How to Make Non-Profit Deposits Easy and Accurate

Payments and registrations are coming in and, frankly, starting to pile up. People will not be happy if their cheques are not deposited right away. A deposit is needed, and some sort of log is required.

Writing up the bank deposit page is only one piece of processing accounts receivable. Each item will need to be entered into some sort of bookkeeping tool. It might be an Excel spreadsheet; it might be bookkeeping software like Sage or Quick Books. Thinking about all these steps can make the idea of doing a simple deposit feel overwhelming before you even get started.

Let’s back-up just a wee bit and talk about what to do with the money as it comes in, so that deposit will be as easy as possible.

Top Priority – Payments Delivered in Person

If someone is standing in your office, or at a registration table, the top priority is to receive their money, count it to verify the amount, and issue a receipt.

Depending on the size of your non-profit, you will likely use one of two ways to track what the payments are for. It will be either a cash register system that produces an automated receipt for the customer and provides an administrative summary of transactions at the end of the day. Or it will be a manual cover page system, that records the details of who made the payment, when, and why.

Regardless of the system and size of the non-profit, recording the details of the payments coming in, is important so they can be accurately entered into a bookkeeping system later.

If using a manual receipting system, be sure the receipt book provides a copy of the receipt for BOTH the payer and the admin office.

Second Priority – Receiving Payments by Mail

Hopefully no one sends cash through the mail, but there sure are a lot of cheques sent that way. Receiving payments by mail is not as big a rush when no one is standing in your office, tapping their toe for you to hurry up – but accuracy is still important.

Again, depending on the size of your non-profit, payments received by mail, may be entered into a cash register system, or handled manually with cover pages. The end goal is for the details to be captured so the funding can be attributed to the right accounting code later. For example, you’ll want membership fees to be grouped, donations grouped, etc. You won’t want them all lumped together.

Storage

Payments (cash, cheque, other) need to be stored in a locked location until a pre-set benchmark is met, to trigger a deposit. It might be that a deposit is completed weekly. It might be if a certain amount of cash is on the premises. Or, it might be after a certain number of payments are received, a deposit is made.

Whichever benchmark you choose, keeping payments locked up and secure, is just good risk management.

A note about cash in the office. If you keep cash in the office, be sure to use a locked storage system to prevent theft. Don’t risk being on the hook to pay back money that went missing. Lock it up or get it in the bank. NEVER take it home with you. 

Make a Deposit

There are 4 steps when preparing a deposit.

1. Go through each payment item, or cash register grouping, and verify the amount and details. If details are missing, THIS is the time to find the missing info and get it recorded.
   1. I really believe in making photocopies of cheques. OK, if your non-profit is larger, this might not be possible. But many a question can be answered by going back and finding a photocopy of a cheque when an issue comes up – and issues DO come up.
2. After the details are complete, separate the paperwork from the payment. The paperwork goes to the bookkeeping stack, and the payments (cash, cheques) go to the deposit stack.
3. Take all the payments and prepare the deposit, using the deposit book provided by the bank. Package it all, including the first page of the deposit book, into one sealed envelope, or bank bag.
4. Take the secondary copy of the deposit page and attach it to the front of the bookkeeping stack so the bookkeeper can attribute all the funds to the correct account code.
   1. This step will vary from group to group. Some groups don’t attach the secondary copy of the deposit page, until it is stamped by the bank. Other groups use a night deposit system, and don’t bother to get the second page of the deposit stamped. Either way, that second page needs to be attached to the paperwork. DON’T leave the page in the deposit book.

A well-prepared deposit fulfills 2 purposes. First, it gets the money out of the office and safely into the bank. Second, it creates a clear record of what the money is for, so it can be properly recorded by the bookkeeper.

To get started using a regular deposit routine, it helps to think about the details you record as payments come in. Set-up a system that works easiest for your group. Create simple ways to record payment details during even the busiest office hours. That might be using a cash registered system, or pre-designed forms with a selection of check boxes instead of writing out the details over and over.

When a non-profit needs a deposit system that works quickly and effectively, understanding the flow of information from payment through to deposit, will save time and reduce errors. Thanks for taking the time to read my ideas. My mission is to take the mystery out of running a small non-profit. If you know someone who needs to read this, why not grab the link, and share it with them. Let’s work together to make non-profit deposits as easy and accurate as possible.

-Christie

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Hi, I'm Christie Saas, former board member, current Executive Director, and non-profit volunteer. I remember well, those early years when I lacked the training, the confidence, and the work-life balance to focus on becoming the best non-profit leader I could be.

Fast-forward past many bumps in the road, lessons learned, and you’ll find me still in the trenches, but a little wiser, a little calmer, and a whole lot happier. I love my work and I want to help you love yours too.

I created ChristieSaas.com to give you tools, tips, and templates to remove the mystery of learning to run a small non-profit. If you’re a brand-new non-profit leader, or a little more seasoned, someone who’s looking to make a meaningful contribution and still have time for a full life away from the job, you’re in the right place.

© Christie Saas 2022 All Rights Reserved

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