FAQ

#GivingTuesdayNow Matching-Fund is a giving day initiative to help raise funds for nonprofits affected by the financial crisis related to COVID-19. There is no cost for nonprofits to register and participate. The initiative is part of the worldwide #GivingTuesdayNow project to unite and heal communities and is a collaborative effort of Nonprofit Hub, Do More Good and Firespring.

To be eligible, a nonprofit organization must be listed on GuideStar and recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) public charity in the U.S. Nonprofits must register by 11:59 p.m. CDT on May 1, 2020. Houses of worship and their foundations are not eligible to participate.

How to get a nonprofit registered on GuideStar.

All donations made on this website will be made to the Firespring Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization which permits donors to advise a re-granting of their donations to other IRS recognized qualifying 501(c)(3) organizations. Firespring Foundation will re-grant each contribution to the qualifying organization as advised by the donor, retaining 2.9% plus $.30 per donation for credit card transaction costs and a 1% platform fee. Donors have the option to cover these fees, allowing 100% of their intended gift to be distributed to the qualifying organization.

Yes. Your donation is made to the Firespring Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) organization (EIN: 30-0358636). Firespring Foundation will email you a receipt for your donation after it has been completed. Firespring Foundation will then re-grant donations to eligible intended recipients as directed by the donor. Please consult your tax specialist if you need any additional guidance.

Yes, but only for donors that give specifically to your organization and that didn’t designate their gift as “anonymous”. Otherwise, nonprofits will be able to see donor information as it comes in and export a final list. Nonprofits are heartily encouraged to send thank you notes to donors.

The official date of #GivingTuesdayNow is May 5, 2020, but this fundraising initiative runs throughout most of May. Donations are accepted April 24, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. CDT through May 26, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. CDT.

• Number of participating nonprofits: 5,000
• Donations to nonprofits: $15M
• Matching funds: $5M

Registered participants are eligible to receive a proportional share of the matching funds collected for this initiative. There are 52 separate Match Fund Pools:

• 1 overarching U.S. Match Fund
• 50 U.S. state Match Funds (1 per state)
• 1 Match Fund for the District of Columbia

The overarching U.S. Match Fund Pool will proportionally benefit every eligible nonprofit registered on the platform, and the other Match Fund Pools will proportionally benefit every eligible nonprofit registered on the platform for the Match Fund designated for a specific state or District of Columbia based on the nonprofit’s address on record with the IRS. Multi-state organizations will ladder back up to their address on record with the IRS. U.S. nonprofits based in American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands or any other U.S. territory are eligible to participate in the overarching U.S. Match Fund Pool, but do not qualify for the other Match Fund Pools.

The proportional match will be determined by dividing the total dollar amount collected on behalf of the designated participant against the total dollar amount collected for all eligible participants as of 11:59 p.m. CDT on May 26, 2020. These calculations will happen for both the national and state level Match Funds. The participants’ proportional share of both national and state level Match Funds will be added to their donation total for disbursement. Match fund contributions must be received by May 26, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. CDT in order to be included in the final payouts.

Event sponsor Firespring has seeded the Match Fund Pools with contributions of $5,000 to the overarching U.S Match Fund Pool and $100 for each of the remaining 51 Match Fund Pools.

Anyone from anywhere in the world can make a donation to the participants of the #GivingTuesdayNow Matching-Fund Initiative on this website beginning April 24, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. CDT through May 26, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. CDT. The minimum donation is $10 USD. There is no maximum donation amount but there is a $10,000 maximum for credit card donations. To make a donation larger than $10,000, you will be redirected upon checkout to an ACH page where you will be required to enter your checking account information. All donations are final and cannot be refunded. If you experience any issues facilitating your donation, please contact us at givingday@firespring.com.

We recommend that donations be made via credit card on this website. Offline donations (checks) should be made payable to “Firespring Foundation” and sent to: Firespring Foundation, 211 North 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68508. The nonprofit name must be designated in the memo line of the check. If the donation is for multiple participants, write one check for the total and include a separate list with detailed instructions for how the funds should be allocated. Firespring Foundation assesses a 2.9% service fee for checks received designated as a donation to a nonprofit.

Nonprofits that raise the most in donations through this initiative will receive a higher proportion of the Match Fund Pools. Beginning at 12:01 a.m. CDT on May 5, all donations are tallied and displayed on the leaderboard to reflect which nonprofits have raised the most money through the platform. The leaderboard will continue to show live updates until the initiative concludes on May 26.

Companies, foundations and individuals are encouraged to participate in the Match Fund. Match fund donors who contribute $1,000 USD or more to the Match Fund Pools are recognized in three different tiers on this website and in other promotional messaging:

1. Match Fund Sponsor ($1,000 to $9,999)
2. Middle-Tier Match Fund Sponsor ($10,000 to $24,999)
3. Highest-Tier Match Fund Sponsor ($25,000 or more)

The minimum donation to the Match Fund is $10 USD. There is no maximum donation amount but there is a $10,000 maximum for credit card donations. To make a donation larger than $10,000, you will be redirected upon checkout to an ACH page where you will be required to enter your checking account information. All donations are final and cannot be refunded. Match fund donations must be received by 11:59 p.m. CDT on May 26, 2020 to be included in the final payouts.

Checks should be made payable to “Firespring Foundation” and sent to: Firespring Foundation, 211 North 14th Street, Lincoln, NE 68508. The designated Match Fund Pool must be designated in the memo line of the check. If the donation is for multiple Match Fund Pools, write one check for the total and include a separate list with detailed instructions specifying how the funds should be allocated.

If a Match Fund donation is received without designating a specific Match Fund Pool, it will be allocated to the overarching U.S. Match Fund Pool. A processing fee of 2.9% and $0.30 will be assessed to credit card donations. No fees are added to Match Fund donations made via check or ACH. If you experience any issues facilitating your Match Fund donation, please contact us at givingday@firespring.com.

Eligible participants that receive $10.00 USD or more in donations will receive their funds from this initiative beginning June 9, 2020 and no later than June 27, 2020 (one month after the initiative concludes). Participants that do not receive a minimum of $10.00 USD in donations will receive no payouts. All payouts will be made via check and will be mailed to the payment address listed on Guidestar. Please cash all checks within 90 days of receipt.

Payouts will be calculated by adding together the total donations designated for each participant plus their proportional match from the overarching U.S. Match Fund Pool and any eligible state or District of Columbia Match Fund Pool after deducting 2.9% and $0.30 per donation for payment processing and a 1% platform fee. Firespring is donating 100% of the collected platform fees back to the U.S. Match Fund Pool.