I have a question about claiming my charitable donation tax deduction. Is there an itemized deduction limit for charitable donations? When I entered my charitable donations on my tax return my refund did not increase. Why would that be?

To benefit from itemizing a charitable donation tax deduction, your itemized deductions must be more than the standard tax deduction. As such, there is no itemized deduction limit per se, but the total itemized deduction must exceed the standard deduction allowed by the IRS to be of benefit to you.

The standard deduction is a dollar amount designated by the IRS that will reduce your taxable income. The standard deduction eliminates the need to itemize deductions for some taxpayers. To determine if the standard deduction or itemized deduction benefits you, you will need the following:

If you’re filing single, you need more than $13,850 in deductions before you’re allowed the itemized deductions.

If you’re married filing jointly, you need more than $27,700 in total itemized deductions before itemization will benefit you.

Additionally, you will need to maintain accurate records of your charitable donations by providing proof of the donation in the form of a receipt, bank record or written communication from the charity (such as a letter or receipt) showing the charitable organizations name and the date and amount of the donation.