PTA donation receipt template

What a PTA donation receipt must say

There's no IRS form for this. The rules are in IRS Publication 1771, which also has sample wording. A donor can't deduct a single gift of $250 or more without a written acknowledgment from your group. It's technically the donor's job to ask for it, but your group is the one that has to provide it. The letter needs:

1. 1 Your group's name. Use the legal name on your EIN letter.
2. 2 The amount for a gift of money, or a description for a gift of items. Never put a value on donated items; that part is up to the donor.
3. 3 Whether the donor got anything in return. If not, say so: "No goods or services were given in return for your gift."
4. 4 If they did, a description of what they got and a good-faith estimate of its value.

The guide's letter also includes your EIN and, if your group is a 501(c)(3), a line saying so. Use your group's own EIN, never the school district's. Lost the EIN letter? An officer can call the IRS at 800-829-4933 for a replacement (Letter 147C).

Send letters for the calendar year by January 31. Pub 1771 also allows one summary letter for the year instead of one letter per gift. And thank every donor, whatever the amount. A gift under $250 doesn't need a letter under the $250 rule, but a thank-you is still the right thing to send.

When the donor gets something in return

A payment that's part gift and part purchase is called a quid pro quo contribution. Think of a gala ticket that includes dinner, or a seat at an auction dinner. If the payment is over $75, you must give the donor a written disclosure, even when it's under $250. It says that the amount they can deduct is limited to what they paid minus the value of what they got, and it gives your good-faith estimate of that value.

For example, a donor pays $100 for a fall gala ticket, and the dinner is worth about $40. The letter says they may be able to deduct $60.

Booster club donation receipts

A booster club uses the same letter. If your booster club is a 501(c)(3), the same Publication 1771 rules apply: a written thank-you for single gifts of $250 or more, and a disclosure for payments over $75 that are partly a gift. If it isn't, answer No in the generator and the letter leaves out the 501(c)(3) line and the deductible amount.

Ticketed dinners and auctions are where the "something in return" case comes up most, and Publication 1771's gala-style examples fit them well. Fill in what the guest received and your honest estimate of what it's worth.

Are booster club donations tax deductible?

Gifts to a 501(c)(3) are usually tax-deductible. A booster club, PTA or school PTO has that status only if the IRS has recognized it, or if it's very small: groups with gross receipts normally $5,000 a year or less can be exempt without applying. Having an EIN doesn't make a group tax-exempt.

To check, look your group up by EIN in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. If you're not listed, ask a CPA or your state PTA before you tell donors a gift is deductible. More on this in Is a PTO or booster club tax-exempt?

Is a PTA membership tax deductible?

There isn't one answer we can give you. It depends on what members get for their dues, and in a PTA, part of each membership is state and National PTA dues that you pass on. That's a question for a CPA or your state PTA. Until they've confirmed it, don't print "tax-deductible" on membership forms. The receipt rules on this page are for gifts.

PTA, PTO and booster club differences

• PTA units follow their state PTA first. California State PTA, for one, has a page on documentation for donors with a sample receipt.
• PTOs and booster clubs follow their bylaws, and a CPA is the best outside check on wording.
• All three use the group's own EIN on the letter, never the school district's, and add the 501(c)(3) line only if the IRS recognizes the group (or it's very small).
• Restricted gifts work the same everywhere. Money given for a specific purpose, like the 5th-grade trip, must be spent on that purpose. Track it separately in your treasurer's report.

Common mistakes

• Putting a dollar value on donated items. Describe them; the donor sets the value.
• Leaving out the "nothing in return" line. The letter has to say whether the donor got anything back, even when the answer is no.
• Treating a gala ticket as a plain gift. Over $75 with dinner or a prize attached, the donor needs the deductible amount in writing.
• Calling gifts tax-deductible when your group isn't a recognized 501(c)(3). Check first.
• Using the school district's EIN instead of your group's own.
• Holding fundraiser money anywhere but the group's account. Count it with two people and deposit it quickly, never into a personal account. See cash handling.