On Springly, tax receipts and invoices are generated in one click and can be sent by email automatically. These receipts are also available in the member's private space, which saves you time!
This article walks you through the settings for the three types of documents you can issue with the platform:
How does document issuance work in Springly?
To issue documents, you first need to configure your organization's information from the Settings > Tax Receipts and Invoices page.
For more information, check out the article on your nonprofit's legal and administrative information.
How to configure tax receipts?
In the US, donors who contribute to eligible 501(c)(3) organizations can deduct their donations from their federal taxable income, making tax receipts an important document to provide.
To support their deduction, you need to provide your donors with a tax receipt — a written acknowledgment confirming that your nonprofit received their contribution.
Not all organizations are eligible to issue tax receipts. Only 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations recognized by the IRS can provide donors with a deductible contribution acknowledgment. Check with your tax advisor or the IRS website for guidance.
Enable tax receipt issuance
You can enable tax receipts from the Settings > Tax Receipts and Invoices page.
There, you set the deduction rate and the start date from which receipts are issued in Springly. Once enabled, tax receipts will automatically be generated for all your Donation Campaigns.
Make sure to click Save to apply your settings.
Note: you may have issued tax receipts before using Springly. The date entered here indicates the start date from which you began issuing receipts through Springly.
Issue a tax receipt for memberships, events, or product sales
Beyond donations, you can also issue tax receipts for Membership Campaigns, event ticketing, and online shop purchases.
For any given form, you can configure which pricing tiers are eligible for a tax receipt, and for what amount.
The tax receipt is sent in a dedicated email, following the confirmation email.
Want to learn more? Check out the article Configure tax receipts on a form.
Generate a tax receipt after the fact
You can generate a tax receipt after a donation has been made.
For example:
- The tax receipt feature was not enabled, but donations were received;
- The tax receipt start date entered was later than the actual start date, and a donation was made during that gap.
Concrete example
It's March 2024. You've enabled tax receipts on your platform. Due to a data entry error, the tax receipt start date is set to 09/01/2024 — a date in the future.
On 03/18/2024, Clothilde donates $500 to your nonprofit. Because the donation falls before the configured tax receipt start date, no tax receipt is automatically generated or sent to your donor.
However, she does have access to a payment receipt confirming her payment, which she can download.
To fix this, update the tax receipt start date in Settings > Tax Receipts and Invoices to the correct date: 01/01/2024.
Navigate to the donation made by your donor — the button to generate her tax receipt will now be available:
Clicking the button triggers the automatic generation and email delivery of the tax receipt to the donor. It also becomes accessible from the donation page and the donor's profile.
Tax receipts can only be generated for transactions up to 2 years old. For any transaction older than 2 years, you will not be able to generate tax receipts through Springly.
How to configure invoices?
An invoice is an accounting document that serves as proof of a purchase or sale.
To issue invoices, enable the option from the Settings > Tax Receipts and Invoices page, under "Invoice Issuance".
Several issuance settings are available:
- Disabled: no invoice will be issued for any purchase or sale;
- On every purchase: an invoice is automatically generated for every transaction;
- On request at checkout: an invoice is issued only if the buyer (online sale) clicks the Get an invoice button after completing their transaction. This button is also available in the confirmation email.
For more details on the standard invoice format, see this article.
By default, a "Tax-exempt nonprofit" notice appears at the bottom of invoices. If your organization is subject to VAT, you can replace this notice with your organization's registration details from Settings > Tax Receipts and Invoices: enter the relevant registration information, then click Save. For more information, see the article VAT in Springly.
How do Payment Receipts work?
A payment receipt is issued to the buyer once the full amount has been collected. This document serves as written proof that the organization has received the payment in full.
Sample payment receipt from a Membership Campaign or Event:
This document is issued by default when tax receipts are not enabled. If tax receipts are enabled, no Payment Receipt is generated.
You now know how to configure these documents! To learn how to send them to your members and donors or retrieve them, check out our dedicated articles:
- Send tax receipts, invoices, and payment receipts
- Track and export issued tax receipts, invoices, and payment receipts
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