2003 HTML Instructions for Form 8283,

This is archived information that pertains only to the 2003 Tax Year. If you
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Table of Contents

Identifying number. Individuals must enter their social security number or individual taxpayer identification number. All other filers should enter their employer identification number.

Section A

Part I, Information on Donated Property

Line 1

Column (b). Describe the property in sufficient detail. The greater the value, the more detail you need. For example, a car should be described in more detail than pots and pans.

For securities, include the following:

Name of the issuer,
Kind of security,
Whether a share of a mutual fund, and
Whether regularly traded on a stock exchange or in an over-the-counter market.

Note:

If the amount you claimed as a deduction for the item is $500 or less, you do not have to complete columns (d), (e), and (f).

Column (d). Enter the approximate date you acquired the property. If it was created, produced, or manufactured by or for you, enter the date it was substantially completed.

Column (e). State how you acquired the property (i.e., by purchase, gift, inheritance, or exchange).

Column (f). Do not complete this column for publicly traded securities or property held 12 months or more. Keep records on cost or other basis.

Note:

If you have reasonable cause for not providing the information in columns (d) and (f), attach an explanation.

Column (g). Enter the FMV of the property on the date you donated it. If you were required to reduce the FMV of your deduction or you gave a qualified conservation contribution, you must attach a statement. See Fair Market Value (FMV) on this page for the type of statement to attach.

Column (h). Enter the method(s) you used to determine the FMV. The FMV of used household goods and clothing is usually much lower than when new. A good measure of value might be the price that buyers of these used items actually pay in consignment or thrift shops.

Examples of entries to make include “Appraisal,” “Thrift shop value” (for clothing or household goods), “Catalog” (for stamp or coin collections), or “Comparable sales” (for real estate and other kinds of assets). See Pub. 561.

Part II, Other Information

If Part II applies to more than one property, attach a separate statement. Give the required information for each property separately. Identify which property listed in Part I the information relates to.

Lines 2a Through 2e

Complete lines 2a–2e only if you contributed less than the entire interest in the donated property during the tax year. On line 2b, enter the amount claimed as a deduction for this tax year and in any prior tax years for gifts of a partial interest in the same property.

Lines 3a Through 3c

Complete lines 3a–3c only if you attached restrictions to the right to the income, use, or disposition of the donated property. An example of a “restricted use” is furniture that you gave only to be used in the reading room of an organization's library. Attach a statement explaining (1) the terms of any agreement or understanding regarding the restriction, and (2) whether the property is designated for a particular use.

Section B

Part I, Information on Donated Property

You must have a written appraisal from a qualified appraiser that supports the information in Part I. However, see the Exceptions below.

Use Part I to summarize your appraisal(s). Generally, you do not need to attach the appraisals but you should keep them for your records. But see Art valued at $20,000 or more below.

Exceptions. You do not need a written appraisal if the property is:

Nonpublicly traded stock of $10,000 or less,
Certain securities considered to have market quotations readily available (see Regulations section 1.170A-13(c)(7)(xi)(B)),
A donation by a C corporation (other than a closely held corporation or personal service corporation), or
Inventory and other property donated by a closely held corporation or a personal service corporation that are “qualified contributions” for the care of the ill, the needy, or infants, within the meaning of section 170(e)(3)(A).

Although a written appraisal is not required for the types of property listed above, you must provide certain information in Part I of Section B (see Regulations section 1.170A-13(c)(4)(iv)) and have the donee organization complete Part IV.

Art valued at $20,000 or more. If your total deduction for art is $20,000 or more, you must attach a complete copy of the signed appraisal. For individual objects valued at $20,000 or more, a photograph must be provided upon request. The photograph must be of sufficient quality and size (preferably an 8 x 10 inch color photograph or a color transparency no smaller than 4 x 5 inches) to fully show the object.

Appraisal Requirements

The appraisal must be made not earlier than 60 days before the date you contribute the property. You must receive the appraisal before the due date (including extensions) of the return on which you first claim a deduction for the property. For a deduction first claimed on an amended return, the appraisal must be received before the date the amended return was filed.

A separate qualified appraisal and a separate Form 8283 are required for each item of property except for an item that is part of a group of similar items. Only one appraisal is required for a group of similar items contributed in the same tax year, if it includes all the required information for each item. The appraiser may group similar items with a collective value appraised at $100 or less.

If you gave similar items to more than one donee for which you claimed a total deduction of more than $5,000, you must attach a separate form for each donee.

Example.

You claimed a deduction of $2,000 for books given to College A, $2,500 for books given to College B, and $900 for books given to a public library. You must attach a separate Form 8283 for each donee.

See Regulations section 1.170A-13(c)(3)(i)–(ii) for the definition of a “qualified appraisal” and information to be included in the appraisal.

Line 5

Note:

You must complete at least column (a) of line 5 (and column (b) if applicable) before submitting Form 8283 to the donee. You may then complete the remaining columns.

Column (a). Provide enough detail so a person unfamiliar with the property could identify it in the appraisal.

Column (c). Include the FMV from the appraisal. If you were not required to get an appraisal, include the FMV you determine to be correct.

Columns (d)–(f). If you have reasonable cause for not providing the information in columns (d), (e), or (f), attach an explanation so your deduction will not automatically be disallowed.

Column (g). A bargain sale is a transfer of property that is in part a sale or exchange and in part a contribution. Enter the amount received for bargain sales.

Column (h). Complete column (h) only if you were not required to get an appraisal, as explained earlier.

Column (i). Complete column (i) only if you donated securities for which market quotations are considered to be readily available because the issue satisfies the five requirements described in Regulations section 1.170A-13(c)(7)(xi)(B).

Part II, Taxpayer (Donor) Statement

Complete Part II for each item included in Part I that has an appraised value of $500 or less. Because you do not have to show the value of these items in Part I of the donee's copy of Form 8283, clearly identify them for the donee in Part II. Then, the donee does not have to file Form 8282, Donee Information Return, for items valued at $500 or less. See the Note on page 4 for more details about filing Form 8282.

The amount of information you give in Part II depends on the description of the donated property you enter in Part I. If you show a single item as “Property A” in Part I and that item is appraised at $500 or less, then the entry “Property A” in Part II is enough. However, if “Property A” consists of several items and the total appraised value is over $500, list in Part II any item(s) you gave that is valued at $500 or less.

All shares of nonpublicly traded stock or items in a set are considered one item. For example, a book collection by the same author, components of a stereo system, or six place settings of a pattern of silverware are one item for the $500 test.

Example.

You donated books valued at $6,000. The appraisal states that one of the items, a collection of books by author “X,” is worth $400. On the Form 8283 that you are required to give the donee, you decide not to show the appraised value of all of the books. But you also do not want the donee to have to file Form 8282 if the collection of books is sold. If your description of Property A on line 5 includes all the books, then specify in Part II the “collection of books by X included in Property A.” But if your Property A description is “collection of books by X,” the only required entry in Part II is “Property A.”

In the above example, you may have chosen instead to give a completed copy of Form 8283 to the donee. The donee would then be aware of the value. If you include all the books as Property A on line 5, and enter $6,000 in column (c), you may still want to describe the specific collection in Part II so the donee can sell it without filing Form 8282.

Part III, Declaration of Appraiser

If you had to get an appraisal, the appraiser must complete Part III to be considered qualified. See Regulations section 1.170A-13(c)(5) for a definition of a qualified appraiser.

Persons who cannot be qualified appraisers are listed in the Declaration of Appraiser. Usually, a party to the transaction will not qualify to sign the declaration. But a person who sold, exchanged, or gave the property to you may sign the declaration if the property was donated within 2 months of the date you acquired it and the property's appraised value did not exceed its acquisition price.

An appraiser may not be considered qualified if you had knowledge of facts that would cause a reasonable person to expect the appraiser to falsely overstate the value of the property. An example of this is an agreement between you and the appraiser about the property value when you know that the appraised amount exceeds the actual FMV.

Usually, appraisal fees cannot be based on a percentage of the appraised value unless the fees were paid to certain not-for-profit associations. See Regulations section 1.170A-13(c)(6)(ii).

Part IV, Donee Acknowledgment

The donee organization that received the property described in Part I of Section B must complete Part IV. Before submitting page 2 of Form 8283 to the donee for acknowledgment, complete at least your name, identifying number, and description of the donated property (line 5, column (a)). If tangible property is donated, also describe its physical condition (line 5, column (b)) at the time of the gift. Complete Part II, if applicable, before submitting the form to the donee. See the instructions for Part II.

The person acknowledging the gift must be an official authorized to sign the tax returns of the organization, or a person specifically designated to sign Form 8283. After completing Part IV, the organization must return Form 8283 to you, the donor. You must give a copy of Section B of this form to the donee organization. You may then complete any remaining information required in Part I. Also, Part III may be completed at this time by the qualified appraiser.

In some cases, it may be impossible to get the donee's signature on the Appraisal Summary. The deduction will not be disallowed for that reason if you attach a detailed explanation why it was impossible.

Note:

If the donee (or a successor donee) organization disposes of the property within 2 years after the date the original donee received it, the organization must file Form 8282, Donee Information Return, with the IRS and send a copy to the donor. An exception applies to items having a value of $500 or less if the donor identified the items and signed the statement in Part II (Section B) of Form 8283. See the instructions for Part II.

Failure To File Form 8283, Section B

If you fail to attach Form 8283 to your return for donated property that is required to be reported in Section B, your deduction will be disallowed unless your failure was due to a good-faith omission. If the IRS asks you to submit the form, you have 90 days to send a completed Section B of Form 8283 before your deduction is disallowed.

Specific Instructions