Updated October 21, 2026. Quick answer: Worksheet 2 in Publication 526 applies the percent-of-AGI limits to your gifts: 60 percent of AGI for cash to 50 percent limit organizations, then 50, 30 and 20 percent tiers for other gifts. Each tier ends in a deductible amount and a carryover. It cannot be used if you already carry a gift over from an earlier year.
What this worksheet is for
Schedule A takes your total gifts, but the ceiling is a share of AGI. This is the worksheet that finds how much is deductible this year and what carries over. The schedule lines it feeds are at Schedule A line 11, line 12 and lines 13 and 14.
The worksheet line by line
| Line | What the worksheet says |
|---|---|
| Who it is for | “You can use Worksheet 2 if you made charitable contributions during the year, and one or more of the limits described in this publication under Limits on Deductions apply to you.” |
| Who cannot use it | “You can’t use this worksheet if you have a carryover of a charitable contribution from an earlier year.” |
| Rule for every line | “If the result on any line is less than zero, enter zero.” |
| Line 9 | “Enter your noncash contributions to 50% limit organizations other than capital gain property you deducted at FMV.” |
| Line 10 | “Enter your cash contributions to 50% limit organizations.” |
| Line 11 | “Enter your AGI” |
| Line 12 | “Multiply line 11 by 0.6” |
| Line 13 | “Deductible amount. Enter the smaller of line 10 or line 12” |
| Line 14 | “Carryover. Subtract line 13 from line 10” |
| Line 15 | “Multiply line 11 by 0.5” |
| Line 16 | “Subtract line 13 from line 15” |
| Line 17 | “Deductible amount. Enter the smaller of line 9 or line 16” |
| Line 18 | “Carryover. Subtract line 17 from line 9” |
| Lines 19 to 25 | The 30 percent group: “Multiply line 11 by 0.3” and “Deductible amount. Enter the smallest of line 21, 22, or 23” |
| Lines 32 to 41 | The 20 percent group: “Deductible amount. Enter the smallest of line 34, 36, 37, 38, or 39” |
Example 1: cash gifts above the 60 percent limit
Illustration, not an IRS example. Every input is invented.
| Item | Illustration |
|---|---|
| Line 11: adjusted gross income (invented) | $80,000 |
| Line 10: cash gifts to 50% limit organizations (invented) | $60,000 |
| Line 12, computed: line 11 x 0.6 | $48,000 (computed) |
| Line 13, computed: smaller of line 10 and line 12 | $48,000 (computed) |
| Line 14, computed: line 10 minus line 13 | $12,000 (computed) |
Of the $60,000 given, $48,000 is deductible this year and $12,000 carries over. The publication says carryovers generally keep their category: “you may be able to deduct the excess in each of the next 5 years until it is used up, but not beyond that time.”
Example 2: cash and noncash gifts together
Illustration, not an IRS example. Every input is invented. The cash gifts take their share of the 50 percent ceiling first.
| Item | Illustration |
|---|---|
| Line 11: adjusted gross income (invented) | $80,000 |
| Line 10: cash gifts (invented) | $30,000 |
| Line 9: noncash gifts to 50% limit organizations (invented) | $25,000 |
| Line 13, computed: smaller of line 10 and line 12 ($48,000) | $30,000 (computed) |
| Line 15, computed: line 11 x 0.5 | $40,000 (computed) |
| Line 16, computed: line 15 minus line 13 | $10,000 (computed) |
| Line 17, computed: smaller of line 9 and line 16 | $10,000 (computed) |
| Line 18, computed: line 9 minus line 17 | $15,000 (computed) |
The cash gifts use $30,000 of the $40,000 room under the 50 percent line, so only $10,000 of the noncash gifts is deductible and $15,000 carries over.
What the Schedule A instructions say
“If your deduction for the gifts you made in cash or by check is limited, see Pub. 526 to figure the amount you can deduct.”
Fair market value and carryovers
“For contributions of property, enter the property’s FMV unless you elected (or were required) to reduce the FMV”. Gifts you carry over are deducted only after the current year’s gifts in the same category, and the carryover period is five years, 15 for qualified conservation contributions.
Edition and line numbers
This page reads Publication 526 (2025), the current file irs.gov served on 2026-10-21 (sha256 in the kit data). The Worksheet 2 in it is for the tax year 2025 return, filed in 2026. Check the tax year printed on the worksheet in your own copy and use that year’s line numbers and dollar amounts, because a different year’s worksheet can word its lines differently.
Common mistakes
- Using it with a carryover. “You can’t use this worksheet if you have a carryover of a charitable contribution from an earlier year.”
- Letting a result go negative. The rule is “If the result on any line is less than zero, enter zero.”
- Treating the 60 percent limit as the cap for all gifts. It applies to cash gifts to 50 percent limit organizations; property and other organizations use the lower tiers.
Related: Schedule A line 11, Schedule A line 12, Schedule A lines 13 and 14, and charitable carryforward.
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Answer againSources
- Publication 526 (2025), Charitable Contributions: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p526.pdf
- Instructions for Schedule A (Form 1040), Itemized Deductions (2025): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040sca.pdf
Read from the IRS documents linked above on October 21, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the account provider or the IRS is the right place to confirm anything consequential.