How to Donate a car to charity in California

Donate a car to charity in California

Donate a car to charity in California

You want to donate a car to charity in California? that would be a great decision and you have a lot to gain. Firstly, you get to help people through your donation. Secondly, you will have the chance to get your old vehicle or junk car moved off of your property for free. Another great advantage is you have the chance to claim the car donation as a tax deduction and also recycle your old car.

Requirements needed to donate a car to charity in California

  1. The license plates must remain with the vehicle as long as it’s in the state of California. Make sure you don’t remove it before the pickup.
  2.  Before you begin the process of donating a car, you either submit an online car donation form or call the charity and let them know you wish to donate your vehicle. But if your wish is to claim the car donation as a tax deduction then make sure you check the charity is an IRS recognized non-profit organization.
  3. When you have a vehicle that costs more than $500 or it’s in the range of a fair market value tax deduction, then you will get additional tax paperwork after the sale takes place.

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  4. Here’s another important thing to take note of, it likely varies when it comes to the process for receiving the tax receipt for your charitable donation. To make it easily understandable, some charities give you the receipt at the time of pick up with their tow truck while some will send you an email containing the initial receipt. The receipt is an initial receipt which allows you to claim a tax deduction of up to $500.
  5. Never miss this point when going through this process, make sure you fill a Release of Liability with the California Department of Motor Vehicles. This is done after you have donated the car and with the document, it will release you from future liability which may arise for any reason after the vehicle is donated.

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