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Are there any expenses that one is allowed to "deduct" from his income before calculating the amount of Maaser one must give?

For example, if one makes a hundred thousand dollars a year, but his living expenses, food, taxes and school tuition take up ninety percent of his income, must he pay ten thousand dollars for Maaser or one thousand?

msh210
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ertert3terte
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  • The AOJS has a book on maasar k'safim (with the title Maaser Kesafim) with an entire chapter devoted to this question. I'd tell you what the upshot was, but don't have the book (and can't see that part of it on Google Books). – msh210 Jan 02 '12 at 00:15

3 Answers3

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Dayan Raskin says that the following are deductibles:

  1. Any overheads that one must pay to earn one's money. For example, if one earned $100,000 but must pay rent, workers, wholesaler, insurance, etc., he doesn't really earn the full $100,000. Therefore, he can pay less Maaser.
  2. Taxes. If one earned $100,000 dollars, but pays $10,000 in taxes, he doesn't really earn $100,000 but $90,000.
  3. Transportation costs. If it takes $5,000 dollars to get to work, he doesn't really earn $100,000 but $95,000.
  4. Cost of childcare to supervise children during working hours. If it costs $5,000 for a babysitter, he doesn't really earn $100,000 but $95,000.

Mortgage is not deductible.

Though if one can't afford to give Tzedaka (meaning, if he was to give Tzedaka he would so poor he would be elegible for Tzedaka himself), he can make a "buddy system" with another such individual with which they can exchange Maaser.

ertert3terte
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5

Although not commonly practiced (that I know of), it is worthwhile to mention the approach of the Chofetz Chaim in Ahavas Chesed (2:18:3) is to deduct all non-discretionary household expenses and to give maaser on the net income.

I don't know if non-discretionary expenses only includes basic necessities, or would also include expenses which are culturally accepted (telephone, insurance, etc.)

YDK
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2

School tuition may even count towards one's maaser if necessary! See: http://doseofhalacha.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/maaser-for-tuition.html

The Shulchan Aruch (YD 245:4) writes that parents have an obligation to teach their sons Torah or hire another to teach on their behalf. Many Poskim (Aruch Hashulchan YD 249:10; Chofetz Chaim, Ahavas Chesed 2:19:2) therefore write that as this is an obligatory Mitzva one should not use one’s maaser to pay for it.

The Shevet Halevi (5:133:2) points out that the primary obligation is to teach Torah Shebichsav. As schools today teach Torah Shebaal Peh, one may use one’s maaser if absolutely necessary. R’ Yitzchak Blazer (Shut Pri Yitzchak 2:27) writes that one may use one’s maaser for one’s older children in Yeshiva or Seminary (or even above the age of six).

Some Poskim differentiate between boys and girls tuition. Dayan Weiss (Minchas Yitzchok 10:85) allows one to use one’s maaser to pay for their daughter’s tuition if necessary as one is not obligated to teach them Torah in the same way.

R’ Moshe Feinstein (Igros Moshe YD 2:113) writes that nowadays there is no difference between boys and girls as parents are legally required to send them both to school. While he maintains that one should not use maaser money to pay for one’s child’s education, if one is eligible for a reduction, they should rather pay the full amount, making up the balance out of their maaser.

One who can afford to pay without using one’s maaser should do so. Where school fees are voluntary and pay to subsidize other students too, one may use some of one’s maaser towards the tuition, providing the funds are used for Mitzva related expenses. Either way, one must pay off any school fees before donating money to other charities.

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Zvi
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  • I don't see that this answers the question, unless you posit that if something can be paid out of maaser funds then it can also be deducted from income before calculating the maaser amount (which doesn't seem reasonable to me, as that'd be paying maaser from monies not obligated in maaser, and IINM the analogue for maaser on produce doesn't work; and which, in any event, you haven't posited in your answer). – msh210 Mar 23 '14 at 20:43
  • My point - not only is tuition exempt from maaser, though it counts towards maaser if necessary. – Zvi Mar 23 '14 at 21:35
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    Again, I'd think "exempt from maaser" and "counts towards maaser" would be mutually exclusive -- but [edit]ing your position to the contrary in to your answer would make it address the question asked. (Sourcing it would be even better.) – msh210 Mar 23 '14 at 21:48
  • @msh210, maybe it's time for my mid-morning coffee, but if you've paid your tuition, which counts for your Ma'aser, wouldn't you be exempting that from calculating the Ma'aser on the remainder of your income? Although I agree with your original point that Zvi should make his argument clear in his answer. Also, Zvi, "not only..." usually needs to be followed up with a "but (also)..." I'm not sure what your point in your comment is. – Seth J Mar 24 '14 at 16:17
  • I disagree with the 'delete' flags. "This was posted as an answer, but it does not attempt to answer the question. It should possibly be an edit, a comment, another question, or deleted altogether." These criteria do not seem to apply, IMHO. It is not a strong answer, and it could use revision, but it is not a comment or edit to either the question or another answer. – Seth J Mar 24 '14 at 16:35
  • @SethJ, either something counts as income (for maaser purposes i.e. isn't exempt from maaser) or no. If the income later outlaid for tuition counts as income, great, take maaser from it, and then you can ask whether the later outlay for tuition counts as giving maaser. But if the income later outlaid for tuition doesn't count as income at all, i.e. there's no maaser required on it because it gets spent on tuition, then how can you use it to pay the maaser bill on your 'real' (maaser-liable) income? – msh210 Mar 24 '14 at 17:25
  • @msh210 What you're saying sounds to me like, "once you've given Ma'aser, that money no longer counts toward your income, and you are, therefore, still liable for Ma'aser even though you've already paid it." This cannot be what you mean...can it? – Seth J Mar 24 '14 at 18:28
  • @SethJ, that's not what I mean. Suppose your local taxing authority (e.g. the IRS) has a rule: your kid's tuition payments count as tax payments. (Hal'vay.) You make $50,000 a year in the 10% tax bracket and pay $5000 for tuition. The taxman says "you owe $0: you've paid your 10%". Can you now say "wait, I only really made $45,000: the remaining $5000 wasn't income because I paid it out for tuition: I never really had it. So I only owed $4500 tax, and overpaid by $500. You owe me a refund of $500"? No! You can't count your $5000 as both tax paid on income and money that never came in. – msh210 Mar 25 '14 at 04:36
  • @msh210 Oh, I see what you're saying. Here I thought you were misunderstanding the answer and overstating the implications. I think now that I may have misunderstood it. Tzvi, can you clarify what you mean? – Seth J Mar 25 '14 at 12:31
  • Maybe I'm stupid, though I'm not sure I'm getting all of this. I know these figures are totally unrealistic, though bear with me:

    Imagine I'm earning $100,000 net and my tuition is $4ooo. Depending on the quotes Shittas, I may only have to pay maaser on the remaining $60000 as I've already paid my maaser on the first $40000.

     – Zvi Mar 25 '14 at 19:22
  • Right, so that means your tuition payment counts as a maaser payment, which doesn't answer the question about whether it's deductible when calculating maaser due. (I don't think I saw your last comment until just now.) – msh210 Jan 15 '17 at 22:30