Article: How and When Will a Charity Receive my Donation? U.S. & Non-U.S. Donations

After you make a donation in Groundswell, your donation is securely distributed to the charity using one of our trusted distribution partners. How quickly the charity receives your donation depends on:

Where the charity is located (U.S. or Non-U.S.)
Whether the charity can receive electronic deposits
Your company's donation match schedule (if applicable)

⏱ Typical Donation Timelines

🇺🇸 U.S. Charity (Electronic)	24–48 hours
📬 U.S. Charity (Paper Check)	Approximately 14–24 business days
🌍 Non-U.S. Charity	Typically 4–6 weeks
🤝 Donation Match	Depends on your company's schedule

1. Donations to U.S. Based Charities

Groundswell distributes donations to U.S. charities through Chariot. Most charities receive donations electronically, although some may receive a paper check instead.

Electronic Deposits (Most Common)

If the charity has a verified Chariot Deposit Account, Groundswell submits the donation within approximately 24–48 hours. Chariot then deposits the funds directly into the charity's Chariot Deposit Account.

The charity receives:

Your name (unless you donated anonymously)
Your donation amount
Your donation note (if provided)
Transaction details through Chariot

💡 Good to know

Once the donation reaches the charity's Chariot Deposit Account, the charity decides when to transfer the funds into its bank account.

Paper Checks

If the charity doesn't already have a verified Chariot account, they'll first receive an invitation to create one.

The charity has four business days to create their account before Chariot automatically issues a paper check.

Typical timeline:

Groundswell submits the donation (24–48 hours)
Charity has 4 business days to create a Chariot account
If no account is created, a paper check is mailed
USPS delivery typically takes an additional 10–20 business days

2. Donations to Non-U.S. Based Charities

Groundswell partners with CAF America to distribute donations to eligible Non-U.S. charities.

🌍 How Distributions to Non-U.S. Based Charities Work

Step 1
Groundswell sends approved grants and funding to CAF America every two weeks.

Step 2
CAF America performs required compliance and eligibility reviews.

Step 3
CAF America either sends the funds directly to the charity or works with an approved regional partner.

Step 4
The charity receives the funds.

Regional partners generally distribute funds within 14–20 business days after receiving them.

📌 Please note

Distributions to non-U.S. based chariteis can vary in timeline depending on banking requirements, local regulations, compliance reviews, and how quickly the charity responds to information requests.

3. Donation Matches Made Through Groundswell

If your employer offers donation matching, your match may not be distributed at the same time as your original donation.

Each company chooses its own match distribution schedule.

Immediately
Weekly
Monthly
Quarterly

4. Donation Matches for Donations Made Outside of Groundswell

If you donated directly to a charity outside of Groundswell, you can upload your donation receipt from your Homepage to request a matching donation.

Your receipt must first be reviewed and approved by the Groundswell team before a match can be distributed.

Once approved, the matching donation follows your company's regular match distribution schedule.