The philanthropic sector is highly consequential, particularly in the United States, and the most important policies directed toward this sector are tax policies. Yet most economic analysis of the optimal tax treatment of charitable giving is ad hoc, treating it as a subject unto itself. This...

On July 1, 2014, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Form 1023-EZ, a streamlined version of the application required of all organizations seeking federal tax-exempt status. Form 1023-EZ requires dramatically less time to complete and represents a radical change to a decades-old process....

Does a cooked lobster packed in an individually sealed plastic bag constitute a “prepared fish dinner” or “prepared consumer fish pack” for the purposes of the Income Tax Act 1976, section 156? In Taspac Seafoods Ltd. v. Commissioner of Inland Revenue (1983) 6 NZTC 61,636, 6 TRNZ 513,...

When a Canadian expects to face higher tax rates in the future, where should savings be put? The standard advice is… ‘when you expect your marginal tax rate to rise in the future, contribute to a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) now, but delay claiming the tax deduction'. This paper...

This article examines the tax treatment of Islamic mortgage alternatives and considers the cultural and constitutional implications of the tax treatment of mortgage debt. Islamic law cannot be separated from the religion of Islam, and one of the primary tenets of Islamic law is the prohibition...

State governments are considering new charitable tax credits designed to circumvent the 2017 federal tax overhaul's cap on state and local tax deductions. Will these plans work? This essay argues that the answer is: yes, but with some qualifications

Estates and trusts are recognizing growing amounts of taxable income from “income in respect of a decedent” (or “IRD”). These are payments attributable to income earned by a decedent before death but received by an estate, trust, or other beneficiary after death, and taxed to that...

Article considers whether income tax exemption for charities is consistent with normal income tax. .It finds that exemption for contributions is not special treatment and that exemption for income from sale of goods or performance of services related to the purpose of the charity is special...