Form 1098-C: Contributions of Motor Vehicles, Boats, and Airplanes

VOIDPaper only: marks a form on a sheet that should be ignored. It is not a correction; a filed return is undone with a corrected return.How corrections workCORRECTEDChecked on a return that replaces one already filed. Which fields to repeat, and whether two returns are needed, depends on the error.Type 1 vs Type 2 correctionsDonee's nameThe filer's legal name as tied to its EIN on IRS records, on the first line; a trade name goes on the second. Filed under the wrong name the whole batch can fail to post.Check the filer blockBox 1: Date of contributionWhat goes hereThe date you received the motor vehicle, boat or airplane from the donor.Watch forThe acknowledgment is contemporaneous only if the donor gets it within 30 days of the contribution date when you check box 5a or 5b, or within 30 days of the sale date when you check box 4a.Click to open the row in the box tableBox 2a: Odometer mileageWhat goes hereThe odometer mileage. Motor vehicles only; leave it blank for a boat or airplane.Watch forThe reading must be in miles. If the odometer shows kilometers, multiply by 0.62137.Click to open the row in the box tableCalendar yearThe year the payment was made, not the year you file. The 2026 forms cover payments in 2026 and are filed in 2027.The 2027 calendarBox 2b: YearWhat goes hereThe vehicle's year, for example 2006 for a car or 1968 for an airplane in the IRS examples.Click to open the row in the box tableBox 2c: MakeWhat goes hereThe make, for example Ford, Piper or Larson in the IRS examples.Click to open the row in the box tableBox 2d: ModelWhat goes hereThe model, for example Explorer, Cub or LXI 208 in the IRS examples.Click to open the row in the box tableDonee's TINThe EIN the returns are filed under; it must match the filer name on the first line. A sole proprietor may use an SSN, with the owner's name first.Check the filer blockDonor's TINWhat goes hereThe donor's TIN: an SSN, ITIN, ATIN or EIN.Watch forIf the donor gives no TIN, check box 7: the acknowledgment does not meet section 170(f)(12) and the donor cannot deduct more than $500. You may truncate the TIN on the acknowledgment, never on the IRS copy. Your own TIN is never truncated.Match it before you fileBox 3: Vehicle or other identification numberWhat goes hereThe identification number fixed to the vehicle: a 17-character VIN for a motor vehicle, a 12-character hull number for a boat (usually on the starboard transom), or a 6-character aircraft number (on the tail of a U.S. aircraft).Click to open the row in the box tableDonor's nameThe name the IRS has for this TIN: an individual's own name for an SSN, the legal name for an EIN; a DBA goes on the second line. This is what TIN matching compares.Which name goes firstDonee certifies that vehicle was soldCheck it whenBox 4a: you sold the vehicle to a buyer other than a needy individual without significant intervening use or material improvement. Checking it certifies an arm's length sale between unrelated parties. Then complete boxes 4b and 4c.Watch forSkip it when the claimed value is $500 or less. The donor must get the acknowledgment within 30 days of the sale.Open this box on the IRIS field mapDonor's street addressWhere the recipient copy is mailed. From the W-9 line 5; the IRS does not match it, but an undeliverable copy is a furnishing failure.Box 4b: Date of saleWhat goes hereIf you checked box 4a, the date the vehicle was sold in the arm's length transaction.Watch forSkip it when the claimed value is $500 or less.Click to open the row in the box tableDonor's city or townCity of the mailing address, from the W-9 line 6.Box 4c: Gross proceeds from sale (see instructions)What goes hereIf you checked box 4a, the gross proceeds from the sale, generally the sales price, not reduced by any expenses or fees.Watch forLeave it empty when you check box 5b. The section 6720 penalty for a false box 4a acknowledgment is the larger of the gross proceeds or the stated sales price times 39.6%.Click to open the row in the box tableDonee certifies that vehicle will notCheck it whenBox 5a: you intend a significant intervening use of the vehicle or a material improvement to it, certifying it will not be transferred before the use or improvement is complete. Also complete box 5c.Watch forUse must substantially further your regular activities, not be incidental. Cleaning, minor repairs, painting and dent removal are not material improvements. A sale within 6 months without such use is presumed false.Open this box on the IRIS field mapDonee certifies that vehicle is to be transferredCheck it whenBox 5b: you intend to sell the vehicle to a needy individual well below fair market value, or give it to one, in direct furtherance of a charitable purpose of relieving the poor who need transportation.Watch forA vehicle sold at auction never qualifies. Enter nothing in box 4c. Skip it when the claimed value is $500 or less.Open this box on the IRIS field mapBox 5c: Donee certifies the following detailed description of material improvements or significant intervening use and duration of useWhat goes hereA detailed description of the material improvements you intend to make, or of the significant intervening use you intend and how long it will last.Watch forSkip it when the claimed value is $500 or less.Click to open the row in the box tableYesCheck it whenBox 6a: you provided goods or services to the donor in exchange for the vehicle. Then complete boxes 6b and 6c.Watch forYou must check either Yes or No.Open this box on the IRIS field mapNoCheck it whenBox 6a: you provided no goods or services to the donor in exchange for the vehicle.Watch forYou must check either Yes or No; one box must be marked.Open this box on the IRIS field mapBox 6b: Value of goods and services provided in exchange for the vehicleWhat goes hereIf box 6a is Yes, a good faith estimate of the value of the goods and services, including intangible religious benefits and anything you provide in a later year.Watch forPub. 561 gives guidance on the estimate.Click to open the row in the box tableBox 6c: Describe the goodsWhat goes hereIf box 6a is Yes, a detailed description of the goods and services provided to the donor.Watch forIf the donor received only intangible religious benefits, check that box instead.Click to open the row in the box tableBox 7: Donor may not claim more than $500Check it whenThe claimed value is $500 or less, or the donor did not give you a TIN.Watch forOnce checked, do not file Copy A with the IRS or furnish Copy B. For $500 or less, Copy C can serve as the section 170(f)(8) acknowledgment; leave boxes 4a to 5c and the donor's TIN blank.Click to open the row in the box table

Hover over a box for what goes in it; click to open its row in the table below. On a touch screen, tap the box to jump to the row.

Who must file Form 1098-C

A donee organization must file a separate Form 1098-C for each contribution of a qualified vehicle, meaning a motor vehicle manufactured primarily for use on public roads, a boat, or an airplane, with a claimed value of more than $500. Property held by the donor for sale to customers (a dealer's inventory) is not a qualified vehicle. Copies B and C are the contemporaneous written acknowledgment that section 170(f)(12) requires before a donor can deduct more than $500; without it, the deduction is limited to $500 whatever the vehicle sold for.

The acknowledgment is contemporaneous only if furnished within 30 days of the sale (when the charity sells the vehicle without significant use or material improvement) or of the contribution (when the charity keeps it for use, improves it, or transfers it to a needy individual). The IRS copy is due on the usual February 28 / March 31 schedule. Form 1098-C is a low-volume form that may be filled in online and filed on paper with Form 1096 if you are under the e-file mandate.

Threshold: Over $500, claimed value of the donated qualified vehicle; no form is required (and the donor's deduction is capped at $500) when the claimed value is $500 or less.

What is reported, box by box

Box titles follow the current revision of the form. The IRS reads the payer and recipient name, TIN, address, account number and the money boxes; the state boxes are for the state copy only.

Payments that are not reported on Form 1098-C

• Vehicles with a claimed value of $500 or less (the donor may use the general acknowledgment rules instead).
• Inventory property contributed by a dealer, and property that is not a motor vehicle, boat or airplane.
• Contributions for which the organization furnishes a compliant acknowledgment in another form (the 1098-C is still filed with the IRS).

Due dates and extensions

An automatic 30-day extension is available on Form 8809, filed by the due date on paper or through IRIS; a second 30 days requires a hardship showing. Recipient statements can be extended 30 days on Form 15397, online or by fax only. 10 or more information returns of any type in aggregate must be e-filed (T.D. 9972); IRIS is the only IRS intake system from filing season 2027, FIRE having been retired. A payer who e-files the originals must e-file the corrections.

For 2026 forms filed in 2027: January 31 falls on a Sunday, so that deadline moves to Monday, February 1, 2027; February 28 also falls on a Sunday, so the paper deadline moves to Monday, March 1, 2027. March 31 (electronic) and March 15 are weekdays. February 28 does not become February 29 in a leap year. The compliance calendar has every date with the weekend shifts applied.

Withholding and TIN matching

Nothing is paid to the donor, so backup withholding is irrelevant and the form is not in the IRS TIN Matching program. The donor's TIN is the form's weak point: it is collected at a drop-off, often on a title assignment, and if the donor refuses you must check box 7 and the donor loses the deduction above $500. The penalty regime is unusual too: IRC 6720IRC 6720Internal Revenue Code, Cornell LII penalizes a knowingly false or fraudulent acknowledgment, or a knowing failure to furnish one within 30 days, at the greater of the claimed value times the top rate (or the gross proceeds) or $5,000 for a sold vehicle, on top of the ordinary IRC 6721IRC 6721Internal Revenue Code, Cornell LII and 6722 amounts for the return itself.

Name and TIN errors on this form

Every information return is matched by the IRS on the first four characters of the payee's name (the name control) against the TIN. A mismatch produces a CP2100 line the following autumn and, unless the solicitation record is in order, a 972CG penalty the year after: $340 per return for 2026 forms filed in 2027 that are late or wrong, $690 for intentional disregard, with annual maximums of $4,191,500 ($1,397,000 for small filers) under Rev. Proc. 2025-32. The errors that recur on Form 1098-C:

• Name on the title versus the donor. The donor is the person who contributed the vehicle, which is the person on the title assignment; a spouse who signs the drop-off form is not automatically the donor.
• Jointly titled vehicles. One 1098-C to the donor who will claim the deduction, under that person's SSN.
• Business donors. A company contributing a fleet vehicle is reported under the company's EIN; a sole proprietor under the individual's name.

The name control calculator shows what the IRS will derive from a name line, and the CP2100 guide covers what to do when the notice arrives.

Recipient statements and substitutes

The recipient statement for Form 1098-C need not be a copy of the official form: a substitute may be combined with other account statements or reports, provided every required item is numbered and titled as on the official form, the tax year, form number and form name appear together, the recipient instructions are included, and, for the forms Pub 1099 lists, a telephone number with direct access to someone who can answer questions is shown. Publication 1179 (Rev. Proc. 2026-18) has the specifications; logos, slogans and advertising are not permitted on the statement itself. Statements may be furnished electronically only to a recipient who has affirmatively consented in a way that shows they can access the format, after the disclosures in Pub 1099 part M, and must stay posted through October 15. Copy B may show a truncated TIN (xxx-xx-1234); the IRS copy never may. The consent rules for furnishing statements electronically are under review: Notice 2026-4 asked for comments (due May 23, 2026) on whether the broker rules, and then the rules for every other payee statement, should change.

Corrections and state copies

A wrong amount, code or checkbox is a Type 1 correction: one corrected return with the CORRECTED box checked. The wrong form type is a Type 2 correction: a zeroed-out copy of the original plus a new original, in that order. A wrong or missing payee TIN or name is also Type 2 on paper, but IRIS corrects it in one step on the original record (Publication 5717). Publication 1099 also says you are not required to file a correction for a missing or incorrect TIN if you meet the reasonable-cause standard, only to use the right TIN on the next return, although the IRS encourages the correction. Details and the paper error charts are on the 1099 corrections page.

Form 1098-C is not in the Combined Federal/State Filing program, so any state that requires it must receive it directly. Requirements by state are on the state pages.

Questions people ask about Form 1098-C

Other federal forms

1042-S · 1097-BTC · 1098 · 1098-E · 1098-F · 1098-Q · 1098-T · 1098-VLI · 1099-A · 1099-B · 1099-C · 1099-CAP · 1099-DIV · 1099-G · 1099-INT · 1099-K · 1099-LPS · 1099-LS · 1099-LTC · 1099-MISC · 1099-NEC · 1099-OID · 1099-PATR · 1099-Q · 1099-QA · 1099-R · 1099-S · 1099-SA · 1099-SB · 3921 · 3922 · 5498 · 5498-ESA · 5498-QA · 5498-SA · 5498-TA · W-2G · 1099-DA · Comparison table

Sources: IRS Publication 1099 (2026), General Instructions for Certain Information Returns, which replaced the separate General Instructions starting with tax year 2026; Instructions for Form 1098-C (Rev. November 2019, continuous use); Pub 1099 (2026) parts E and O; IRC 170(f)(12)IRC 170Internal Revenue Code, Cornell LII, 6720. Threshold amounts are indexed for inflation from calendar year 2027; check IRS.gov/InflationAdjustment for the current year.