Anthony wrote:
On 10/23/07, Brian McNeil brian.mcneil@wikinewsie.org wrote:
Florence Devouard wrote:
- the tax deduction is only available in the USA. Not anywhere else.
I put my donation last year through my accountants as tax deductible, and I'm in Belgium. What happened
I'm pretty sure Florence was wrong here.
"The Wikimedia Foundation has 501(c)(3) tax exempt status in the United States. Donations made from other nations may also be tax deductible. See deductibility of donations for details." http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/About_Wikimedia#Where_does_the_money_com... http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Deductibility_of_donations
At one level she is right, but it would be irresponsible for her to suggest anything else. It would be better to say that we have only reviewed tax deductibility in terms of the Internal Revenue Code of the United States, or to say "on United States tax returns" instead of "in the USA". Such detailed distinctions, however, are likely to go over the heads of all except those who have had an excessive intimacy with tax law.
Deductibility in other countries is a function of the tax laws there. and some may still allow these deductions.
Additionally, the tax deduction in the United States is only available to less than one third of taxpayers. If you take the standard deduction, you don't get a tax break for donations.
Shhh! Don't tell that to the starving students who may want to donate. :-)
Ec