Donation receipt letter template
Five free templates you can copy into Word, Google Docs or an email. Each one carries the wording the IRS asks for in a written acknowledgment, so your donors can use it at tax time.
Writing more than a handful? Upload your donor spreadsheet and get a finished PDF letter for every donor, with each gift listed and the right wording chosen for you. The first three letters are free.
What every receipt letter needs
- Your organization's name.
- The amount of each cash gift. For a non-cash gift, a description of the item and no dollar value.
- One of these: a statement that no goods or services were given in return, or a description and good-faith estimate of the value of what the donor received.
The date of each gift, your tax-exempt status and your EIN are not strictly required, but donors and their tax preparers expect them, so the templates include all three. The plain-language guide to the IRS rules explains each requirement and when a letter is needed.
How to use these templates
Replace everything in [square brackets]. Print on your letterhead or put your organization's name and address at the top. Send one letter per donor: a single year-end letter can cover all of a donor's gifts.
1. Cash gift, nothing given in return
The most common case: a donation by check, card or cash where the donor received nothing of value.
[Date] [Donor name] [Street address] [City, State ZIP] Dear [Donor name], Thank you for your generous support of [Organization name]. This letter is the written acknowledgment of your contribution for your tax records. Date received: [Date of gift] Amount: $[Amount] No goods or services were provided in exchange for this contribution. [Organization name] is a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Our federal tax identification number (EIN) is [EIN]. Please keep this letter with your tax records. With gratitude, [Signer name] [Title]
2. Year-end summary of several gifts
For a donor who gave more than once during the year. List every gift with its date and amount.
[Date] [Donor name] [Street address] [City, State ZIP] Dear [Donor name], Thank you for your generous support of [Organization name] in [Year]. This letter is the written acknowledgment of your contributions for your tax records. Cash contributions received in [Year] [Date of gift] $[Amount] [Date of gift] $[Amount] [Date of gift] $[Amount] Total cash contributions: $[Total] No goods or services were provided in exchange for these contributions. [Organization name] is a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Our federal tax identification number (EIN) is [EIN]. Please keep this letter with your tax records. With gratitude, [Signer name] [Title]
3. Gift where the donor received something
Use this when the donor got something of value in return, such as a dinner, gala tickets or an auction item. The deductible amount is what they paid minus the value of what they received.
[Date] [Donor name] [Street address] [City, State ZIP] Dear [Donor name], Thank you for your generous support of [Organization name]. This letter is the written acknowledgment of your contribution for your tax records. Date received: [Date of gift] Amount: $[Amount paid] Goods or services provided: [Description, for example "Two tickets to the Harvest Dinner"] Estimated value: $[Value] Total cash contribution: $[Amount paid] Less estimated value of goods or services provided: $[Value] Deductible amount of cash contribution: $[Amount paid minus value] In exchange for your contribution, [Organization name] provided the goods or services described above. Our good-faith estimate of their total value is $[Value]. For federal income tax purposes, the deductible amount of a contribution is limited to the amount by which it exceeds the value of the goods or services received in return, which for your contribution is $[Amount paid minus value]. [Organization name] is a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Our federal tax identification number (EIN) is [EIN]. Please keep this letter with your tax records. With gratitude, [Signer name] [Title]
4. Non-cash gift
For donated goods or property, such as equipment, supplies or a vehicle. Describe the item but do not put a dollar value on it. Valuing the gift is the donor's job, not yours.
[Date] [Donor name] [Street address] [City, State ZIP] Dear [Donor name], Thank you for your generous support of [Organization name]. This letter is the written acknowledgment of your contribution for your tax records. Non-cash contribution received on [Date of gift]: [Description of the item, for example "Used canoe and two paddles"] We describe non-cash gifts but, as the IRS requires, do not assign them a value. Determining the value of donated property is the donor's responsibility. No goods or services were provided in exchange for this contribution. [Organization name] is a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Our federal tax identification number (EIN) is [EIN]. Please keep this letter with your tax records. With gratitude, [Signer name] [Title]
5. Church giving statement
For churches and other religious organizations. The IRS asks you to say that the only benefits the giver received were intangible religious benefits.
[Date] [Giver name] [Street address] [City, State ZIP] Dear [Giver name], Thank you for your generous support of [Organization name] in [Year]. This letter is the written acknowledgment of your contributions for your tax records. Cash contributions received in [Year] [Date of gift] $[Amount] [Date of gift] $[Amount] [Date of gift] $[Amount] Total cash contributions: $[Total] No goods or services were provided in exchange for these contributions, other than intangible religious benefits. [Organization name] is a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Our federal tax identification number (EIN) is [EIN]. Please keep this letter with your tax records. With gratitude, [Signer name] [Title]
Common mistakes
- Leaving out the "no goods or services" sentence. Without it, a donor's deduction for a gift of $250 or more can be denied, even if everything else is right.
- Putting a value on a non-cash gift. Describe the item only.
- Reporting the full ticket price as the gift. If a $150 dinner ticket bought a $65 meal, the deductible amount is $85.
- Sending letters late. Donors need them before they file their tax return. Aim to send by January 31.
Skip the copying and pasting
If you keep your gifts in a spreadsheet, you already have everything these letters need. Upload it here and download one PDF letter per donor: several gifts combined on one letter, benefits subtracted, non-cash gifts described without a value. Your donor list stays on your computer and is never uploaded. Try it free with your first three donors.