2009 Tax Break for Haiti Relief Donations
Tax Break for Haiti Relief Donations – On January 12, 2010, a massive earthquake struck the nation of Haiti, causing catastrophic damage inside and around the capital city of Port-au-Prince. President Obama promised the people of Haiti that “you will not be forsaken; you will not be forgotten” and ordered an immediate response to the catastrophe that was swift, coordinated, and aggressive.
Since then, the United States has taken a whole-of-government approach to facilitate and enhance the work of our partners in Haiti and across the international community. Thanks in part to this global effort, as well as the leadership of the Haitian government, Haitians have better access to clean water, food, and medical care than they had before the quake.
Under the The Haiti Assistance Income Tax Incentive Act, taxpayers may be able to write off certain charitable donations to Haiti earthquake relief efforts when filing their 2009 tax returns.
Cash donations to charities for the Haitian relief effort given after January 11 and before March 1 of this year may be treated as if the contribution was made on December 31, 2009 so that the contribution can be deducted from 2009 income. This measure applies to monetary donations, not goods or services.
This legislation will allow taxpayers to receive the tax benefit from donations made to the Haiti effort in this tax season, rather than having to wait until they file their 2010 tax returns in 2011.
A similar law was enacted in 2005 for donations to victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami in December 2004.
To learn more about the situation in Haiti and what you can do to help, visit WhiteHouse.gov/HaitiEarthquake.