Use GiftAssist to give donors the option to help offset processing costs.
GiftAssist does not replace processing fees. It is a small, additional donation that donors can add to their transactions so the final amount you receive is closer to the donor’s original gift.
GiftAssist is tax deductible for your donors.
GiftAssist is available for these transactions:
Standard donations (one-time and recurring)
Event donations and registrations
Virtual Terminal
Peer-to-peer campaign donations and registrations
Auction event donations and registrations
Kiosk
GiftAssist and Payment Processors
Depending on which payment processor you use, configurations for GiftAssist are different.
Bloomerang Payments
If you use Bloomerang Payments, Bloomerang Fundraising calculates the GiftAssist amount for you. The calculation uses your organization’s processing rates. For peer-to-peer transactions, the calculation also includes the 1% peer-to-peer fee.
GiftAssist covers the processing fee on the whole transaction, including the fee on the GiftAssist amount itself. As a result, the amount you receive is close to the donor’s original gift.
For example, at the standard rates, a donor who gives $100 and selects GiftAssist adds these amounts:
Transaction Type | Processing Rate | GiftAssist Amount on a $100 Gift |
Standard Donations | 3.95% plus $0.30 | $4.42 |
Standard Events | 3.95% plus $0.30 | $4.42 |
Auctions | 3.95% plus $0.30 | $4.42 |
Peer-to-Peer | 4.95% plus $0.30 | $5.52 |
GiftAssist uses this calculation:
(processing rate × gift amount + per-transaction fee) ÷ (1 − processing rate)
GiftAssist Rates by Checkout Type
The rate GiftAssist uses depends on where the transaction happens and, in some cases, the donor’s payment method:
Transaction Location | GiftAssist Rate |
Donation forms and peer-to-peer forms | Your standard card rate (the Visa, Mastercard, and Discover rate) for every payment method, including American Express and bank payment (eCheck). Peer-to-peer forms add the 1% peer-to-peer fee. |
Auctions and the Event Virtual Terminal, with a saved payment method | The rate for that payment method. For example, a saved American Express card uses the American Express rate, and a saved bank account uses the eCheck rate. |
Event Virtual Terminal, with an American Express card entered manually | Your standard card rate, because the card type isn’t known. |
Before the donor chooses a payment method | Your standard card rate. |
Kiosk | Your standard card rate, for every payment method. |
Note: On donation forms and peer-to-peer forms with GiftAssist enabled, bank (eCheck) transactions are also charged your standard card rate. For more information, read Payment Processing Pricing.
Other Payment Processors
If you use a payment processor other than Bloomerang Payments, you can customize GiftAssist so that the fee is either a percentage of the transaction amount or a flat fee.
If you set up GiftAssist as a percentage, the calculation applies to the entire transaction total. For registrations, the total includes:
Registration costs
Donations
Store items (including taxes and shipping), if applicable
DAFpay Gifts
GiftAssist works differently for gifts made with DAFpay, because donor-advised funds (DAFs) send grants in whole dollars:
Bloomerang Payments: Bloomerang Fundraising calculates GiftAssist based on DAFpay’s 4.85% processing fee.
Other payment processors: GiftAssist uses the percentage or flat fee you set for the form.
Rounding: The gift total submitted to the DAF sponsor is always rounded down to the nearest whole dollar. The round-down comes out of the GiftAssist amount, so the GiftAssist you receive might be less than the calculated amount.
If the donor changes the amount: If the donor changes the gift amount on the DAFpay payment confirmation screen, GiftAssist is removed and the gift is submitted as a whole-dollar donation with no GiftAssist.
Enable GiftAssist
New standard and peer-to-peer forms have GiftAssist and Opt-in Donors by default enabled automatically. This means the GiftAssist option is preselected for donors unless you disable it in the form's settings.
When you clone a form, both settings are enabled on the cloned form, even if the original form doesn't have them enabled. The cloned form keeps the other settings from the original form.
Note: Only new standard and peer-to-peer forms opt in donors by default. New auction and Givi forms have GiftAssist enabled by default, but you can't opt in donors automatically on them.
To enable GiftAssist:
In the main navigation, click Forms.
Select a form.
Go to the form’s general settings:
For donation forms, hover over Form Settings, and then click General.
For peer-to-peer forms, click Campaign Settings.
For auction forms, hover over Auction Settings, and then click General.
Locate and turn on Enable GiftAssist.
Note: If GiftAssist was disabled for this form and you enable it, Opt-in Donors by default is enabled at the same time.
If you use Bloomerang Payments as your payment processor, GiftAssist automatically covers the form’s transaction fees, and you do not configure the amount. Go to Step 7.
If you do not use Bloomerang Payments as your payment processor, set up GiftAssist to apply either a flat fee or a percentage of the transaction total.
The fee maximums are the following:
Percentage maximum: 6.00%
Flat fee maximum: $10.00
(Optional) In the Checkbox label text box, customize the text that appears where donors will indicate that they want to help offset transaction costs. The %Fee% tag automatically populates with the GiftAssist amount you set. The default text is Help cover fees ($X).
(Optional) In donation forms, we recommend that you enable Opt-in Donors by default. When enabled, the GiftAssist option is automatically selected for all donors that visit your donation form so more donors choose to cover fees.
Note: Donors can clear the option on the form if they don't want to pay the additional fee.
Click Save Campaign Settings.
Tip: If GiftAssist is currently disabled for one or more forms, check the Forms and Events page for a banner with the option to enable GiftAssist for multiple forms at once.
What Donors See
Donors will see the GiftAssist checkbox near the payment information area, just before the submit button. Unless you customized the label, it reads "Help cover fees" followed by the fee amount. For kiosks, they'll be taken to a screen containing a breakdown of the GiftAssist fee, where they can decide if they want to add the amount to their transaction.
After a donor enters a donation amount, GiftAssist automatically calculates the additional amount and shows it to the donor.
When a donor is viewing the online Bloomerang Fundraising donation confirmation page, the GiftAssist amount will be listed as Covered Costs in the Billed Transaction Details section.
Note: For DAFpay gifts, the confirmation page lists the GiftAssist amount as Processing Fee, with a note that the amount is rounded because donor-advised funds give in whole dollars.
On the online confirmation page for peer-to-peer, the GiftAssist amount will be listed as shown below:
In a donor’s peer-to-peer email receipt, the following will be displayed:
You can also include a special thank-you message in your receipts for donors who opt in to GiftAssist by using conditional content.
Manage GiftAssist for Recurring Gifts
Donors can opt in to GiftAssist when they set up a recurring donation. If GiftAssist is enabled, it applies to each occurrence of the recurring payment.
Donors can opt out by logging in to their donor account and clearing the GiftAssist checkbox while they edit the recurring payment.
If a donor sets up a recurring payment without a donor account and wants to stop using GiftAssist, an admin with system permission to access recurring payments can opt out the donor.
Opt Donors out of GiftAssist
To opt a donor out of GiftAssist:
In the Donors area of the control panel, select Recurring Payments.
Click the recurring ID of the payment you want to edit. The Recurring Details page opens.
In the Amount section, click Edit.
Clear the GiftAssist checkbox.
Click Save Amount Information.
Find GiftAssist Amounts in the Transactions Report
In the Transactions report, the GiftAssist amount appears as a line item.
In other reports, GiftAssist appears in its own column.
Refund GiftAssist Amounts
If you use a payment processor other than Bloomerang Payments, you can refund the GiftAssist amount separately from the rest of the transaction. You can refund only the full GiftAssist amount.
To refund GiftAssist:
On your dashboard, locate the transaction with the processing costs you want to refund.
In the table, click the transaction ID.
Click Refund Options.
In the Donations section, enter a full or partial refund for the main donation amount. If you have multi-restriction giving enabled, a text box appears for each restriction. Check the box to refund the full GiftAssist Amount partial refunds for GiftAssist aren't an option.
To refund GiftAssist, select the checkbox to refund the full GiftAssist amount.
The total refund amount updates automatically.
Click Issue Refund. Bloomerang issues the refund within 24 hours. A confirmation message appears.
(Optional) In the confirmation message, click View Refunds. The Refund History table lists all refund actions for the transaction.
