The State of Arizona has given taxpayers a choice in how their tax dollars are allocated. You can pay your taxes to the State and allow the legislature to decide how to spend the money.  Or, you can allocate (within limits, of course) to various groups that are doing good in your community.

For example, “Joe and Jane Doe” have a tax burden of $1,000 to the State of Arizona.  If they donate $400 to a qualified QCO and make another donation to a QFCO for $600, their $1,000 in contributions will offset their tax liability, dollar-for-dollar.  They will no longer need to pay the Arizona Department of Revenue any taxes due and will be refunded for any state taxes withheld. 

Joe and Jane have, in effect, decided how their tax dollars are spent. They have made the determination themselves as to what organizations are adding the most value to their community. 

Simply put - a tax CREDIT reduces an individual’s bill on a dollar-for-dollar basis. For every dollar you give to a qualified tax credit organization, your tax bill is reduced by a dollar.

A tax DEDUCTION reduces your taxable income. So, for every dollar claimed for a tax deduction, your taxable income is reduced by a dollar.  How much that affects your tax bill depends on your tax bracket.  For example, if your tax percentage is 2.5% (the flat rate for Arizona), every dollar claimed as a tax deduction will return you 2.5 cents. 

So – tax DEDUCTIONS are fine. But tax CREDITS are great!

The three Azura tax CREDITS on this website (QCO, QFCO, and STO) are NOT deductions but credits. Our credits can reduce your Arizona state tax liability dollar-for-dollar. 

Like many tax situations, it’s complicated.  A glance at Arizona Form 301 shows that there are dozens of credits available to Arizona taxpayers.  Many of them, however, are very specialized or designed for companies or organizations.

For individual taxpayers, the credits that can be used by anyone are, understandably, the most popular:

• Credit for Contributions to Qualifying Charitable Organizations (QCO). (Form 321)

• Credit for Contributions Made or Fees Paid to Public Schools. (Form 322)

• Credit for Contributions to Private School Tuition Organizations (STO). (Form 323)

• Credit for Contributions to Qualifying Foster Care Charitable Organizations (QFCO). (Form 352)

Three of these four tax credits are ones that Azura’s initiatives are certified by the Arizona Department of Revenue to receive. 

Yes! The beauty of this program is that based on what you are most passionate about, you can pick and choose how little or much (up to the state limits) you want to give to each program.

For the 2024 tax year, if you “stack” the tax credits with Azura, you can get up to $1,788 for an individual taxpayer or $3,570 for joint-filing taxpayers off of your tax burden.

For the 2024 tax year, here are the limits set by the Arizona Department of Revenue:

QFCO – Qualified Foster Care Charitable Organization (Helen’s Hope Chest) = $587 for an individual taxpayer OR $1,173 for joint-filing taxpayers.

QCO - Qualifying Charitable Organizations (Foster360) = $470 for an individual taxpayer OR $938 for joint-filing taxpayers.

STO – School Tuition Organizations (Azura Scholarship Fund) = $731 for an individual taxpayer OR $1,459 for joint-filing taxpayers.

No, there is not a minimum dollar requirement for any of the tax credits.  Any amount helps us complete our mission.

After we receive your payment, our system will automatically generate an email to you with a PDF that includes a cover letter, a receipt, and all the Arizona Department of Revenue forms filled out (Arizona Forms 321, 323, and 352). These forms will have the necessary information regarding your contribution, including our certification numbers. The forms should be “plug and play” for your tax preparer. 

**NOTE: The Arizona Department of Revenue does not usually make the new tax forms available until January 1. As a result, if you make a contribution during 2024, the form you will receive will be a 2023 form.  More than likely, it will be very similar to the 2024 form.  Nonetheless, we will email you the completed 2024 forms when they become available.

If you contribute to one of our initiatives and the amount you contribute is greater than your state tax burden, you can “carry forward” your credit for future tax years. (Up to five years).

For example, “Joe and Jane Doe” are excited about directing their money to their community instead of the State Legislature so they give $1,500 to a variety of Azura tax credits ($300 to Azura Literacy, $1,000 to Foster360, and $200 to Helen’s Hope Chest).  But after all the dust settles, their tax bill for that year is only $1,000.  They will have no tax owed to the State of Arizona for this year and can take the extra $500 they contributed ($1,500 given minus $1,000 in tax liability) and apply it to the following year’s tax bill.

Important note: While the Arizona Department of Revenue will  “refund” you any taxes that were withheld and that you are entitled to, if you make an overpayment of tax credits, they will not refund your overpayment.  They view it as a non-refundable payment that can be carried forward to future tax liabilities. 

Contrary to conventional wisdom, you do not have to make your contributions to the Azura tax credits before January 1.  The State of Arizona allows you to contribute up until midnight on April 15, 2025. 

(Sidenote: on the State of Arizona forms, it requires you to list separately whether you gave in 2024 or 2025. It is important to note that you get the same credit whether you give in 2024 or 2025.)

Check with your tax advisor about federal credits and deductions, however.  Their deadlines are usually December 31. 

Yes and No. LLC’s and corporations can’t participate in most of these tax credits.  However, they can participate in the Azura Scholarship Fund. This process is set up differently than these individual tax credits.  Please see the “Corporate Tax Credits” section of this website for more information. 

We recommed that you talk to a professional tax advisor to talk about your unique tax situation. 

If your question is more about the mechanics or logistics of making the contributions or website problems, you can contact us by email at: TaxCredits@AzuraCares.org or by phone at (480) 832-2108.

The Arizona Department of Revenue’s helpline is: (602) 255-3381 or (800) 352-4090