Reply #33: Your tax assertion is not correct. [View All]

[Ms. Toad]

Charitable donations are deductible from the first penny you donate. Medical expenses are only deductible once they exceed 7.5% of your income, and certain miscellaneous deductions (e.g., unreimbursed business expenses, tax preparation fees) are only deductible once they exceed 2% of your income, but other deductions (such as charitable donations, state tax payments, real estate taxes, mortgage interest) are 100% deductible.

That said, everyone has a choice between itemizing their deductions (listing them out - including every dollar donated to charity) OR taking a flat "standard deduction." For most people without a lot of deductible items, the standard deduction is bigger than the itemized deductions, so it isn't worth it to separately list and deduct the charitable contributions. (But the question of whether you itemize is not based on exceeding 8% of of your income.)