If you claimed the standard deduction on your federal return, you may claim a credit on your North Carolina return for charitable contributions you made during the year to qualified organizations. You may not claim the credit if you claimed itemized deductions on your federal return. This credit will either increase your refund or decrease the tax you owe.

The allowable credit equals 7 percent of the amount by which your charitable contributions for the taxable year exceed 2 percent of your federal adjusted gross income. The credit may not be claimed for contributions for which credits for certain real property donations, gleaned crops, or recycling oyster shells are claimed. The credit cannot exceed your income tax liability for the year and you cannot carry over any unused credit to another year. Remember, you can only claim this credit if you claimed the standard deduction on your federal return.

To determine the amount of your credit, you must complete the Worksheet for Determining Tax Credit for Charitable Contributions by Nonitemizers on page 18 of the instructions.

If you are a part-year resident or nonresident, you must multiply the credit shown on line 4 of the worksheet by the decimal amount shown on line 16 of Form D-400. Under certain circumstances, the decimal amount on line 16 can exceed one hundred percent. In these cases, the credit is limited to the amount on line 4.

Be sure to include your Form D-400TC (tax credit schedule) when filing your return.

Last modified on: 01/03/13 03:39:46 PM.