Okay, my children go to a religious elementary school which is a valid nonprofit organization.
I get a tuition discount from them.
Can I donate to the school and deduct the donation from my taxes? I know that I can’t deduct tuition.
There is currently no agreement (written, oral, or even suggested) that a donation is any kind of compensation for my tuition discount.
My questions are:
1) Can I deduct the contribution?
2) Even if it is legal (or illegal) to deduct the contribution, what is the likelihood that the IRS would investigate myself or the school as a result of doing this?
3) Can I use my donations as a bargaining point for bigger tuition reductions in the future? Presumably, they would get more money if they lower my tuition and I donate more, due to tax deductibility.
–Adam
The tuition deduction is need-based and arbitrary – they don’t have a mathematical formula for deductions of this type.
The donations would not be large in comparison to others the institution receives.
Tags: Donations, Irs, Likelihood, Mathematical Formula, Money, Nonprofit Organization, Tax Deductibility, Tax Deduction, Tuition Discount, Tuition Reductions