How can we help?

HIPGive is a digital platform that helps nonprofits mobilize resources for social impact projects across the Americas. Through our suite of innovative tools including Crowdfunding, Online Fundraising, Peer to Peer Giving and Digital Giving Circles, people and organizations come together to build a sense of community and change our world for the better.

Since April 2014 we have brought together over 1,300 nonprofit organizations and 58,000 individual donors, resulting in more than $5 million dollars channeled to social impact projects with almost $1 million distributed as matching funds and special incentives in our annual campaigns.

HIPGive is part of Hispanics in Philanthropy (HIP), a nonprofit organization that strengthens social justice and shared prosperity across the Americas.

HIPGive is an open platform through which:

• Anyone around the world can contribute funds to projects with social impact.
• Nonprofit organizations working in Latine communities can raise funds, accessing tools and resources to help them run a successful campaign.
• Foundations and companies can launch special campaigns to show their support and multiply their impact.

Yes. The system is tested manually and automatically every day to guarantee each and every operation is secure. The payment processors that we use are certified as Level 1 Service Providers within the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) which requires an independent annual audit of their processes and systems.

HIPGive provides you with a secure, friendly and cost-effective platform to mobilize resources for your social impact projects. The features that nonprofits and HIPGivers value most:

• 100% bilingual. All projects, organization pages and Digital Giving Circles can be published in English and Spanish. 
• Low cost. We do not charge an administrative fee for crowdfunding campaigns. Thanks to our TipHIP system, each organization covers only the direct commissions relating to payment processing. For donations to organizations and Digital Giving Circles, a transaction fee of 5% plus  payment processor fees applies.
• It’s secure. The platform complies with international data protection standards and we run security tests daily. 
• Guidance. We’re with you each step of the way with training courses, personalized feedback and responses to all your crowdfunding questions. 
• Donor data. As an organization, you have access to donor contact information and transaction records. 
• Special campaigns. Participate in campaigns with matching funds and generous incentives.

HIPGive’s special campaigns offer nonprofits a unique opportunity to develop their crowdfunding skills and immediately put them into practice in a high profile crowdfunding campaign.

Direct benefits include:

• Launch a bilingual campaign using friendly, intuitive, and secure technology.
• Strengthen your digital fundraising skills through our free online training sessions, featuring one-on-one feedback and guidance.
• Participate in our special campaigns to access matching funds and special incentives to help your campaign achieve more.
• Gain visibility as part of an open and inclusive community which highlights the work of nonprofits that support the human rights of latine people in the US and Latin America.

In addition to providing an accessible, bilingual platform, HIPGive trains and guides nonprofits to help them fulfill their crowdfunding goals. HIPGive also promotes our special campaigns in the media, through our social networks, and our newsletter.

We are not able to promote individual campaigns directly. We recommend that you participate fully in the training courses and take advantage of the feedback opportunities to optimize your own ability to promote your campaign, as its success depends on the work you and your team do to communicate, share and inspire people to make their donations.

HIPGive is part of Hispanics in Philanthropy, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to leverage philanthropic resources to mobilize and amplify the power of our communities. Therefore, HIPGive is a not-for-profit platform that is funded by our philanthropic allies and by the generosity of the HIPGivers who leave a “TipHIP” when they give as well as the low commission for direct donations to organizations and Digital Giving Circles.

As a digital platform, we do not rely on traditional contracts. Instead, when you register for HIPGive, you accept our terms of use. You can consult the terms of use at any time.

An exception to the above is when the nonprofit is an authorized tax exempt organization in Mexico. In this case, in addition to accepting the general terms of use, we will send an additional contract that is required to fulfill Mexican fiscal requirements.

If your organization is an authorized tax exempt organization in Mexico and you choose to activate this on the platform, you will benefit in two ways:

• Availability of additional payment methods. In addition to credit and debit cards and PayPal, individuals will also be able to give to your project via bank transfers (SPEI) and payments in convenience stores.
• Tax deductible receipts in Mexico. If an individual chooses to receive a receipt and includes his or her fiscal information, they will receive a fully compliant  tax deductible receipt (CFDI) via email.

To access these benefits, you must select the box marked “Donataria Autorizada” in the “Legal Information” tab in the Organization section of your dashboard. It is also important to upload your “Certificate of Fiscal Authorization” (the letter that SAT sends to confirm your status as an authorized tax exempt organization) in the tab marked “Files.”

Crowdfunding is a fundraising strategy in which a large number of people are invited to contribute financially towards a specific project or activity. Although each contribution is relatively small, together they add up to a significant amount of money.

Crowdfunding campaigns are typically carried out in a short period of time and make use of digital platforms so that people can contribute by credit or debit card, or other digital payment methods, from anywhere in the world.

Any nonprofit organization that works with Latine communities either in the US or in Latin America can publish a project. The majority of the people who participate or benefit from the project should be Latine.

For legal reasons, we ask every organization to prove their status as an officially recognised nonprofit organization when creating their account on HIPGive. Organizations must upload a letter from the IRS confirming their 501(c)(3) status (in the US) or their articles of incorporation (Latin America) in the registration form. They also have to complete all the information for their organization and upload all requested documents in their dashboard.

Before publishing your crowdfunding campaign, it’s necessary to upload all your organization’s documents. Only then will you be able to submit your project for review. If your documents aren’t complete, we won’t be able to publish your campaign. The documents we require are:

• IRS Determination Letter for 501(c)(3) or Original articles of incorporation as a non-profit organization if your nonprofit is registered in Latin America
• Financial Statements or IRS 990
• Board Member List
• Current Fiscal Year Organizational Budget
• Tax Identification Number
• Fiscal Sponsor Agreement (if applicable)
• Bank account and details for international transfers

*If your nonprofit organization is registered in California, US you must upload the Certificate of Good Standing

If you have opted to use the platform as a donataria autorizada in Mexico, you will also need to upload the following documents as per requirements issued by the Mexican authorities: 

• Official Certificate of Fiscal Authorization as Donataria Autorizada from the SAT
• Tax identification number
• Power of attorney
• Official identification of legal representative
• Bank account statement (must match the account data registered in the “Bank information” section)

If your organization is not incorporated as a nonprofit organization, you can publish your project with the support of a fiscal sponsor—that is a legally established nonprofit organization that can vouch for your project and provide the documents listed above. The fiscal sponsor will receive the funds raised on HIPGive and will commit to ensuring they are used to implement the project.

You can upload a crowdfunding project to HIPGive for free. Once your project is published and you begin to receive contributions, we ask that you cover the payment processing fees which are approximately 3.5%. The exact fee varies according to the method of payment used by each HIPGiver; you can consult the complete list of payment methods and fees here.

HIPGive is based on a system of voluntary contributions, so each nonprofit organization will receive the funds generated by their campaign irrespective of whether they have reached their stated goal or not. The total amount raised will be transferred minus the payment processing fees. If your nonprofit raises less than $75 (or $1,000 Mexican pesos), we will invite you to carry out a future campaign and carry the funds over to that campaign, as it is not financially viable to transfer smaller amounts.

Matching funds are special funds that HIPGive contributes to a particular campaign; they are typically used to increase the contributions that participating organizations receive during a specific period of time. Their purpose is to inspire people to contribute generously and motivate organizations to do their best. The amount and application of matching funds varies, so please consult the “Rules” tab in each special campaign.

It’s easy to create your project. The first thing to do is register on the platform so that you can log in to your personalized space with your username and password. 

In this space, called the dashboard, you can select “New project” or continue to edit a project created in an earlier session. Each project should include the following: 

• General information, including the title, a short description and a financial goal. 
• Banners, which can be a video (via a link to YouTube or Vimeo), images or photos. 
• Content in English or Spanish, in the form of a narrative text. 

You can add content and edit the project over several sessions, and invite other people from your team to have access and share in the editing of the project. 

Once your project is ready, you should make sure that you have completed all the information tabs in the Organization section and check that you have uploaded all the requested documents. If this information is incomplete, we won’t be able to publish your project. If your information is complete, you can select “Request validation” so that the HIPGive team can review your project and prepare it for publication.

No, it’s not obligatory. Each organization can choose in which language(s) to share their project. We recommend that you prioritize your audience’s language; that is the first language of your potential donors. If you are able to translate it into a second language, then do!  You never know who will end up seeing your project. Unfortunately, HIPGive cannot support you directly in the translation process, so if you don’t have in-house translation capacity we suggest you ask for volunteer help or at least use an automatic digital translator.

On HIPGive you can publish your crowdfunding campaign goal in US dollars or in Mexican pesos. This means that even as individuals make their contributions in other currencies, your progress towards your goal will always be displayed in the currency you selected.  There are no fixed rules, so we suggest that you choose the currency which makes most sense to your audience of potential givers.

The images that you upload to the “Banners” tab will adjust in size automatically depending on the device used by the viewer. We recommend you use images that are 670 x 492 pixels and each file should be no more than 1Mb.

A video is essential to explain your project and motivate people to give. You won’t upload your video directly to the HIPGive platform; instead you should insert a link to a video which has already been uploaded to YouTube or Vimeo. 

To do this, go to the “Banners” tab in the form to create a project, then select the plus icon and fill in the small form. You will have to select “Video”, choose YouTube or Vimeo and then paste in the link.

Perks enable you to establish giving levels as a means of encouraging people to give a specific amount, often more than they might otherwise consider giving. They are an optional element of your project, but when well used can inspire donors to give more. 

There are two main ways in which perks can be used:

1. To establish “thank yous” or acknowledgements. You can describe the type of “thank you” that each person will receive according to the amount they give. This could be something you send in the post, or a message, video or other content that you send digitally after the person gives at this level.
2. To establish levels of impact. For each amount, you describe how those funds can generate a specific action or impact. For example, “With $20 a girl will receive a package of books” or “$100 enables us to rent a classroom.”

The thank you message that you include in the “Content” tab of your project will become part of the automatic thank you email sent to each person that contributes to your project. We recommend that you include a short text (one to three phrases) that communicate your appreciation in a sincere way and explain briefly how this contribution will help generate a positive impact for those involved in the project.

After a person contributes to your project, they can decide whether they want to share it on social media. The message that you include will appear as a suggested message for them to share.

You can add more people and enable them to access the project, edit the project and/or administrate your campaign. To add more people, go to the Organization section in your control panel, select “Members” and you’ll see a list of people in your organization who already have an account on HIPGive. To add a new person, select “Create user” and fill in the form. Remember to select the appropriate level of access for each user.

At HIPGive we review all projects personally before publication to ensure they are complete and to give nonprofits the best chance to reach their goal. After you select “Request Validation”, your project is sent to the HIPGive team for review and you will no longer be able to edit it. 

If your project is incomplete, or if we identify opportunities to improve it, we will send you an email with some suggestions and return your project to “draft” status so that you can make any changes you consider important. 

If your project is complete and ready to publish, you will receive an email confirming the date of publication and the unique URL that will link to your project on the platform.

Yes. Throughout the campaign you are always able to consult and/or download the list of people who have made contributions to your project. This list includes the date and time of the contribution, the name of the person and their email address, as well as the amount, currency and payment method. To access this report, go to the Transactions section in your dashboard.

In order to be able to publish your project, we require certain documents that verify your nonprofit status and the work of your organization.

To upload the documents to the platform, go to the Organization, Information section in your dashboard. In the tab marked “Files”, select the pencil icon to edit and you will be able to upload each document in the corresponding square. Don’t forget to save the information before leaving the page. 

The documents that you should upload are: 

• IRS Determination Letter for 501(c)(3) or Original articles of incorporation as a non-profit organization if your nonprofit is registered in Latin America
• Financial Statements or IRS 990
• Board Member
• Current Fiscal Year Organizational Budget
• Tax Identification Number
• Fiscal Sponsor Agreement (if applicable)
• Bank account and details for international transfers

If you have opted to use the platform as a donataria autorizada in Mexico, you will also need to upload the following documents as per requirements issued by the Mexican authorities: 

• Official letter as Donataria Autorizada from the SAT
• Power of attorney
• Official identification of legal representative
• Bank account statement (must match the account data registered in the “Bank information” section)

If you are working with a fiscal sponsor, these documents should be those of your fiscal sponsor, not of your own organization.

To change the information regarding your organization, go to the Organization section and select “Information” from the menu. Select the pencil icon to edit and you will be able to change the information on each tab, including “General information”, “List address”, “Description”, “Legal Information”, “Files” and “Bank Information”. The “Description” tab is used to activate your organization page and receive direct donations. For more information, refer to this Guide to Create Your Organization Page.

Updates are short pieces of text that you can upload to the platform and which will be sent via email to all the people that have contributed to your project. They will also be published on your project page on the tab marked “Updates”. We recommend you send one or two updates throughout the campaign and afterwards so that people feel connected to your work and the impact you are creating.

As part of the administrative process to transfer the funds, it’s necessary for you to respond to the survey we send via email to learn about your experience on HIPGive. Your responses help us to continue improving our platform, tools, and campaigns.

Once you have received the funds and are implementing the project, it is important to communicate with your HIPGivers to share the progress you’ve made and the impact you’re creating together. 

In the “Results” section you can share information about the number of people who are participating, the activities you’re carrying out and, above all, the way in which the project is changing people’s lives for the better. The content that you upload will be sent to your HIPGivers and will stay on the site as evidence of the project’s results, which will generate confidence in your work moving forward.

The funds you generate through HIPGive will be sent through a bank transfer (for Latin American and United States organizations), depending on the verification documents you have uploaded to the platform. We ask that you provide Hispanics in Philanthropy with a valid fiscal receipt for the funds received or, in the case of Latin American organizations, a letter confirming their receipt.

If your organization is an authorized tax exempt organization in Mexico, you must issue a tax deductible CFDI.

The administrative payment process begins once you have concluded your campaign. If the banking information is incorrect or is no longer valid, we won’t be able to initiate the process. We will get in touch so that you can provide the correct information.

The payment process takes 4 to 6 weeks, as it involves a reconciliation of all the different contributions and commissions. This can be a detailed process given the different currencies involved and especially if a chargeback or refund request has been submitted.

There are no fixed criteria to determine how many campaigns you can run, but we definitely recommend only running one campaign at a time and spacing them out throughout the year so as not to tire your team and your potential donors.

There are no fixed rules and on HIPGive you can set a start and end date according to your preferences. In our experience, 4-6 week campaigns work best as they give you enough time to coordinate a strong communications campaign and reach a large number of potential HIPGivers, but at the same time they are not so long that your team and your audience tire of the campaign.

Each organization should establish their goal according to their specific objectives, experience in crowdfunding campaigns and communications’ reach. To validate your goal, we always suggest doing the math: multiply the number of people you expect to contribute by the amount of a typical contribution. Here are some numbers to guide you: 

• Typical donations on HIPGive range from $10, $20, and up to $50.
• Successful campaigns typically have 20 to 80 HIPGivers. In some cases, organizations manage to attract more than 100 or 200 HIPGivers, but these are organizations that already have a strong communication base and invest a lot of time on the campaign.

“Peer to Peer” campaigns allow you to add individual crowdfunders or campaign promoters to your overall crowdfunding campaign. Each person will have an individual crowdfunding page and the funds raised by them will contribute to the overall financial goal published on your main project page. This means that you can have a small group of individuals, each using their own networks of “Peer to Peer” contacts to raise funds, and that you can track and segment your campaign’s transactions globally but also according to each individual’s results.

You can only add Peer to Peer campaigns once your crowdfunding project is published. On your dashboard, go to the Members section and create a user. Fill out the new member information and select “Peer to Peer” from the profile type drop down list. You will have to share this information to the promoter so they can log in.

Then, go to the page of your Crowdfunding project and click on the “Peer to Peer” button. Select the member profile that will be managing and promoting this Peer to Peer campaign.

Give a provisional name to this campaign. Please note that the promoter will be able to change the name later on.

Go to your dashboard and click on “List”. The Peer to Peer campaigns have an icon next to the title to help you identify them.

Yes, the funds raised by your Peer to Peer project are reflected in your overall fundraising goal.

Yes, the contributions made through the Peer to Peer campaign will be available when you download your project data from the platform.

Peer to Peer Promoters will only have access to the contact information of Peer to Peer project’s donors.

A recurring giving campaign is a fundraising strategy where individuals are invited to make a financial contribution to the organization on a regular basis, such as monthly, every 3 months, or every 6 months. While each individual contribution may be relatively small, the fact that it is made regularly demonstrates continuous support for the organization’s overall work.

Recurring giving campaigns remain active throughout the year and utilize digital platforms to allow people from anywhere in the world to make their contributions using credit or debit cards and other digital payment methods.

HIPGive is a platform for nonprofit organizations based in the United States or Latin America. Since we are also a nonprofit organization, we are required to ask participating organizations to verify that they are a legally established nonprofit and that the majority of the beneficiaries of the project are Latine.

When creating your account on HIPGive, you will be asked to attach a document verifying your nonprofit status, typically the letter from the IRS confirming the 501(c)(3) status or,  if you are an organization from Latin America, the articles of incorporation.

We will also request the following documents and information:

• IRS Determination Letter for 501(c)(3) or Original articles of incorporation as a non-profit organization if your nonprofit is registered in Latin America
• Financial Statements or IRS 990
• Board Member List
• Current Fiscal Year Organizational Budget
• Tax Identification Number
• Fiscal Sponsor Agreement (if applicable)
• Bank account and details for international transfers
• Completed Legal Information tab on the platform
• Completed Bank Information tab on the platform

*If your nonprofit organization is registered in California, US you must upload the Certificate of Good Standing

If you have opted to use the platform as a donataria autorizada in Mexico, you will also need to upload the following documents:

• Official Certificate of Fiscal Authorization as Donataria Autorizada from the SAT
• Tax identification number
• Power of attorney
• Official identification of legal representative
• Bank account statement (must match the account data registered in the “Bank information” section)

Creating your recurring giving profile on HIPGive is free. However, once you start receiving contributions, a transaction fee of 5% and a bank fee of approximately 3.5% will be applied. The bank fee may vary depending on the payment method, so you can check the full list of payment methods and fees here.

The funds raised through HIPGive will be sent via a bank transfer, using the banking information you have provided on the platform, along with the verification documents. The payment for recurring contributions is done on a monthly basis and takes approximately 2 to 3 weeks after the end of each month.
If your organization is a donataria autorizada, you will need to issue a tax-deductible CFDI for each amount disbursed monthly.

Log in and from your dashboard, locate the menu on the left and make sure you are in “My Organization.” The “Description” tab contains the information that will be displayed on your organization’s page. Edit the information. You can add content in Spanish, English, or both languages. Once you have completed the information, click on “Request Validation.” All tabs in this section must be completed to request validation.

Once your organization’s page is activated, you will receive a confirmation email with the direct link. You will see the banner, description, and the donation form.

In your dashboard, select “Transactions” from the menu under “My Organization.”

If you click on each transaction, you will see all the information, including the “transaction type” to determine if it is a one-time or recurring donation.

Giving Circles are groups of people who come together to make change by pooling their time and money, deciding as a circle which causes to support and why.

There is no standard format for a Giving Circle. Some operate informally as small groups akin to a monthly book club where the topic of discussion is not literature but social change and how to best achieve it.  Others are large, highly professional groups orchestrating multiple grant cycles each year. What they have in common is a basic process in which people come together, commit to making a personal donation, discuss and debate which groups to support and collectively make a decision on who should receive the funds.

Anyone with an email address can use HIPGive to create a Digital Giving Circle. However, the funds raised can only be transferred to legally established nonprofit organizations in the United States or Latin America.

Using the Digital Giving Circle tool on HIPGive has a low administrative cost of 5% per transaction. Additionally, there is a payment processor fee, which is approximately 3.5% on average.

Once the members of the Giving Circle have reached a consensus on which organization will benefit from their fundraising, the Giving Circle administrator should request the allocation of resources through the platform and specify the receiving organization for the funds.

The selected organization must have a profile on HIPGive. Within this profile, they should provide all the requested legal and banking information, as well as upload the required documents. For more information on the documentation and information we require, you can refer to our Administrative Guide.

Once the organization’s information and documentation are complete, a payment request will be generated to transfer the funds from the Giving Circle to the bank account they have shared on the platform. This process may take between 6 to 8 weeks from the time the Giving Circle administrator initiates the resource allocation request.

On hipgive.org, select “Log in or Register.” Click on “member of a Digital Giving Circle”. Choose “Create a Giving Circle” at the bottom of the page. Fill out the form and click the “Giving Circle Registration” button.

You can choose “Public” so that anyone can join and contribute to the Circle. “Private” for individuals interested in becoming members to fill out a form. “Hidden” so that the circle can only be accessed through a direct link.

You can join a Public or Private Digital Giving Circle (DGC) by entering the link directly in your browser. You can also check the Giving Circles section on HIPGive to see which circles are active. Click on “Join the Giving Circle” or “Request to join” button.

Log in as a “member of a Digital Giving Circle“. In your dashboard, click on My Profile. There, you can edit your information and decide which data you want to share.

HIPGive is open to any person, anywhere in the world, that wishes to make a financial contribution to a social impact project.

A HIPGiver is any person who makes a financial contribution to a project on HIPGive. In literal terms, it is a person who gives through HIPGive. We prefer to say “giver” instead of “donor”.

Giving to a project on HIPGive is quick and easy. You can follow these steps: 

1. Find the project you wish to support and select “Give to this project”. 
2. Choose the currency and the amount you wish to contribute.
3. Insert your details and a short message for the nonprofit organization (if you wish). 
4. Select your payment method and, if required, your card number and details. 

Immediately after completing your donation, you will receive a confirmation of the transaction; this will be sent to the email address you provided. Shortly after, you will also receive a formal thank you email to the same email address.

Giving to an organization on HIPGive is quick and easy. Follow these steps: 

1. Go to the page of the organization you want to donate to.
2. Choose your currency, the amount you want to donate, and the frequency (You can choose a monthly, quarterly, semiannual, or unique donation).
3. Share your information and message of support.
4. Enter the details of your card or payment method.
5. Click on pay.

After completing your donation, you will receive a confirmation email.

Follow these steps to join a Digital Giving Circle on HIPGive and make a donation:

1. Go to the Giving Circle page you want to contribute to and click on “Join the Giving Circle”.
2. Fill out the form with your details.
3. Choose your currency, the amount you want to donate, and the frequency of your donation (monthly, quarterly, semiannual, or one-off donation). Click continue.
4. Enter the details of your card or payment method.
5. Click “Give”. You’re all set!

HIPGive accepts payments via credit card, debit card and PayPal. 
If the organization is an authorized tax exempt organization in Mexico, you may also contribute via an electronic bank transfer (SPEI) or by downloading a code and making your payment in a convenience store.

When you choose to give to a project on HIPGive, you will be given a choice of making your donation in either US dollars or Mexican pesos. If your card or payment method is in dollars or pesos, and you select the same currency, your contribution will be processed at exactly the amount you indicate. 

If your card is linked to an account in a different currency, you can also give; the only difference is that while you will select the amount to give in either dollars or pesos, the payment processor will carry out the conversion and you will be charged the equivalent amount in your own currency.

Yes, all donations can be tax deductible in the United States and, in some cases, in Mexico.

Immediately after completing a donation, you will receive an email confirming the transaction. This will include the logo of our payment processor. Shortly after, you will also receive a thank you message. If you opted to receive a tax deductible receipt  as you made your contribution, this email will also serve as a tax deductible receipt in the US. Hispanics in Philanthropy is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with tax identification number 94-3040607.

An exception to the above is when the organization to which you contributed is an authorized tax exempt organization in Mexico and is registered as such on the platform. In this case, if you chose to receive a valid tax deductible receipt in Mexico and included your fiscal information, you will receive a third email with a Tax Receipt (CFDI) valid in Mexico.

TipHIP is the mechanism by which people can add a small donation or “tip” in addition to the amount they are contributing to the social impact project. This tip is completely voluntary and is used to help cover the operational costs of HIPGive. Thanks to this source of income, we are able to continue to provide high quality services to nonprofits without charging costly administration fees.

When you give to a project, you can choose whether to make your contribution anonymous or not. 

• If you leave the box blank, your name will be included in the list of HIPGivers that is published on the project’s page, together with the message you include. No other information relating to you or your contribution will be shared.
• If you choose to select the box, your name will not be published. If you leave a message it will be published from an Anonymous giver. 

Irrespective of the above, the project coordinator: 

• Will have access to your name, email and amount given. 
• Will not have access to your card details; these are handled only by the payment processor.

Whether you’ve donated to a crowdfunding campaign, an organization, or a Digital Giving Circle, after the cutoff, HIPGive initiates a reconciliation of the transactions received through our platform. After this, the funds are transferred to the organizations that have previously shared their banking information. HIP reserves the right to redirect funds for other charitable purposes if organizations fail to meet the terms and conditions to receive the amount they raised.