End-Of-Year Giving 2023

The end of the year is a great time to give an extra gift to help our church end strong or prepare to give a special gift to start the new year off right. The IRS has some specific rules we must follow. The rules are simple, but can cause some confusion. Here are a few tips to ensure your gift gets placed in the correct year, either as an end-of-the-year gift for 2023 or starting off the year of 2024.

The delivery rule:

If you are bringing a gift to the church, the day you bring it determines the year it is allocated. A gift brought while the office is open on December 28 would be allocated as 2023. A gift placed in the offering plate on New Years Eve would be allocated as 2023. (Note: The IRS does not recognize the date written on the check--only the date it was received.)

The postmark rule:

If you are mailing a gift to the church, the date of the postmark determines the year it is allocated, so even though we might not receive the gift until January 3rd, 2024, if the postmark says December 31st, 2023, it is allocated as 2023.

Remember that if you could not deliver a gift you wanted to be allocated in 2023 to the church before the office closed, you could give electronically up until 11:59 pm on December 31st, which will be allocated in 2023. For electronic gifts, the date and time of the transaction are what the IRS recognizes.

Giving statements will be mailed out by the end of January. You can also log into your Realm account and retrieve your own statement. Make sure to receive your statement before filing your taxes.

Thank you for your faithfulness and a great year. We look forward to ministry together in 2024!