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You will find that which IRS tax form to fill in depends on the value of the vehicle donated to charity. In this article we detail which sections and forms to fill in based on that value.

For vehicles with a value of less than $250, it is not normally necessary to obtain an acknowledgement from the charity of your donation. For a vehicle that has a value of between $250 and $500, you will be required to obtain an acknowledgement from the charity, including the date of donation, and a description of the car as well, and this receipt will need to be kept for your records, but not sent to the IRS.

If your car donation tax deduction amounts to greater than $500, then your written acknowledgement will need to be attached to Tax Form 1098-C and sent with your tax return. The acknowledgement must have your taxpayer id, along with your name, the date of contributing your car, the car identification number, and the gross proceeds received from the sale of your car by the charity concerned.

For car donations greater than $500, but lower than $5,000, you will need to fill in section A, from the IRS tax form 8283, and attach this to Tax Form 1040.

If the total value of your vehicle is greater than $5,000, you still fill in tax form 8283, but this time fill in section B of the form. You will also need to obtain the authorized signature from an official of the charity concerned, and attach this to your 8283 tax form. If the charity intended to use the vehicle for daily business, then you would need to get a written appraisal of your vehicles value with the aid of a qualified appraiser, and the appraisal should be made no later than 60 days before the date of donation to charity.