ePayment Setup for Receiving Grants
This article will review the process for setting up a charity to receive their grant payments using ACH versus a check. This can speed up the grants processing timeline by 3-5 business days!
ACH donations also offer advantages beyond time efficiency such as reduced processing fees, automation of recurring donations, and secure fund transfers, providing a streamlined and cost-effective method for disbursing grants.
Request ACH Setup
To request ACH setup, navigate to the charity detail page for the organization you wish to setup with Express Giving.
Click the Request ACH Setup button
A request ACH form will pop-up with the details of the charity you are wishing to setup. Please fill out the full name, email address, and phone number (if available) for your contact at the organization who can assist in setting up the charity to receive grants via ACH.
Upon completing the form, the status of Express Giving setup will change to "In-Progress" while ACH is being setup.
Note: The initial ACH setup may take 1-2 weeks to complete depending on the responsiveness of the recipient organization.
The recipient at the charity that was entered into the form will receive an email that confirms one of their donors has requested their assistance in activating ACH payments.
The donor will also receive an email confirming their request to setup the designated charity to receive ACH payments.
The charity will then receive an email from our grant payment partner, Bill.com, who will provide a link to "Sign up for ePayments".
Once the charity has completed the steps to add their Payment Network ID and/or bank account and routing number details, the charity will be activated for Express Giving.
The platform will sync nightly and update the charity detail page with clear notation that the charity has been activated for Express Giving.
ePayment Details
What is sent with the ePayment? The following information is included with an ePayment when sent to a charity:
An email notification when the payment is scheduled, and when the payment is deposited. The email also includes the payment info:
Payment Method
Payment Date
Invoice #s paid
Header Records
An update to their bank statement regarding the deposit is called a header, which tells the charity where the deposit came from, and what it is for.
The headers display different info based on whether the charity is a standard ePayment charity, or a verified national charity in our Network.
Note: The charity's notification email is managed on the Giving support team side. If you are the charity and you need to change your notification email, please contact care@bluegive.com.
Advantages of ACH Donations
ACH donations provide several distinct benefits:
Faster Transactions: Payments are transferred directly to the organization's bank account, saving time.
Reduced Fees: ACH donations incur lower processing fees compared to traditional methods, leading to cost savings.
Automation: ACH can support recurring grants effortlessly, eliminating manual processing efforts.
These benefits ultimately result in a smoother and more efficient grant disbursement process for all parties involved.
While setting up ACH transactions, it's essential to first verify if the recipient organization is already enrolled to receive grants via ACH. This step prevents duplicate efforts and ensures a seamless setup process.
The following information is sent to the charity's bank for their bank statement header:
< Business name the payment is sent from > via BILL
Note: this will be GiveClear Foundation
Invoice number being paid with the payment
If multiple invoices are paid with one payment, invoice # will not show, instead it will say Multiple
Amount paid
Reference ID (this is the ACH Confirmation Number)
Below is an example of what is sent to the charity's bank account:
Below is an example of the grant letter that is sent to the charity around the time the charity receives the funds (this can be a couple days before or after). The email will be sent from operations@tifingive.com:
Note: What is displayed on bank statements is dependent on what the receiving bank chooses to display.