Q&A: Receipt for a Donation
Receipt for a Donation
Question
Hello Rabbi,
I placed a collection box in the synagogue where I pray for donations to a charitable organization. A respectable sum has accumulated in the box, and I transfer it to the organization. Am I allowed to ask the organization to issue the receipt for the amount in my name (so that I can receive a tax refund for it)?
Is there deception / misleading of the donors from the synagogue here?
Is there theft from the state here (since ostensibly the purpose of a tax refund on donations is to encourage people to donate, whereas here I received a refund even though I was not the one who donated)?
Thank you
Answer
Very problematic. Mainly it is defrauding the state, which is not supposed to give you a tax refund, and perhaps also deceiving the donors, who are forgoing your tax money (the state provides services to all of us).