A qualified appraisal is required when you claim a deduction of more than 5,000 dollars for a single item or group of similar donated items, with limited exceptions such as certain publicly traded securities. In that situation you complete Section B of Form 8283, have a qualified appraiser sign the declaration, and have the charity sign the donee acknowledgment. The written appraisal itself usually is not attached unless special thresholds apply. For donations of artwork with a claimed value of 20,000 dollars or more for any single piece, you must attach a complete signed appraisal to the return in addition to filing Form 8283. If the deduction for one item or a group of similar items is more than 500,000 dollars, you must also attach the appraisal report to your tax return.
