Do charitable donations do any good if my taxable income would be zero without them?

[TurboTaxTara · Accepted solution]

No, donations are a non-refundable tax credit. In other words, they can reduce your tax payable but can't result in a tax refund.

You do not have to claim all of the donations you made this year on your current year return. You can save your receipts and carry them forward and claim them on your return for any of the next five years.