If you’ve ever watched a nonprofit scramble to cover an unexpected repair bill, redirect a restricted grant, or quietly move money between accounts, you’ve seen why the distinction between board-designated funds and donor-restricted funds matters. I’ve worked with finance teams that treated those terms as synonyms, and I’ve watched auditors flag the mistakes within minutes. … Read more
When I first heard about fiscal sponsorship, I assumed it was some kind of workaround for charities that couldn’t get their own tax status. After spending weeks digging through IRS guidance, sponsor agreements, and real user stories on Reddit, I realized it is something more interesting: a legal structure that lets charitable projects receive tax-deductible … Read more
If you are starting a nonprofit or launching a charitable project, you have probably encountered two terms that sound almost identical: fiscal sponsorship and fiscal agency. The distinction between these two arrangements is not just semantic. It determines whether your donors can claim tax-deductible contributions, who controls the money, and what legal liabilities you carry. … Read more
If your nonprofit just received $25,000 from a donor who specified it must go to three specific families, you do not get to record that as contribution revenue. I have seen this mistake on more than one set of books, and the IRS notices it too. Our team has spent years working through these scenarios … Read more
If your nonprofit raises money from individual donors, there’s a strong chance some of those donors work for companies that will match their gift – often dollar for dollar. Research shows 84% of donors are more likely to give when a match is available, yet many nonprofits leave that money on the table simply because … Read more
If you have ever stared at a bank deposit from Stripe, PayPal, or Donorbox and wondered whether it actually matches the donations in your CRM, you are not alone. Knowing how do you reconcile a donation platform payout is one of those nonprofit bookkeeping tasks that looks simple until you try it the first time. … Read more
Nonprofits should record gross donations as the total contribution amount before any processing fees or deductions, then show those fees separately as an expense. Net deposits represent the actual cash that hits the bank account after payment processors, platform fees, or other deductions take their cut. Understanding the difference between gross donations and net deposits … Read more
Yes, donation processing fees should be recorded as expenses. When a donor gives $100 online and the payment processor charges a $3 fee, your nonprofit records the full $100 as contribution revenue and the $3 as a separate processing fee expense. You never net the fee against the donation amount. This approach follows the gross … Read more
If you run a nonprofit and accept donations through Stripe, you have probably asked yourself the question: how should nonprofits record Stripe donation fees? I have helped several small 501(c)(3) teams work through this exact issue, and the answer is straightforward once you understand the principle. Record the full donation amount as revenue in your … Read more
Nonprofits receive donations through many channels, and not all of them come directly from the donor. When a third party collects contributions on your behalf, the accounting gets more complicated. You need to know exactly when to record the revenue, how to value it, and who is responsible for acknowledging the gift. Our team has … Read more