Year-End Giving Statements: A Guide for Churches

Year-end giving statements are written acknowledgments that churches must provide to donors for tax purposes. The IRS requires them for any single contribution of $250 or more, and they must include the church's name, the amount of each cash contribution, a statement about whether goods or services were provided in exchange, and the date of each gift. Churches should send them by January 31st. Purpose-built church accounting software like Alignmint generates these automatically from your donation records — in minutes instead of the days it takes with spreadsheets.

This guide covers everything your church needs to know about year-end giving statements: what the IRS requires, what to include, when to send them, and how to automate the process so it takes minutes instead of days.

Why Giving Statements Matter

Tax Deductions for Members

Donations to churches are tax-deductible under IRC Section 170. For members to claim their charitable deduction, they need documentation:

• Gifts under $250: A bank record (canceled check, credit card statement) is sufficient
• Gifts of $250 or more: A written acknowledgment from the church is required — a bank record alone is not enough

Your year-end giving statement serves as this written acknowledgment for all gifts throughout the year. Accurate tithe and offering tracking throughout the year makes this process straightforward.

IRS Compliance

The IRS requires that written acknowledgments for gifts of $250+ include:

1. The church's name (the donee organization)
2. The amount of the cash contribution (or description of non-cash contribution)
3. A statement that no goods or services were provided in exchange for the contribution — OR a description and good-faith estimate of the value of goods or services provided
4. The date of the contribution

If your church provides something in return for a donation (like a gala dinner ticket), you must state the fair market value of what was provided, and the donor can only deduct the amount exceeding that value.

Donor Trust and Retention

A professional, timely giving statement reinforces donor trust. When members receive a clear, accurate summary of their giving — delivered promptly in January — it signals that your church takes stewardship seriously. This matters for retention.

What to Include in Your Giving Statement

A complete year-end giving statement should include:

Required by the IRS

• Church name, address, and EIN (Employer Identification Number)
• Donor name and address
• Total cash contributions for the year
• Date range (January 1 – December 31)
• Statement: "No goods or services were provided in exchange for your contributions" (or appropriate alternative language if goods/services were provided)
• For non-cash gifts: description of the property donated (do NOT include a value — the donor is responsible for valuation)

Best Practice Additions

• Breakdown by fund (General Fund, Building Fund, Missions, etc.)
• Individual gift detail (date, amount, fund, payment method)
• Recurring giving summary
• Pledge status (if applicable — amount pledged vs. amount fulfilled)
• A thank-you message from the pastor or board

What NOT to Include

• Valuation of non-cash gifts (that's the donor's responsibility)
• Quid pro quo amounts for event tickets without proper disclosure
• Gifts that were refunded or reversed

When to Send Statements

The IRS doesn't specify a deadline for churches to provide giving statements, but best practice is:

• January 15-31: Send statements as early as possible in January so members have them for tax preparation
• Before January 31: This aligns with the W-2 and 1099 deadline, which is when most people start thinking about taxes
• Upon request: Be prepared to provide statements at any time during the year if a member asks

How to Automate the Process

The Manual Way (Don't Do This)

Many churches still produce giving statements manually:

1. Export donation data from their giving platform to Excel
2. Sort by donor
3. Calculate totals for each donor
4. Copy data into a Word template for each donor
5. Print, fold, stuff envelopes, and mail

For a church with 200 giving households, this process takes 15-20 hours. It's error-prone, tedious, and completely unnecessary in 2026.

The Automated Way (Do This)

With integrated church software like Alignmint, the process takes minutes:

1. Click "Generate Year-End Statements" — The system compiles every donor's giving history for the year
2. Review — Spot-check a few statements for accuracy
3. Distribute — Email statements to members with email addresses on file, and/or make them available in the Donor Portal for self-service download
4. Print — For members without email, print and mail physical copies

Total time: 15-30 minutes for any size church.

Self-Service via Donor Portal

The most modern approach: let members download their own statements anytime. With Alignmint's Donor Portal, every member can:

• Log in from any device
• View their complete giving history
• Download their year-end giving statement as a PDF
• Download individual tax receipts for any single gift
• Access statements from previous years

This eliminates the January rush entirely. Members get their statements on their own schedule, and your office staff doesn't have to field dozens of "can you send me my giving statement?" requests.

Special Situations

Quid Pro Quo Contributions

If your church hosts a gala dinner where tickets cost $100 but the meal is worth $40, the tax-deductible portion is $60. Your statement must disclose:

• The amount paid ($100)
• The fair market value of goods/services received ($40)
• The deductible amount ($60)

Non-Cash Gifts

For donated property (furniture, equipment, vehicles, stock), your statement should describe the gift but NOT assign a value. The donor is responsible for determining fair market value, and for gifts over $5,000, they need a qualified appraisal.

Stock Donations

For donated stock, record the number of shares, the stock name, and the date of transfer. The donor's deduction is based on the fair market value on the date of the gift — but your church should not state this value on the receipt.

Returned or Refunded Gifts

If a donation was refunded (e.g., a duplicate charge or a canceled event), exclude it from the year-end total. If the refund crosses calendar years (gift in December, refund in January), you may need to issue a corrected statement.

Giving Statement Checklist

Use this checklist to ensure your year-end statements are complete and compliant:

• Church name, address, and EIN on every statement
• Donor name and mailing address
• Date range: January 1 – December 31, [year]
• Total cash contributions
• Breakdown by fund designation
• Individual gift detail (date, amount, fund)
• "No goods or services" disclosure language
• Quid pro quo disclosures for event tickets (if applicable)
• Non-cash gift descriptions (without values)
• Thank-you message
• Statements sent by January 31

Getting Started

If your church is still producing giving statements manually, switching to automated software pays for itself in time saved:

1. Sign up for Alignmint — Free for churches up to $100K in annual giving
2. Import your donors and giving history — CSV import from your current system
3. Generate statements — One click produces every statement
4. Distribute — Email, Donor Portal, or print

Next January, your giving statements will take 30 minutes instead of 30 hours.

Schedule Your Free Setup — year-end giving statements included on every plan.

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Related:

• How to Track Tithes and Offerings — Complete tithe tracking guide
• Church Fund Accounting: Why QuickBooks Isn't Enough — Why QuickBooks fails churches
• Church Accounting Software: Features for Modern Ministries — What churches need from accounting software
• Nonprofit Tax Compliance Tools — Stay audit-ready with the right tools