Determining the Proper Date to Recognize Donations

Determining the proper date to report a donor receipt can sometimes be difficult. Ordinarily, a contribution or donation is considered “made” at the time when delivery occurs. This is the time when a donor gives up control of the funds and gives the charity the ability to access them.

The date on which a donation is recognized is based on the manner in which the donation is made: 

• If a donations (check/cash) is handed to the charity in person, the delivery date is the date of the gift (or the date on the check, which ever is later). 
• If the donation (check/cash) is mailed to the charity via U.S. Mail, generally the postmark date is used as the date of donation which is generally indicative of the date of mailing. 
• If the donation (check/cash) is sent via private delivery service (such as FedEx or UPS), then the date of the donation is generally the date the charity receives the donation. 
• For credit card donations, the date of the contribution is the date the charge is posted to the donor’s account. 

Determining the date of a donation becomes especially important near the calendar year end (for donors and tax deductions) and is also important near the fiscal year end of the nonprofit organization for financial statement reporting.  For example, a charity may receive a check with a December date, but a postmark date of January. Although the donor may have intended for the contribution to qualify for a deduction in the preceding tax year, the donation qualifies for the tax year beginning in January instead, due to the postmark date.