Post by califanna on Feb 22, 2017 18:00:23 GMT -8
For the past five years, I have helped people start GoFundMe pages for their medical and home adaptation needs after an injury or the onset of a disease. It boggles my mind that there is still so much misinformation surrounding how the monies donated are interpreted. Even social workers at Social Security offices still don't know that donations are not earnings. When you receive a donation, under federal law, it does not have to be declared as earnings and thus be considered with regard to your eligibility surrounding your disability and/or Medicare.
However, I do instruct those receiving donations to keep track of how the monies are being used. You have to use the monies as you stated on your GoFundMe page i.e. paying a personal caregiver and/or medical supplies. The intent of the GoFundMe page is what determines whether the donations are taxable or not. For instance, if you use the monies to purchase a vehicle for your daughter, then the monies would be considered taxable.
"Consider the intent of the donation; is it to help someone in need, motivated by a charitable impulse. The donor does not expect any kind of consideration or benefit in return, other than the sense of being generous and charitable. Based on the language used by the courts to describe a tax free gift, funds received through an online fundraising campaign to help pay for medical expenses, such as donations solicited through a GoFundMe account, appear to meet the definition of gifts under the Internal Revenue Code, and would not be taxable to the recipient. Under IRS rules, an individual can give another individual a gift of up to $14,000 without tax implications." excerpt taken from: www.linkedin.com/pulse/gofundme-taxable-income-vs-tax-free-giftcross-enrique-j-arg%C3%BCello