# When a donation is tax-deductible

> How to tell whether your donation can be claimed against Malaysian income tax, and what you need for it.

Source: https://donorcare.my/help/donors/tax-deductible-donations/

Not every donation on DonorCARE can be claimed against your Malaysian income tax — whether yours can depends on both the organization and the specific appeal you gave to.

## Why it works this way

Under Malaysian tax law, only donations to organizations holding an approved tax-exemption status from LHDN (the Inland Revenue Board) can potentially be claimed as a deduction. An organization also chooses which of its own appeals are marked as qualifying — so a tax-exempt organization can still run an appeal that isn't. DonorCARE doesn't decide this for anyone; it simply reflects the choice the organization has made for that appeal.

## The terms

**Tax-deductible** — a donation you may be able to claim against your Malaysian income tax, because both the organization and the specific appeal qualify.

**TIN (Tax Identification Number)** — the number LHDN uses to identify you as a taxpayer. You'll need to provide this if you want a receipt that's usable for a tax claim.

**e-Invoice** — the LHDN-format receipt some organizations issue for donations. Where an organization offers this, you add your tax details once and it's generated for that donation.

## What this means in practice

**Do**

- Check the organization's listing in the DonorCARE directory — organizations with approved tax-exemption status are marked "Tax-deductible" there.
- Ask the organization directly if you're unsure whether a specific appeal qualifies — it's set per appeal, not just per organization.

**Don't**

- Assume every appeal from a tax-deductible organization automatically qualifies.
- Assume your donation is automatically usable for a tax claim just because you gave — you'll usually need to add your tax details afterwards, before it can be used.

A receipt for a qualifying donation states that it's deductible under Malaysian income tax law, together with the organization's own tax-exemption approval details, your name, and — once you've provided them — your TIN and identity details.

## Worked example

Wei Ling gives RM 200 to a temple's building fund. The temple's directory listing shows "Tax-deductible", and the building fund is one of the appeals it has marked as qualifying. After paying, she opens her receipt and adds her TIN and NRIC number before the end of the month, so LHDN can validate them and she can use the receipt on her tax return. Her colleague gives to the same temple's separate relief-fund appeal, which the temple has not marked as tax-deductible — his receipt has no option to add tax details.

## Related

- [Find, download or re-send your receipt](https://donorcare.my/help/donors/find-my-receipt/)
- [Find an organization in the directory](https://donorcare.my/help/donors/npo-directory/)
- [Add your tax details](https://donorcare.my/help/donors/update-my-tax-details/)