation to charity

Post by Sidney »

I think the first thing I would do is contact the charity and ask them why they are considering this a Dec. donation inasmuch as they didn't receive anything in December.
I always wanted to be a procrastinator.
Topic Author
Rudie
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Joined: Mon May 28, 2007 10:28 pm

Re: Stock donation to charity

Post by Rudie »

They received the initial paperwork initiating the transaction in December, but the stock transfer did not happen until February 2014.
TN_INVEST
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Re: Stock donation to charity

Post by TN_INVEST »

Rudie wrote:They received the initial paperwork initiating the transaction in December, but the stock transfer did not happen until February 2014.
I kinda think they transfer date is the magic date. Sounds like yours is 2014.
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Flobes
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Re: Stock donation to charity

Post by Flobes »

From IRS Pub 526, Charitable Contributions
When To Deduct
You can deduct your contributions only in the year you actually make them in cash or other property (or in a later carryover year, as explained under How To Figure Your Deduction When Limits Apply , later). This applies whether you use the cash or an accrual method of accounting.

Time of making contribution
Usually, you make a contribution at the time of its unconditional delivery.

Stock certificate
A properly endorsed stock certificate is considered delivered on the date of mailing or other delivery to the charity or to the charity's agent. However, if you give a stock certificate to your agent or to the issuing corporation for transfer to the name of the charity, your contribution is not delivered until the date the stock is transferred on the books of the corporation.
Topic Author
Rudie
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Joined: Mon May 28, 2007 10:28 pm

Re: Stock donation to charity

Post by Rudie »

Thanks everyone for the replies.
HouseStark
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Location: Minneapolis, MN

Re: Stock donation to charity

Post by HouseStark »

If you arrive at the conclusion to take this deduction for 2014, I would work with the donation recipient to make sure your donation acknowledgment agrees with that period. I agree that the transfer date of the stock would seem to be the governing date of the donation because that is when the value of the donation is determined.
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