Common questions about Corporate Contribution Carryovers in Lacerte

Table of contents:

Entering corporate charitable contributions in Lacerte.

A corporation can't deduct contributions that total more than 10% of its taxable income for the tax year. Refer to ​IRS Pub. 542 for instructions on how to figure taxable income for this purpose.

Follow these steps to enter current cash contributions:

1. Go to Screen 20, Deductions.
2. Scroll down to the Contributions (Use Screen 24 to enter contribution carryovers) subsection.
3. Enter the contribution amount in Cash (Ctrl+E).

Back to Table of Contents

Follow these steps to enter current noncash contributions:

1. Go to Screen 25, Noncash Contributions (8283).
2. Enter information about the noncash contribution in the applicable fields.
3. Charitable contributions print on Form 1120, line 19.

Back to Table of Contents

Follow these steps to enter contribution carryovers:

1. Go to Screen 24, Contribution Carryovers.
2. Enter the amounts carried over in the Contribution Carryovers section.
   • You can also use the Consolidated Contribution Carryover section if you're completing a consolidated return.

Back to Table of Contents

Corporate charitable contributions are converting to a Net Operating Loss (NOL) carryover.

Charitable contributions are calculated with a modified taxable income and don’t factor in the amount of net operating loss (NOL) carryover.

If you carry over contributions during a year with taxable income, your contributions will be used against the income first (up to the 10% adjusted gross income (AGI) limitation). The carried-over NOL is then applied against the remaining modified taxable income.

While it may seem like your contributions are converting to NOL, what’s really happening is your contributions are utilized before the NOL.

Any remaining NOL that couldn’t be fully utilized in the current year will then carry over.

Back to Table of Contents

Additional information.

• Entering corporate charitable contributions in Lacerte
• Why are corporate charitable contributions converting to a NOL carryover?

Back to Table of Contents