• CleoTheWizard@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      7
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      3 days ago

      It decreases your tax burden in the same way that giving away all of your money to charity decreases your tax burden.

      And in case people need it cleared up: Donating at a register during checkout also does not help the company on their taxes. Its the same as you donating individually except they get the PR for it.

      • magnetosphere@fedia.io
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        7
        ·
        3 days ago

        I hate it when a store asks me to donate at the register. I’m probably spending more than I want to anyway, and I’m sure the store has a bigger budget than I do. I’m like “fuck off, stop guilt tripping me, and donate yourself.”

      • snooggums@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        3 days ago

        Them getting the PR for it is a financial inventive (future sales) even if it doesn’t save them money on their annual balance sheets. It is comparable to advertising.

        • CleoTheWizard@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          3 days ago

          Yep but honestly I still don’t think the benefit matches what they spend. Especially true since they often match donations or make their own large donations.

          And after all, if they’re helping money go to charity by advertising it to their customers, I’m fine with them getting a little benefit in return.

    • chiliedogg@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      edit-2
      3 days ago

      That’s a wild misrepresentation of how write-offs work.

      If your tax rate is 30% and you make write off a charitable donation of $100, your tax bill goes down $30. Spending 100 dollars to save 30 isn’t the key to riches.

      There’s no way to save money through charitable donations.

        • chiliedogg@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          3 days ago

          The implication was that they make donations for the write-offs. That’s not accurate, because it’s never cheaper to make a donation and write it off than it is to just pay the taxes.

          • julietOscarEcho@sh.itjust.works
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            2 days ago

            Not quite never. You just need the tax rate plus marginal change in lost benefits/increased obligations to exceed 100%. For example there’s a breakpoint in the UK around childcare over 100k income that makes it way worth salary sacrificing to get below if you have kids. I can imagine there are similar niche things for small businesses around audit requirements or whatever, but not enough of an expert to know.