large amount of charity in the past

[hawk25]

In 09 when I had more overtime and my wife was still employed, we were able to donate our extra earnings, a few hundred dollars each month. we didnt bother getting receipts bc we didnt expect that we needed to file bk. Since my wife has been unemployed since beginning of this year, we have not made any donations. our tax return from last year shows donations of a few thousand dollars. Will this be a problem with the trustee since it is a year ago. i have not filed yet.

[ccsjoe]

Shouldn't be, as long as it is documented on the tax return and the IRS was cool with it....but each trustee is different. If you don't have a lawyer, get a free consultation and be sure to pop this question.

[tobee43]

we made substantial donations in 2010, but attached all receipts that applied and had no questions as all from the trustee.

[JV09]

The problem is that theres no proof of it even though it last year's tax return. Not sure how closely the trustees look at tax returns.

[tobee43]

well, i had claimed it for 2010 so i still had them available provide the copies...however, it was never questioned by the trustee.

i keep records for at least 3-4 years, so i'm not certain what would have happened had i not be able to provide them.

[helpmeout]

If you aren't donating now, you can't list it as an expense.

Oh, and you better hope that the IRS doesn't select you for an audit, because if they do, the donations will not be allowed unless you can provide proof that you made them. In the future, you may want to create a file to keep proof of any item that you claimed on your tax return on the off chance that you get picked for an audit.

[OhioFiler]

You have nothing to worry about from your BK filing unless you claim these same expenses now.

More often than not, charitable contributions claimed on Schedule A Form 1040 without receipts are imaginary deductions concocted by the tax filer. This won't affect your bk petition unless you are concocting contributions for your Schedule J.