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What Are Restricted Funds?

Last modified: March 6, 2023
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Definition

Restricted funds are monies set aside for a particular purpose as a result of designated giving.  They are permanently restricted to that purpose and cannot be used for other expenses of the nonprofit.  By contrast, unrestricted funds may be used for any legal purpose appropriate to the organization.

Only Donors Can Restrict Funds

One of the most important points to understand about restricted funds is that they can only come about through designated giving.  A nonprofit is free to set aside a portion of general operating revenue for any number of reasons, and may even create policies to make it difficult for those funds to be used for any other purpose.  But even if that happens, those funds are not truly restricted in the legal sense.  Real restricted funds are the result of a donor giving with specific strings attached as to what the donation may be used for.  It may be the result of the nonprofit soliciting or fundraising for that purpose.  Donors can also designate that a gift be used for a purpose they choose, completely independent of any fundraising campaign.  It may or may not be for a legitimate purpose.  These gifts can be a challenge to deal with.

What To Do About Unsolicited Designations

In that last scenario, if a donor designates a contribution that isn’t a result of an “ask” for that purpose, the nonprofit has a choice to make.  If it accepts the gift with the strings attached, that money becomes restricted to that purpose.  Sometimes that’s fine.  If a church, for example, has a facilities fund that it uses to pay mortgage payments and building-related expenses, the church may be happy to accept donor-designated gifts for that purpose, even if they weren’t directly solicited.

But what about designations that don’t fall into that situation? The good news is that a charity is not obligated to accept designated gifts.  If a donor gives a donation with a designation that doesn’t make sense for the organization at that time, it can always ask the donor if the money can be used for other purposes.  Most donors are trying to help the organization, and such a request is usually granted.  If the donor is gracious enough to agree, the money isn’t restricted.  Rarely, a donor may have a personal agenda, or is seeking some type of influence, and is not willing to lift the designation.  At this point, the nonprofit can accept the donation and agree to the restriction, or it can refuse the gift altogether.

Restrictions Are Permanent (Usually)

Once money is restricted, that restriction is permanent.  The funds cannot be redirected to other purposes, even if the budget picture becomes bleak.  It is a difficult situation to be facing unpaid rent and utility bills, or an upcoming payroll, with nothing in the organization’s operating account, but you have $50,000 sitting unused in a Scholarship Fund.  It seems logical that the money could be moved in an emergency.  But, the IRS is serious about restricted funds.  Improper use can result in severe penalties, or even loss of exempt status.  Boards can be sued by donors for misuse of such funds.

There is a possible way out, but it isn’t always easy.  If a situation arises that is serious enough to necessitate re-purposing restricted funds, it is necessary to obtain permission from the original donor(s) to remove the restriction.  It’s best practice to get that permission in writing.  That is the only legal way to use the money for purposes other than the original restriction.

Avoiding Headaches When Fundraising

There are a few things you can do to keep from getting caught in these situations.  When it comes to soliciting donations for a particular purpose, it is often wise to provide the donor with some caveats prior to the gift.  You can set a budget for the campaign and inform donors that any money received above a predetermined cap will be redirected to the general fund.  You could also publicize a time limit after which unused money in the restricted account becomes available to the general fund.  And finally, you can always provide a general disclaimer that all donations received through a campaign are subject to redirection at the discretion of the organization.

Be careful with blanket disclaimers like that last one, however.  If donors don’t have confidence that their donation is really for the purpose advertised, you may handicap your campaign.  The important thing to understand is that if you use a disclaimer or caveat, it needs to be very clear to the donor prior to the gift.

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  1. Hello my church treasurer is stepping down. We have all of our ministries broken down on paper as designated funds. My question is, if the church put money towards these funds are we legally bound to use the money specifically toward these ministries or can we reallocate the money to a different ministry? If it was the church putting money into these ministries we should be able to reallocate the money towards other funds, while leaving the money that was donated specifically by a donor correct? Thank you in advance.

    1. Yes, as the article states, only donors can cause money to be restricted by their designated giving. What I call “set-asides” by the board or staff isn’t restricted, even if you like to call it designated. If the money wasn’t restricted by donor intent, move it wherever you most need it.

  2. What happens when a church calls funds restricted but cannot find any documentation to prove they are restricted? The church I am at calls money it has in some certificate of deposits at the local bank endowments. But, no one associated in the church has any idea how the funds actually came to be cds in the bank. There is no documentation in minutes or records that show anything about restrictions. There is just some clippings from old newsletters that say the interest is to be used for certain things, but there is nothing official or from the donors themselves. The names of the donors have been recorded but they have all since passed (gifts have were made 20-30 years ago) so we can not ask them what their intent was with the gifts or if they can be reallocated to current needs. So, the gifts are sitting in the bank.

    Am I understanding that these gifts could be with board approval used for the purposes that they are labeled for as long as documentation is done to show it went to what the newspaper clippings say the interest was to be used for? Would this apply just to interest on the cds or could we use the full cd amount. One says “to be used for building maintenance” and there was a flood that damaged the entire first floor of the building, could the funds be released to help with those repairs? What happens to the funds if the church closes?

    Thank you for any help!

    1. This question comes up a lot…that is, what to do with supposedly restricted funds that no one knows who restricted it or why? In most cases, if it’s so old no one really knows, and there are no family members of the original donors who are likely to complain, then let the board use the money in the way it sees fit. Now, maybe these were permanently restricted “endowments”, but if so, you would think someone would have bothered to record that. The way it is, if there is no from whom to get permission, and no one that will protest, do what you need to do. Neither the IRS nor your state will care. Just do your due diligence and make sure you document your decisions and actions thoroughly. Get a board/elder resolution together authorizing the move.

  3. Our church has a Memorial Endowment Fund. If someone names our church in their will, but does not name the Memorial Endowment Fund, and does not list any specific instructions on what to do with the donation, what would be the best way to honor the wishes of the donor? Could the donation be used outside of the Memorial Endowment Fund?

    1. Yes, I would certainly think so. It would be an undesignated gift, same as cash dropped in the offering plate on Sunday morning. Therefore it could be used for any purpose the church decides.

      1. Hello and thanks for offering up so much of your time to help NP communities to help others. Your time is truly appreciated. Hope you will allow me to post the following question:
        Our nonprofit was approached by a donor who wanted to “donate” funds and restrict the funds to have two murals painted, one on the side of a building that he owned. Before I became president of this organization I was unaware of this transaction. My organization had offered to paint this mural and provide the materials and artists to do so. The one mural was painted but there is money left over. I found the entire transaction rather questionable in my opinion. It sounded as though the individual wanted a tax write off. I did a little research and made it clear to the former president and treasurer that the donor needed to be made aware that he should not consider his “donation” a tax right off because he was getting a mural that equaled the full amount of the money paid. That first mural is finished and I want the remaining funds returned to the donor and any further connection severed. Do see any problem with this move? Thanks in advance for any thoughts you may have for us.

        1. Based on the information you shared, I would agree that this transaction probably should not have happened that way. He is definitely receiving a benefit equal to the amount spent…maybe more. It’s not a donation. I think it sounds like a wise move to refund the difference and be done with it.

  4. We have received an unsolicited restricted donation that is to go to a particular department within our non-profit organization. We budget and spend far more than the amount of this donation on this department every year. Do we have to increase the department’s budget by the amount of the restricted donation or make a special purchase for this department not already included in the budget? Or because we already spend over the amount of the restriction on this department’s regular business are we covered?

  5. Hi Greg,

    This is an extremely helpful read, thank you!

    I have a question for you, about donor funds restricted to a specific event (i.e. our opening night gala).

    Do you know of any published guidance as to what actually creates the restriction, and when said revenue is to be released from restriction?

    An event seems like a special circumstance that isn’t quite a Purpose, or Time, restriction.

    We currently release the revenue in the time period in which the event occurs, so for now we essentially treat the funds as being Time restricted.
    However, we would like to create a company policy that distinguishes who drives that recognition, and on what basis – is it donor driven, or is it an organizational choice?

    1. Late response…sorry. But great question. I completely understand what you’re getting at, and would generally agree that a time restriction is somewhat inherent in the “event” nature of the gala. I recommend including language in your event solicitations that specifically states that any funds raised over and above the cost of conducting the event will be redirected to other needs at the discretion of the leadership. As long as donors clearly understand that up-front, you should be good to go.

  6. If a donor restricted gift is received, and the donor has not placed any restrictions on earnings, are the earnings available to use for any purpose?

  7. I work for a church which has some funds that are labeled as permanently restricted for seminary scholarship. The problem is that the amount of money is not large enough to generate enough interest to actually help someone. The history of the account is very unclear as the funds were obtained before our current accounting system and no mention has been found in old minutes. There is also no one working/attending the church that has any recollection of who donated the funds or how they got to be permanently restricted. Am I correct in understanding that our board could vote to change the designation of the funds? We would like to make them temporarily restricted so that the actual funds could be used as scholarship money until they run out – still maintaining the intent just using the actual principal.

    1. Late response…so sorry. These situations are always tough. My (non-legal) opinion: If there is no practical way to discern prior intent nor even who restricted it, then you can probably reallocate those funds by board vote. Just make sure all that is totally the case and document, document, document.

  8. Hi Greg,

    We have a 501 organization that we operate at the local highschool. School pays the coaches but this year we hired an assistant coach after the budget was finalized so now the head coach is asking if we can pay the assistant coach and then get reimbursed from the school next season. Can we do that? Also how do we expense it when filing for taxes ?

    Thanks you so much,
    Rinky

    1. If he’s not your employee, I wouldn’t recommend that kind of entanglement. Plus, there’s no guarantee whatsoever you’ll get that money allocated back to you in the school budget.

  9. This is a very helpful article, thank you. We hold an annual fundraising event to benefit a specific program. An outside party coordinates the event and asks that the proceeds be directed to the specific program. The event is advertised this way as well. My question is if the gross or net proceeds are restricted. If net, what types of expenses can be deducted (direct donor benefits, additional event fundraising costs, both)? Similarly, we have a campaign that we run each year to benefit a specific program. Can we deduct direct fundraising expenses related to that campaign from the restricted fund or must those expenses be covered by unrestricted funds.

    1. It’s all in how you promote it. If you tell donors that “all” proceeds go toward the restricted fund, then you will need to cover fundraising expenses from operations. However, if you advertise that all net proceeds will go to the restricted fund, then you’re freed up to take the overhead costs out of the proceeds of the event.

  10. An organization raised funds at the beginning of COVID to help local public school students deal with connectivity issues related to online schooling. Not long after that, the local internet provider stepped in and filled that gap. The organization had about $80K in donations they then could not use for that purpose. Per Board meeting minutes at that time, they sent a letter to the donors asking them if the donor would release the restriction, saying in the letter that not replying would imply the donor agreed. Having received direct confirmation from the donors for $26K, and apparently no negative answers, they went ahead and released all of the money to Unrestricted. I’ve not heard of this being done and am not really comfortable with it. Is implied consent from not responding to a general delivery letter a high enough standard in this case?

    1. I believe it is. This sort of thing happens all the time when dealing with immediate crises and the uncertainty involving timelines and budgets. The board went much further than most do by even contacting the donors at all before making a unilateral decision. I’m not patting them on the back for that, since that was the only right thing to do. The point is, they, in good faith, informed the donors of the situation and the desired resolution, then gave them a reasonable amount of time (I presume) to respond in the negative. It’s hard to imagine this blowing up on them. They should be prepared, however, to deal with the possibility of a late negative response. In the future, a good practice is to preempt such a situation by informing donors up-front that the board reserves the right to redirect funds received above the stated budget, or, in a situation like this one, to redirect if the need gets satisfied another way.

  11. Hello,
    We do an annual fundraiser for restricted purpose with a specific fundraising goal in mind because it’s meeting a specific goal for a specific number of people. However, sometimes we raise more than what we need. Can we hold the money we raised for next year’s campaign or do we have to spend all of the restricted funds right away?

    1. I think you’ll be perfectly fine holding the leftovers until next year. It’s more about accuracy in representation. Unless you’re committing to spending it all this year to the donor, you’re good to carry over.

  12. Hi,
    We have two 501c3 charitable entities, one raises funds to help send kids to nature, the other entity receives those funds to help pay for all the expenses for experience. My question, Can the first entity donate the funds they receive and donate it to the second entity? We do not want to make the second entity incur any tax liabilities. The second entity pays for all the rent of the camp, employees, utilities…etc. Please help clarify

    1. Without knowing more detail, it’s not totally clear what you’re saying. In general, one 501c3 can give to and support another 501c3. If both are actually recognized by the IRS as 501c3 charities, there isn’t any tax liabilities for income directly associated with your charitable mission. The only way a 501c3 would incur taxes on income is if the income is commercial in nature and not directly tied to your mission (unrelated business income).

  13. We do a good a mount of email and direct mail campaigns and I want to start implementing giving levels in the communication. Random examples below.
    -$25 can help buy a child a new helmet in the bike program.
    -$50 can help a child get a brand new pair of shoes.
    -$100 can help buy a kid a sleeping bag for camp.

    In this scenario, if I use these specific giving levels, am I restricting the funds? If so, what kind of disclaimer can I add that does not deter the donor from giving? Or can I word the levels differently so the donor knows the money they donate will not be restricted to this?

    1. Really good question. I don’t believe that someone giving in response to the proposed level wording in your question would legally meet the definition of a restricted gift. Unless, that is, the giver specifically requests that restriction and your organization grants that request. I do think, however, that a general disclaimer at the bottom of that list of choices would be wise. You could say something like, “The giving levels above are meant to represent the potential good your gift can achieve. XYZ Charity may direct donations of any amount to the area of greatest need.”

  14. Our church received a bequest thru a will over a ha kf century ago that provided that only the interest earned on the amount given to the church ($5200) could be expended, and then only to help members pursue a ministry education. The general thought is that we are legally bound to that restriction. Are we?

    1. These situations that date way back can be frustrating. You church received a restricted endowment gift, meaning the donor instructed the church to protect the principle, and then restricted further the use of the earnings. If this was done without expiration, then yes, it is most likely still binding. If the donor was still alive, they could release the restriction. Otherwise, probably not.

  15. In A fiscal sponsor/ project relationship, are the funds raised for the project necessarily restricted? To further complicate this question, what happens when there is a deputized employee structure of the fiscal sponsor/ project?

    1. Sorry for the late response. In most situations, funds should be restricted, though the sponsor must retain the right to redirect the use of funds should the project no longer exist or continue to operate in a charitable manner. A deputized employee structure sounds like a Model A fiscal sponsorship, where project managers who are compensated are treated as employees. I’m not sure if that complicates the restricted fund issue or not, but liability overall is much greater on the sponsor when a Model A is used vs. a Model C, for example.

  16. We are a 501(c)(3) organization raising money to provide hospice care to terminally ill patients. We currently have three restricted funds – one is a building fund for a new location, one is a special patients fund from which we pay patient medical expenses that are not covered by insurance, and the third is a fund that reimburses tuition for professional development costs. We have never charged an admin fee for any of these funds, but would like to do so. What would be reasonable and how do we inform our donors that a fee will be charged.

    Thanks very much for any help you can provide!

    Best,
    Cathy Bromberg

    1. You can’t really charge admin fees on already-restricted funds. Going forward, you would just need to disclose to donors to these funds that a percentage is held back for administrative purposes. As long as you’re transparent about it, you should be fine.

  17. Our nonprofit animal charity raised money for a specific animal’s medical care, and we received in excess of what the vet bills were. 100% of the vet bills were covered through the donations, thankfully, but now there is debate about what happens to the remaining funds. Our internal policy is to keep any money donated for vet care in a special fund that only pays for vet care, not commingled with other expenses. May we keep the rest of the funds in our designated veterinary bills fund to benefit other animal medical care? Or was the money restricted/earmarked for that specific animal? One suggestion was it should follow the animal who is now adopted so the new owner can put it toward future vet bills. We don’t believe it’s appropriate to just write a check to a new owner when the money was given to the charity to cover expenses of our foster animals, especially with no documentation of actual expenses incurred. The complicating factor is that the money was entirely raised through a Facebook fundraiser and we have no way to contact the donors to ask about this as Facebook does not let an organization contact a donor through its platform and does not provide any contact information. Typically, we include a statement on fundraisers that funds raised in excess of that animals’ vet bills will be used at the organization’s discretion for other veterinary care, but the person who posted this fundraiser (former board member) did not include this statement.

    1. Great question. No, don’t give the money to the new owner. That doesn’t work. In most situations like this, it is perfectly fine to use the leftover funds for the same purpose, just a different recipient. There’s no practical way to contact donors for their input, and no other expenditure involving the original animal would qualify as charitable.

  18. Do donor restricted funds need to be kept in separate accounts, or is it permissible for them to be kept in a general account and separately accounted for?

    1. It’s not necessary to have separate bank accounts if you are accurately keeping track of it all. Most smaller nonprofits keep it together, but accounted for separately like you describe.

  19. Hi. I’m the treasurer of a nonprofit with revenues of about $750K last year. We have tracked assets “without donor restrictions” and “with donor restrictions” for years, and we have an annual audit by an independent accounting firm. I’ve been told by two attorneys who specialize in nonprofits that it’s a red flag to both the state of California and the IRS when a nonprofit’s balance sheet shows restricted funds in excess of unrestricted funds in multiple consecutive years. These were informal conversations and the nonprofit I volunteer for does not have a professional relationship with either of them. I’ve not been able to find anything about this online. Is that true? If so, why? I’d like to get your input before broaching the subject with our auditor. Thank you.

    1. Sorry for the delayed response, and it’s probably too late to matter. I’ve never heard anyone say that’s a “red flag” before, certainly not with the IRS. That’s the least of their worries. As long as donor intent is being honored, I can’t imagine why anyone would care. It’s not illegal, or even irregular. It may indicate a challenging situation for the general operations budget, but that’s not a compliance concern. Not sure where that advice is coming from.

  20. What if the original donor who left restrictions on their donation, has passed away?
    Would a letter from surviving family suffice to unrestrict the funds?

    1. Great question, but the answer is probably “no”. The donor’s heirs do not inherit restriction rights to donated funds they never owned. The IRS doesn’t really get into restricted funds issues all that much. If it is a big deal to see this happen, you may want to contact your state’s attorney general’s office or your state department of charities to get their opinion.

  21. Thank you for this great article!
    We are a non-profit trying to buy our own building. We have raised funds for this purpose and have kept it separate from operating account. The Board wants to have a fundraising dinner to raise more money for this restricted building fund. Are we allowed to use previously received restricted building funds for all expenses related to this fundraising dinner (like food, tables, rentals, speaker costs, etc.)?

    1. So sorry for the late answer, and it’s probably way too late to matter. But it’s a great question deserving of an answer. No, you probably shouldn’t. The IRS actually considers fundraising expenses as a totally separate thing from the programs your nonprofit operates. As such, funds restricted to your building project should not be redirected to fundraising costs, even though it’s meant to increase the overall fund.

  22. Also, how would the church get the funds raised to the boy’s parents? Are the parents listed somehow on an account? Does the church simply have the ability to send $ to the family when the RF donation is made in their name?

    The church has never done this before. They want to help us and we are just trying to understand how it would work. Thank you!

    1. I think the answer to this is not necessarily straightforward. I’m not a fan of restricting funds for the direct benefit of a named person, unless the situation is short term in nature. Long term restrictions are risky, because the restriction is difficult to change without seeking original donor approval, and you cannot guarantee the financial need will always be substantial enough to warrant benevolent spending later on in the future. You may believe that to be the case, but you don’t know that. If you’re going to do this and make it a long term situation, make sure your donors understand that the restricted funds could be used for benevolence, medical expenses, education, or a combination of those. Educational assistance such as scholarships do not have to be need-based. This is important if the family is not-so-needy later on, and there is still money earmarked for him. Also, the church needs to maintain control of this account and dole out assistance as needed. It’s even better if the church pays the particular bill(s) directly, and not give cash to the family without substantiation for how it’s being spent. I know this sounds like a lot of due diligence, and you’re right. Restricted giving requires a lot of oversight.

      1. Some historic institutions have “Endowments” that follow strict adherence to UPMIFA regulations for use. Upon audit, some of the funds in the “permanently restricted Endowment” were found to have no documentation for the restriction and no supporting materials to indicate the original purpose of the gift. My Auditors suggest that any such funds, without a clear donor letter or intent must be unrestricted after a complete analysis. Do you agree?

        1. Yes, in lieu of additional details, I do agree in most such situations. But due diligence is absolutely required to validate that there really is no underlying support for the restriction.

  23. We are using our local church for a restricted fund to raise money/donations to support/benefit the future needs of a boy who suffered a near fatal drowning accident last year. My question, does the church go to their bank and set up a separate account in his name? Or do they just keep the funds separate within their existing account when a donor indicates that it is for that specific cause/use?

  24. Thank you for the great article and answers to questions.
    My question: A church member has decided they would like to start a new fund and has begun placing a restriction on a portion of their check to be used solely by the missions committee for the purpose of community outreach. The church does not have an established community outreach fund. If the church approves to start a fund for these restricted donations, would they be tax deductible to the donor? Would other restricted funds for expenditures within the church be considered tax deductible to donors (ie.new carpet, kitchen remodel, etc)?

    1. All gifts given to a church should be potentially tax-deductible to the donor, so long as no goods or services were received in exchange for the donation. The problem you have, though, is accepting a restricted gift for a need you don’t have. Donations become restricted when both parties to the transaction agree to the restriction. In your case, why would you do that when you don’t have that need? The restriction is binding unless the donor releases the church from the obligation. Better to request permission from the donor to redirect funds as needed, or simply refuse the designation by telling the donor you cannot honor the restricted before you take the money.

  25. I work as a volunteer with a small foreign mission board. No one in the administration receives a W-2 and almost all the missionaries are internationals serving in their own country. We do have two Americans married to internationals who are in their wives country of origin. These families received a M.Div or Th.M in the States, raised funds through our agency and then returned home. We promise on our website that 100% of the funds they raise go to the missionaries. Our low admin budget (less than $25,000) is funded separately. Perhaps because of Covid, we are low in our Admin account. We asked the missionaries (20 families) if they wished to contribute to the Admin budget through the surplus in the own accounts. Several have healthy surpluses and responded to this appeal. Is it legitmate, upon written authorization from the missionaries, to transfer funds out of their personal support accounts into the Admin fund, given the promise we have made to give 100% of support to the missionaries? I should add that a major function of the board is to approve annual budgets of the missionaries. We often get requests to amend budgets. We approve things like housing, salary, insurance, ministry initiatives, etc.. It would not be a problem to amend the 2022 budget of said missionaries to include an amount for Admin. expenses. To this point, in 30 years, the office has done all of the logistic work free of charge and we even pay for the wire transfers to the missionaries. Thanks for your advice. Mariana

    1. I see your dilemma. I don’t think the missionaries, in this situation, can legally release designated funds back to general operations since they’re not the original donor. The only way it could work legally would be for them to take a draw, then donate it back to the mission board. You have to honor the donor designation. In the future, I recommend charging a small percentage fee for administration to avoid this coming back up in the future. Very few organizations provide such services without fee. Most fiscal sponsors charge between 8-12%, though you can pick whatever number makes the most sense.

  26. Thank you Greg for this article. This is exactly the situation we are running into at our non-profit org (a church, 501c3 designated org), where I’m currently volunteering as a Treasurer. Can you please point me to the official IRS document (or any other official document) where this is mentioned clearly, as some of my colleagues are asking for official reference. We wanted to be sure about it and then put it in our bylaws to ensure everyone abodes by it in future, when we are not in office. Thank you!

    1. What you’re looking for is the Uniform Management of Institutional Funds Act. The vast majority of states have adopted this and it is what governs designated giving to charity, among other things. It is usually the state Attorney General’s office that polices this, not the IRS. For what it’s worth, state AGs are more willing to go after rogue activity in nonprofits before the IRS will. Misdirection of restricted funds should be considered a serious matter.

    2. THANK YOU so much for this question. I’m currently dealing with the same exact thing – volunteering as Treasurer at a NFP.

  27. I solicited donations for a 501(c)(3) General Fund and got marginal results. When I specified that the donations would be used for medical training and gave examples of why that need was important, the donations increased significantly. Did I create a temporary restricted fund in doing so?
    Thanks,

    1. You probably created a permanently restricted fund. Accounting rules for nonprofits don’t really recognize temporary restrictions unless your solicitation gave an explicit sunset date. Given your higher level of success, I might recommend in the future to provide a little disclaimer on your target fundraising that the board reserves the right to redirect funds as needed. Otherwise, you may find yourself restricted funds-rich, and general funds poor…and you cannot rob Peter to pay Paul in these situations. A little nuance, clearly communicated, can go a long way.

  28. Great article and responses to questions submitted. Thank you!

    Our nonprofit holds an annual fundraiser where the funds are used for general operating purposes. The nonprofit is in the planning stages of a building revitalization project and is thinking about advertising that the this year’s fundraiser will be used to “benefit the building revitalization project”. Does advertising the fundraiser in that manner create restricted funds? Does other wording change the tone – “earmarked, dedicated, for the benefit of” to allow for the funds to be used for either the building project or for general operating purposes?

    1. Generally speaking, if you advertise a purpose to your fundraiser, the funds generated will be restricted. If you don’t want the restriction, you will have to provide a visible disclaimer that the organization retains the right to redirect funds. Just be aware that such disclaimers often undercut the effectiveness of having a specific fundraising pitch in the first place.

      1. Greg,
        My wife was chairperson of a committee of a local chapter of a national organization. Her committee solicited donations for a specific historical preservation project. The new executive administration of the local chapter unilaterally decided to commingle the funds in the operating account with no documentation despite that there were specifically designated funds and not proceed with the project. What if any is the recourse to force the executive officers to resegregate those funds? ( if they have not been already spent )

        1. Tough situation. As best as you can, you need to communicate that the lack of segregation is a violation of the law. It’s a serious matter that could result in getting sued by donors who believe they were misled in fundraising. If that doesn’t solve anything, you may need to get the donor(s) to lean on them a bit. You want to avoid litigation, if possible, but it’s not always possible. I hope it gets worked out the easy way. Good luck!

  29. This is great stuff, Greg. Thank you for taking the time to answer so many question. Here is mine: I have a major donor who gives us a quasi-restricted donation: he wants us to ask him or his agents permission for each dollar we release from his fund. He refuses to be pinned down to a specific purpose (we’ve asked). Is this a common set-up? Is it kosher?

    1. Hey, Jayne. Glad to help.

      This is not really kosher, unfortunately. A donor has two choices when they give directly to a nonprofit: unrestricted and restricted. To be restricted, the purpose has to be stated and mutually agreed to on the front end. The donor does not get to retain the right to expenditure approval for money that is no longer his. He got his tax-deductibility up-front, but wants to retain control. The only way he can do that legally is to set up a donor advised fund with a qualified sponsor, then allow your 501c3 to make grant requests to that fund. I know you want to maintain good donor relations, but this isn’t a healthy to do it. I would encourage you to make some changes to this setup.

  30. My business created a good that was sold to raise money and awareness for a city owned building that previously had no fund. The non-profit organization that is partners with the city and manages this city building for the city established a fund in conjunction with the launch of our good, so we were the first to donate a significant amount to this fund specifically for the building. We have asked for accounting and reports of the fund because we are gearing up to donate more and we are not given any information about the fund or its accounting. We don’t even know what kind of fund it is. We don’t know what to do because we want to help this building. How can we know that the money is going back to the restoration of this building? Is there a city department that should have this information? The non-profit that is partners with the city has proven to be very difficult to communicate with on this which has us worried.

    1. What you’re describing certainly sounds like a restricted gift, so you are correct in expecting to see documentation. Generally speaking, that information should come from the nonprofit, not the city. There may be facts that we don’t know that could affect that answer, of course. I would certainly be wary of future gifts if you cannot get satisfaction that your original one was used for the intended purpose. Our only advice is to be persistent and also willing to withhold future gifts until transparency happens.

  31. Child raised money for donation purposes through school (Senior project) football game in 2021.
    Most of the monetary donations were collected by child in 2021 with last donation collected in 2022.
    Will be donating all money to American Cancer Society January 2022.
    Any penalty for donating money in 2022 from an event held in a 2021?

  32. Funds received by my Fiscal Sponsor are restricted to my project and I assume I should alert potential donors to that fact, my problem however is, what if I purchase physical property with these funds? I’ve been told my Fiscal Sponsor will own any physical property purchased or donated to my project and will need to be on titles, deeds and bills of sale. This doesn’t sit well with me. What should I do?

    1. Great question, Marco, and one that doesn’t have a quick answer, unfortunately. There are a number of fiscal sponsorship models, and the one your sponsor operates under determines ownership of assets. A Model A sponsorship means there is no legal separation between the sponsor and the project. Therefore, all assets remain under the ownership of the sponsor. A Model C is more of a grantor/grantee relationship, and once money or assets are passed on from sponsor to project, they are legally owned by the project. To complicate matters further, many sponsors have no clue what they’re doing and operate under a mish-mash of policies that have no legal underpinnings. In fact, fiscal sponsorships are often so badly executed that Foundation Group is starting our own fiscal sponsorship organization called Compass Charitable Partners. Look for a mid-second quarter 2022 launch of that. In the meantime, read our article on fiscal sponsorship to learn more: https://www.501c3.org/what-is-a-fiscal-sponsor/

  33. I am the executive director of a small non-profit that runs a school in Zambia, Africa. Our North American teachers raise their own support through our organization and those funds are set aside in a restricted fund to be used for their living expenses while serving. One of our teachers is moving to another organization and has a some funds in their account and would like to transfer their funds to that other organization (another non-profit). I have heard of this type of activity before. Is this something we can do or what would be required of us to move the funds?

    1. There’s a lot to consider in your question. There’s a number of thorny issues going on here. First, hiring workers who “raise their own support” is a common practice in the nonprofit world, though not a really great practice when it comes to managing that compliantly. The question is whether or not those funds are truly restricted in the legal sense. In most cases, they probably are. In others, maybe not. Donors restricted their gifts to the specific use of compensating teachers for their service in your organization, not another organization. This is not a definitive answer, because I would have to know more detail than you’ve shared. But, if the teacher is paid as an employee, then I would say that transferring those funds would require donor consent. If the teachers are paid as self-employed contractors, that would make the restriction more personalized and potentially open the door to transfer. Even then, this requires more info.

  34. The religious group I work for received a large donation with multi-tiered restrictions. The donation is to be used for certain event expenses if no other donor covers the expense, which would be our General Fund. Any remaining balance can go to our Building Fund at the end of the year. To account for this donation, I’m going to create a sub-account in our accounting software under the foundation’s name in our General Fund. Any remaining balance at the end of the year will be transferred to our Building Fund. Do I need a separate spreadsheet for this?

    1. Maybe. Without knowing how your tracking everything, it’s hard to say. Sadly, most accounting software doesn’t make it easy to track restricted gifts. The key is knowing how much has been restricted and tracking to the penny how it’s spent and any current restricted fund balance.

  35. Thank you Greg and team for the wonderful resources you provide through the Foundation Group.
    My question relates to a policy I am drafting for the small nonprofit where I serve as Executive Director.
    Is it legal, and is it ethical, for my organization to establish a policy which allows the organization to retain a certain percentage (maybe 15%) of all Designated Gifts for unrestricted use, and then apply the remaining 85% of the Designated Gift toward the donor’s intended purpose? Example: John Doe designates his $100 donation for the Clean Water Project. We retain $15 for unrestricted use, and dedicate the remaining $85 for the Clean Water Project. We inform John Doe in writing (in the gift acknowledgement provided soon after we received the gift) that we are following this policy. If this is legal and ethical, our board intends to amend our Gift Acceptance Policy to include a section describing this practice. The theory behind this policy is that the 15% helps us cover our “indirect costs” for general operations.

    1. As long as it’s disclosed to the donor in advance of the gift, it is both legal and ethical. It makes fiscal sense, as well. Just make sure it’s clear to all, and you shouldn’t have any issues with it.

  36. What are the IRS reporting requirements when a restricted donation is refunded in a subsequent year to a taxpayer that received a receipt upon original donation?

    1. There isn’t a set, legal standard for this. The best practice advice would be to provide the refunded donor with a written acknowledgement of the refund and the details surrounding it. It is up to the taxpayer to recapture that as miscellaneous income on their current year taxes, assuming they deducted it the year before. If they did not claim a charitable donation deduction the prior year, the taxpayer would not need to do anything about the refund.

  37. A restricted fund for ‘scholarships’ has a balance of $16k at the beginning of the fiscal year. Student(s) have been awarded a total of $4k/month in perpetual scholarships. After 4 months, the restricted funds have been depleted. However, the student(s) continue to receive discounts monthly throughout the fiscal year. Day one of the 11th month, a $50k donation is given, restricted for scholarships. Is the scholarship restricted funds balance, at the end of the fiscal year, more accurately recorded as $42k or $18k?

    1. If a bus travels 22 miles at 47 miles per hour, and a moose travels west…flashback to 5th grade!

      It sounds like you ran out of restricted funds and supplemented with general funds, which is fine. Later, a donor gifted $50k, which should be fully available to fund future scholarships. In the big picture, money is fungible, so the same cashflow takes place. However, recording deficit spending in restricted funds is not really correct, though we see people do it all the time. I’d prefer to say the answer is $42k.

  38. For the last 25 years, we have received donations of books and railroad ephemera from a number of donors. Often times, there are collections which contain new material to be added and duplicates, especially railroad related books. We ask that we be allowed to sell the duplicate material with proceeds going into the archive & library fund, which we have restricted. The purpose of the fund is to purchase archival materials, lease off site storage and acquire items that fall into the realms of our collecting policy. Money in the fund now is close to $10,000 and the treasurer wants to put it back into the general fund. Is the money really restricted in the true sense? The archive and library budget is based on the money we take in through selling duplicate material. Without the restricted fund, should income and expenditures now become part of the general budget?
    Stan Madyda
    Danbury Railway Museum

    1. Typically, the only way funds get restricted is directly by the donor (see article content). The org cannot restrict (in the legal sense) its own set-aside allocations. But if you’re telling donors that money received from selling duplicates will be restricted in its use, then that is a gray area that may or may not result in a legal restriction. Just reading your explanation makes me think that’s not the case. You probably can reallocate those funds, but that’s not legal advice. I’m just going on your explanation. Be careful how you communicate to donors about intent. That’s how restrictions happen.

  39. Very interesting information — thank you. I have a specific question that arose in our semi-annual church voters’ meeting this morning. Our small congregation maintains a checking account and two basic savings accounts: a general fund and a designated building fund (we are saving to build on adjacent land purchased 4 years ago). As our members discussed our proposed 2022 budget, some folks raised objections regarding our leadership board’s recent decision to move funds above a certain balance in our general savings account to our building fund in order to take advantage of a higher interest rate. These members believe that when they give weekly offerings marked on their envelopes as “general fund,” that moving any of those funds to the building fund requires donor or congregational approval, and should not be done by leadership before such approval is gained. Various leadership members stated that it has been their non-profit experience from other past leadership roles that such general funds may correctly be moved into a building fund in order to grow that fund, if it makes fiscal sense to do so. These leaders acknowledged that since these funds were not restricted when given, they should be able to be used subsequently for general operating purposes without restriction. The rub, though, is that the specifications of the building fund (put in place by the bank) state that funds deposited in such an account must be used for some type of building purpose, be it for a new build or for remodeling existing facilities. So, the tussle at its core seemed to be about whether congregational members can/should expect their donations to the “general fund” NOT to be used for building purposes, UNLESS they give permission. Do you have an opinion on the best and general practice here with respect to other non-profits and with respect to church bodies? Thanks in advance for your help on this topic!

    1. Sorry for the response delay, Kristine. I would agree that money given into the general fund should not be considered restricted. That’s kinda the point of a general fund…it can be used for whatever expenditures make sense at the time. If the board wants to move it to another account, that should be fine. However, your building fund may be restricted as far as donations specifically designated into it. Therefore, putting general fund money in a bank account exclusively used for the building fund will require you to track your actual restricted fund balance somewhere other that the bank account itself. The only money in that account that should be considered restricted is that which was specifically designated into it.

      I’m am confused about the idea that a bank would restrict usage of funds in a particular account. I’ve never heard of that in my entire career. I’m sure I’m missing something on that piece.

  40. I work with a church. They had an individual approach the church asking if we (the church) would be willing to accept a gift to the benevolence ministry that the church would give to an individual who was needing help. The gift would be $10,000. The donation would be earmarked to be given to the title agency closing on the home for the receiving individual. The benevolence ministry is willing to give this money to the closing escrow.
    The reason given for the donation going thru the church was to keep the gift anonymous.
    I have concerns that this is not a permissible tax-deductible donation. I would love guidance on this situation. Thank you.

    1. Your red flags are for good reason. This is not a permissible action, unless the church already recognized the need and solicited donations to assist in meeting that need. Donors cannot earmark their gifts to an individual by running it through a charity. This amounts to a personal gift. It may be a great thing they are doing, but it’s not a donation. Ideally, the church would not participate in this. If it does, the donor cannot consider it a tax-deductible gift, and any receipt from the church should indicate that.

  41. Our non-profit has a huge endowment fund that is compromised of contributions that are without donor restrictions and others that are with contributions. We usually have an annual draw from the endowment to support operations and another to support plant. Would it be incorrect logic to draw on earnings from all funds for plant? The logic being that without plant no restricted funds for programs could happen.

    1. That’s a tough question. It sounds like you’re saying that some of your endowment funds are doubly restricted, and some isn’t. By doubly restricted, I mean it was designated to your endowment (which is a restriction in itself), and further restricted as to the use of the earnings. I’m not a fan of layered restrictions because it creates problems like you are describing. In general, I would not consider an earnings draw from the overall endowment usable for plant (assuming that by plant, you mean facilities costs) if part of the earnings are attributable to a double restriction. I understand the logic, but I don’t think it holds up. You could use the same argument for paying accounting fees or any other absolutely necessary overhead expense. I would consider getting an accountant experienced in nonprofit issues to take a look at this. If you have a “huge” endowment, I would assume you’re nonprofit is being audited annually. Has your audit firm brought this issue up?

  42. My Organization held an annual fundraising event. The event itself indicated it was to BENEFIT a specific purpose/cause of an other organization and included this specific purpose and the organization on its invitation. The event has happened. We distributed funds to the other organization but not all. Our organization wants to use some of the funds for its own purpose and to donate some of the monies to other organizations not named as part of the fundraising gala event. There is a dispute in the organization at this moment. Can the funds be used for other purposes if the fundraising event was named to BENEFIT the specific purpose/cause/ and name the other organization. It is my understanding if we specifically named the benefit, we cannot use the funds for any other purpose. We DID NOT mention funds would also support our ongoing operation or to use the funds how we decided (meaning to provide funds to another purpose). As the attendees are under the impression, their attendance to the fundraiser was to support the specific purpose. Is there an issue with how the money is spent or distributed?

    1. You are right to be concerned. By not disclaiming your intent to use the funds for multiple purposes, you communicated to donors that their gifts were for a singular purpose. That creates a legal restriction. Net proceeds from your event should be dedicated to the cause for which it was donated. This is not really a choice. In the future, make sure your nonprofit clearly communicates its intent upfront to avoid such issues.

  43. Our development director wants to encourage a major donor to give to our scholarship programme by promising a match – we will ringfence $1 of reserves for every $1 given up to an agreed amount. I’ve explained to our development director that we cannot create restricted reserves from unrestricted reserves but I’m concerned that if he makes a promise to the donor then those reserves would effectively be restricted. Setting aside whether the ask is a compelling one, what would our obligation be in terms of honouring a match once promised?

    1. I get what your development director is trying to do, but it can create a conflict. A charity cannot legally restrict unrestricted funds it is already in possession of. Only donors can restrict funds. Now, you could offer to allocate a dollar-for-dollar match out of general funds, but it still doesn’t legally restrict it. It does, however, create an awkward obligation to honor the pitch, even though the charity must retain the right to spend those matched funds in other ways, if needed. Matched funds cannot be moved into the restricted category of assets, no matter what was promised. My suggestion is find another way to incentivize your donor!

  44. Our fund development officer keeps restricting all our contributions based on conversations she has had with funders. She doesn’t have documentation but says the donor “expects” of “assumes” we will use funds a certain way. She says the donor will be offended to be asked to put their request in writing. How do I classify the funds with no documentation? Also, she says community foundation funds received are automatically restricted to that community use, even though there is again no documentation on restriction.

    1. That’s a tough question. For the most part, there are no set rules on what constitutes notice of restriction. While it is obviously best for that to be in writing by the donor, verbal agreements are legally valid. In the case of a verbal restriction, notes should be made in the records as to the nature of the restriction. As to the community foundation, I would have to know more about the restrictions inherent in their grantmaking to give insight there.

      A good way to address this situation is to draft a gift receipt policy that outlines criteria for receiving donations, including what constitutes a restriction. Following a board approved standard operating procedure (SOP) will eliminate what now feels a little ad hoc. Good luck with it!

  45. Our non-profit collected funds for a specific project last year. There was no language to detail how those funds would be used beyond “support our effort”. Now that the project is over and the need is fulfilled, we still have over $10k in the account. Can this legally be used to retroactively rent space in our building, where the project used rooms for storage? Or tool improvements for the areas that were most taxed by the project? How much flexibility is there when there was no clear definition of how the funds would be used to support the project?

    1. You should have some pretty decent flexibility. As long as the use of the funds is within the overall expenditures needed to fully support the initiative, then you should be fine…especially since it sounds like you were pretty broad in describing the program on the front end. If in doubt, you can always go back to your donors and request input as to your intended expenditure. It doesn’t sound like that will be necessary, however.

  46. If a donor has given a non-profit an unrestricted donation, can the donor subsequently state that it should be rested ? Does the non-profit have to honor that request ? If so, and they do honor it, is the contribution now classified as “With Donor Restrictions” ? or would that be considered a “Board Designation” ?

    1. I’m not sure what you mean by “rested”. But under your scenario, if a donor gives an unrestricted gift, then comes back and requests that it be allocated to a specific purpose, it totally up the organization whether or not to honor the request. If they do…and for good donor relations, it may be necessary…I would argue that it is a board designation and that the donor should be informed of that. I think it also depends somewhat on how much time has gone by. If the donor comes back the next day, it’s a lot easier to make the restricted argument than it would be if they came back the next month. It’s frankly a gray area, but I would err on the side of original intent.

  47. The article is quite helpful. Thank you.
    I want clarity on this. My institution experience in recent times is that the donors informed us of having some funding available to fund projects and activities to help achieve certain development objectives either at national or subnational levels. We identify projects and request approvals from the donor. Once approved, we spend accordingly. This kind of funding qualifies under which category, restricted or unrestricted?

    1. I would say that in absence of any qualifier that would give your nonprofit wiggle room regarding ultimate spending decisions, those donations would be restricted. There appears to be a mutual agreement on purpose tied to the gift.

  48. A contribution of $25,000 was solicited and received in 2013 restricted to the purchase of property. The purchase did not go through. There are no prospects for purchase of property in the next 2 to 3 years, yet we have needs for preservation of historical properties that we already own. How long is reasonable to hold on to restricted funds before we contact the donor to request their consideration of reallocating it to current institutional needs?

    1. Sorry for the delayed reply. There is no expiration date on restricted funds unless it was established up-front with the donor’s agreement. If you need to redirect funds, you must get the donor’s permission to the extent it is possible, no matter how many years have gone by.

  49. Can a donor retroactively change the restrictions on their donation or does the organization have the right to make the decision whether to allow the change or hold them to the original restriction?

    1. Great question. No, once a donor makes a gift, whether restricted or unrestricted, they no longer have any say over the use of the funds. That doesn’t mean, however, that a nonprofit has to refuse a request for change. It just means they’re not obligated.

  50. I’m a new ED for a small community arts center. I’ve worked with a city-run arts center for the past 14 years, so some of the nonprofit restrictions are new to me. A board member said that our unrestricted funds have to be “used up” by the end of the fiscal year, but that restricted funds can remain year-to-year. Is this correct?

    1. Not only “no”, but HECK NO! This is a top-10 nonprofit myth that needs to be killed off for good. It’s not true, and has never been true. In fact, it a sure-fire way to ensure an organization starts off the new fiscal year in financial distress. The only way your board member could be somewhat correct would be if your nonprofit has that as an internal policy. Surely not, and if it does, change it. If it’s not an internal policy, it’s just a well-meaning, but horribly misinformed board member. Hope that helps!

  51. Our church (located in Pennsylvania) merged with another church this past year. Our new church “adopted” a dying older congregation. We legally merged and are operating as one entity. We are finishing consolidating our financials and one of the last remaining items is the designated funds.

    There are two designated funds for which we have no documentation. These were memorial funds in honor of people who passed away that had been connected to the church.

    The intent of the funds and the restrictions on the fund principle (one fund had a restriction on the principle and another fund did not) has been communicated through the collective memory of the members of the former church to which the gifts were made. We have attempted to contact the families connected to the funds but have been unsuccessful.

    What obligation do we have to maintain the oral tradition regarding the purpose and restrictions on these funds? May we transfer them to unrestricted funds?

    1. Tricky situation, and may depend on the surviving entity. If New-Church is the survivor legally, then all assets of Old-Church should belong to New-Church. Any restrictions would most likely die with Old-Church. Even if Old-Church is the surviving entity, it doesn’t sound like any records have been adequately maintained as to the actual restriction. That’s improper, but it is what it is. If there isn’t clarity, then there is likely little recourse to redirecting the funds for current use. Oral history doesn’t replace legal documentation, but is does matter relationally. Get the buy-in of the remaining Old-Church people if you choose to redirect, else friction is sure to be the outcome.

  52. Would there ever be a problem with using a portion of completely unrestricted funds to create a separate designated account? For example, I would like to move 500$ from an unrestricted account to establish an separate gift account for a designated purpose.

    1. Yes, you absolutely can do that. Nonprofits, as well as businesses, frequently set aside funds into project accounts to keep track of transactions separately from general operations. The key point to remember, though, is that these are not restricted funds by definition, meaning they can be moved again for other purposes should the organization find it necessary.

  53. GAAP and the FASB have very detailed requirements that seem to consider large public nonprofits with professional accountants. After all, they are professional accountant groups.
    Are there actual codes that require compliance to these burdens, particularly for small nonprofits and churches?

    1. Yes, actually. The GAAP and FASB requirements are not dependent upon organization size. Even small nonprofits and churches are expected to use the current methodology for tracking such.

  54. Is a Facebook birthday fundraiser sponsored by an individual and advertised as supporting a specific project for a nonprofit organization considered a restricted fund?

    1. It depends on whether or not the nonprofit agrees to accept the gift with those strings attached. Many larger nonprofits do not allow outsiders to fundraise for it without explicit prior permission of the organization in order to prevent such misunderstandings and misrepresentations. I think that is a great policy. It’s great if people believe in your mission so much they want to raise money for you, but it comes with many problems if the plans are not authorized in advance. The last thing you want is for a well-meaning supporter to unintentionally conducting themselves in a way that reflects badly on your nonprofit.

  55. We have a donor who created a restricted fund with our organization for a specific type of field of education, donating a set amount each year for five years. Can the nonprofit add money to the restricted fund to cover the amount of grant dollars not covered by the balance of the restricted fund? For example, the restricted fund received $10,000 in grant requests, but the restricted fund’s balance is $7,000, with no other money scheduled to come in. Can the nonprofit organization use $3,000 of its own funds to cover the restricted fund’s grant requests?

    1. Absolutely, yes. The money you supplement with will not be restricted, so it shouldn’t be tracked as restricted funds. But that won’t likely matter, as it sounds like you’re going to be distributing it as soon as it gets added to the donor’s funds. There is never any problem adding more money to restricted money, just remember you’re not actually adding to the restricted balance. In your case, your budget for grants just became $10,000, but your restricted funds balance is still $7,000. I hope that makes sense.

      1. Yes, it does. Does it matter that the restricted grant is for a specific purpose and the organization doesn’t have a grant for that exact purpose?

        1. Therein lies the potential problem with restricted gifts. It really does matter. If you don’t have a grant that matches the designated purpose, you cannot unilaterally repurpose the funds. This may require you to seek out the original donor to get permission to repurpose it. Even if your grant is similar, it’s probably best to get the donor’s blessing. In the future, it’s always best to match expectations on the front end. If a donor wishes to give a restricted gift, and that restriction doesn’t mesh with existing programs, you’re not obligated to accept the gift. You can refuse it, or better yet, talk with the donor about what would better match your nonprofit’s needs. Gifts that require you to spend money on something that isn’t part of your existing mission is often not a gift at all, but rather a distracting burden. Maybe your situation doesn’t rise to that level, but it is something to keep in mind.

  56. The Q&A resulting from this article was really helpful. However, I also have a question.

    Are disclosures such as “The Board reserves the right to direct use of these funds to other areas as needed” on church offertory envelopes legal?
    if so, what is the regulation number that gives the church Boards this right?

    1. Great question. It’s not really a matter of a specific regulation number. It’s more about the nature of how a gift gets restricted or not, that is, by mutual agreement between the donor and recipient.

      Such envelope disclosures are legal, but it’s not foolproof. Many churches will include various line items on the envelope for specific funds: youth, building, seniors, benevolence, general fund, etc. If a donor puts a check in that envelope, but designates the donation to go to the building fund, she may be upset if she finds out her gift was “redirected” to the youth department without her consent. That said, as long as the disclaimer is clear, use of the envelope should qualify as mutual consent that the gift is ultimately not restricted.

      But, an envelope disclaimer won’t cover donations that come in other ways. If someone mailed a check designated for a particular purpose, and the church didn’t want to honor the designation, that would still require communication with the donor to either redirect, or give the right to refund.

      1. What if you have a clear gift policy on your website that notes the organization will do its best to meet donor designations, but in the event it would cost the organization more to restrict the gift than the gift’s value, the org will repurpose the gift to the fund most closely-aligned with the donor’s intention? Thanks!

        1. I think that is a great approach for online giving scenarios. Make sure the disclaimer is clearly visible. I would also suggest include similar wording on the receipt you send for good measure, whether it is a paper or email receipt. Include a suggestion that they contact you should they have any questions about your gift policy.

  57. We have a situation where a church member left a house for the purpose of housing missionaries. This was 20 years ago and the family has since deceased as well as there are no living relatives. We are now faced with situation where the house is becoming a drain on the budget and we want to sell the house. Can we sell the house? Also, what must be done with the funds? We have two options before us are place the funds in a designated account and continue to help missionaries or use the funds for another need within the community that honors the family as well.

    1. Do what makes the most sense. A tangible asset cannot be considered restricted in the same manner as a monetary gift. The original designation has been honored for 20 years, and now your situation has changed. You’re not bound in any legal sense unless you have a restricted deed. If you need to sell it, sell it. Use the funds in the way that best furthers your mission. Good luck with it.

  58. Our Board President (without the rest of the board’s knowledge) solicited funds for Climbing gear in a state-wide fund raiser, writing that the donations would go into a restricted fund. Problem: our board did not know she was doing this, and as Treasurer I know we do not have a restricted fund set up for this program. Now that we’ve received donations to this non-existent program, what is the best way to deal with this?

    1. Miscommunication among the board doesn’t prevent the President’s actions from creating a restricted funds situation. Just because you don’t have a separate bank account, or even a line item on your books for this, the money raised is restricted as of right now. Donors gave under the pretext of their gifts being restricted…therefore, they are. The only real options are: 1) following through with the climbing gear, 2) getting donor permission to redirect their donation, or 3) offer the donor a refund. Anything other than those 3 options would be considered out of bounds. Good luck with it!

  59. What happens when a person raised funds for their personal support and it is given to the nonprofit, and the person doesn’t fulfill their work commitment and goes to work for another organization?

    What do you do with the designated funds?

    1. Tough situation. Nonprofits that require their staff to raise their own salaries, so to speak, often provide a disclaimer to the donor (prior to the gift being given) that amounts over and above the stated salary, or undistributed portions in the case of someone leaving the organization, will be redirected to other purposes. If no such disclaimer was provided, these are restricted funds, subjecting them to the same treatment explained in the article. The donor must be given the right to refund, or to voluntarily allow the funds to be used elsewhere.

  60. I work for a church and the lead pastor approached me a few day ago with this statement and directive; the money in my designated account that I raised for purposes directly related to my department was not mine. I do not own it. It is money that belongs to the church. I never disagreed with this but here’s the problem I need clarity on. He then directed me to cover the salary of an assist for department using money from this designated account. Are there any legal issues that can come back to haunt us?

    1. He is correct that the money belongs to the church, but you obviously know that. His directive to spend the money for a purpose other than its designation could be a major problem, however. If this money was originally set aside from general donations, then it is not technically restricted. Nonprofits and businesses do that all the time, that is, set money aside for a project or other purpose, only later to realize that they need to use it elsewhere. Not a problem there. However, if the money was given by donors for a specific designated purpose, and assuming the donors were not told at the time of the gift that the money might be spent differently, then that money is cannot be repurposed without permission from the donors. This is a legal issue that could definitely come back to bite you. The IRS doesn’t get too involved in this fight, but state Attorney General offices definitely do. Just because the money is needed somewhere else doesn’t override its restriction. Tread carefully here.

  61. A donor gave a multimillion $ donation to a 501 c(3) non profit. The only restriction was that the non-profit’s CEO remain “employed” for a minimum of five years.

    A year later, the new CEO terminated the former CEO. Can the SEC or other agencies investigate this abuse of restricted funds. The funds had been invested in a separate “foundation” governed by the SEC.

    What other agencies can be notified for investigation?

    1. Several red flags with this. For one, why would the SEC be involved in a foundation? Secondly, truly restricted funds are restricted by purpose, not by requiring specific actions of a nonprofit. A donor has no right to dictate the employment practices of the charity they give to. It doesn’t sound like an abuse of restricted funds…more like a misunderstanding of what a restricted donation actually is, by one or both parties.

  62. If a church membership establishes a savings account for a specific purpose and it is funded with transfers from the general fund to grow it, is that savings account considered a “restricted” fund or a dedicated fund?

    1. Hi, Mike. Sorry for the response delay. No, that scenario does not create a “restricted account” in the legal sense. Your church may wish to treat it as a protected set-aside, which is perfectly fine. But, restricted funds can only be created at the time of the donation based solely on donor intent.

  63. Why don’t you submit a request with backup invoices for a reimbursement to your organization for the $5k?

    The invoice you paid can be from more than $5k and it should readily be a bonafide expenditure that benefited the intended recipient of the original restriction.

    You don’t have to be short on cash in order to request this and as long as it meets the intended purpose of the original restriction it would be pretty hard to substantiate why they didn’t grant approval.

  64. We are structured in St. Vincent de Paul as a pyramid. Our National Council at the top, District/Diocesan Councils beneath, and local Conferences at the bottom. In most instances Conferences use the EIN/501C3 of the District/Diocesan Council. As a member of an existing Conference a Donor donated $10K to my new Conference. My new Conference had not been established when the donation was made, so no bank account existed for my new Conference. Rather than holding the $10K as the end of the year approached, the Donor and I agreed to identify the donation as a Restricted Donation, and have our Diocesan/District Council hold the funds in a checking account, separate from the general funds of the Diocesan/District Council. The control of the funds were relinquished at that point. Three months later…….. I requested that the Diocesan/District Council release the funds to my new Conference as we has established an EIN, our own 501C3, and a bank account. The Diocesan/District Council refused to do so, stating that the funds were in their bank account, so belonged to them. Through intermediaries from our National Council, we negotiated with the Diocesan/District Council to get $5K of the $10K. We agreed to allow the Diocesan/District Council to have use of the $5K they would not provide for a 6-month period to resolve attorney fees with lawsuits they’re involved with – imagine that! No documentation was created as they refused to sign anything. However I’ve retained emails that cover everything. The time has passed, and they continue to refuse to provide the remaining funds. At what point did the original Donor’s authority to direct the funds end? What IRS laws is the Diocesan/District Council breaking by not providing the $5K in restricted funds? Although, we don’t have need of the funds, at this point, I want to ensure we’ve complied with IRS regulations from our perspective. What recourse might we have ?

    1. This is tricky. From your description, it sounds like the District Council agreed to be a fiscal sponsor until your organization was established. That allows the donor to give immediately and receive donation acknowledgement from an established charity. If the donor explicitly intended all of the $10,000 to go to your organization, the entire $10,000 should be considered restricted to your nonprofit by the District. The question is whether or not the District understood that donor restriction at the time they took custody of the funds. Even if they didn’t fully understand, they’re obligated to the donor as the recipient charity to honor the designation and restrict the funds.

      As for recourse, you need to press your case. If the District won’t acquiesce, your only recourse may be legal. Before filing suit, contact your AG’s office or state Dept of Charities to see what they say.

  65. Where is the actual reference in the IRS code to the requirement to honor (as opposed to “account for”) a donor restriction? I can find it in state codes, but have not seen anyone cite the actual requirement from either the US code or current IRS forms, pubs, etc. What penalties can/will the IRS impose, and where is that documented?

    1. This is one of those issues that is governed more by state law and accounting regulations than by IRS code. Generally Accepting Accounting Principles, GAAP, represents the standards of accounting practice in the US. GAAP details how restricted funds should be accounted for. Also, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is the group who establishes the rules recognized under GAAP. State law is the jurisdiction for enforcement of restricted funds rules, as boards of accountancy are governed at the state level. Finally, the IRS follows GAAP/FASB requirements, requiring a breakdown on Form 990 balance sheets of restricted and unrestricted funds. Penalties aren’t generally levied by the IRS for restricted funds violations, but state AG’s offices will aggressively enforce these rules.

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