Eight Essentials Donations made to qualified organizations may help red uce the amount of tax you pay. The IRS has eight essential tips to help ensure your contributions pay off on your tax return. 1. If your goal is a legitimate tax deduction, then you must be giving to a qualified organization. Also, you cannot deduct contributions made to specific individuals, politi cal organizations or candidates. See IRS Publication 526, Charitable Contributions, for rules on what const