Stripe Account Creation

Create Your Stripe Account:

Note:

Stripe will at times make changes to the account creation process. So the exact steps may vary from what is documented below.

Visit https://stripe.com and click "Start New" to begin the process. Fill out the "Create your Stripe" account form, then click "Create account."

Stripe will send you an email to verify you are who you say you are. Once the email is received, click "Verify email address."

Click "Activate your Stripe account" to open the activation panel and then click "Start now."

Select your country, fill out the remainder of the form, and then click "Next."

Stripe is available in many countries. In this guide, we use the United States as our example. The questions throughout the setup process will vary depending on the country in which your organization is located.

Business Details Required:

The following information is what Stripe typically requests when filling out your business details, but the exact information is subject to change at any time.

Country
Business Address
Business Phone
Type of Business (Select Nonprofit Organization)
Legal Business Name (Your legal business name must exactly match your tax ID - including capitalization. Please make sure it's correct.)
Employer Identification Number (EIN)
Business Website
Business Description (Select Other Entertainment and Recreation or Other Membership Organization.)
Describe what you sell, to whom, and when you charge your customers (i.e. "We are a ballet company that accepts donations from the public and we charge them at the time of giving. There is nothing to deliver.")
Do you sell physical goods? (Select No; you are using Stripe for donations.)
How long after paying will your customers typically receive their goods or services? (Select Within 1 day.)

Executive Details Required:

Your Stripe account needs to be activated by someone with significant management responsibility or control over your organization’s account. If that’s not you, please ask an authorized executive, senior manager, or business owner from your company to complete this form. The following information is what Stripe typically requests, but the exact information is subject to change at any time.

Full Name
Job Title
What percentage do you own? (Optional)
Do you have significant responsibility for managing the company? (i.e. Are you a CEO, CFO, COO or similar? It is required to include at least one person with significant management responsibility.)
Phone Number
Date of Birth
Last 4 digits of social security number
Home Address

Credit Card Statement Detail Requirements:

The following information is what Stripe typically requests when filling out the details that will show up on your patron's credit card statement, but the exact information is subject to change at any time. This information can be updated at any time.

Statement Descriptor (This is the business name that will show up on your customers' bank or credit card statements. Choose something they will recognize to help prevent disputes.)
Support Phone Number
Customer Support Address

Bank Details:

The following information is what Stripe typically requests when filling out your bank routing details, but the exact information is subject to change at any time.

Routing Number
Account Number
Confirm Account Number
Two-step Authentication (Required. Either use SMS or a Google Authenticator-based app for two-step authentication. This prevents someone from accessing your Stripe account even if your password is lost or compromised. These authentication methods should be held by a trusted individual and the backup codes should be held in a secure location.)

Nonprofit Rate Request:

This email needs to come from the primary email address associated with your Stripe account in order to streamline the verification process.

Nonprofit organizations qualify for the nonprofit rate through Stripe. You will need to send an email to Stripe to request this rate. To make the process as simple as possible, below is example text you can use in your email to Stripe:

Example:

To: nonprofit@stripe.com
CC: hello@donate2.com; schwartzstein@stripe.com

Subject: Nonprofit rate request for COMPANY NAME

Hello,

I am following up on the creation of our Stripe account and requesting the 2.2% nonprofit rate. Here is the information required for the confirmation of nonprofit status:

COMPANY NAME EIN: XX-XXXXXXX
Primary email used to establish account: EMAIL ADDRESS

I am confirming that greater than 80% of payment volume will be tax deductible donations.

Please let me know if you need any additional information. If not, please provide confirmation of the 2.2% rate.

Thank you,

YOUR NAME

Please keep in mind that nonprofit information varies in each country. For the United States, Stripe needs the EIN number; for other countries, see below:

United States: Need registered charity name and number
United Kingdom: Need registered charity name and number
Australia: Need BN number (a link to your organization's entry on the ACNC website is also helpful)
New Zealand: Need charity number (a link to the NZ charities registry also works)

You can submit your request and documentation to Stripe. Your account must be at least 80% donations to qualify. You will be contacted and your rate adjusted if your request is accepted.

If approved, it will reduce your Stripe transaction fee by .7%, from 2.9% +.30 to 2.2% +.30 per transaction. To summarize the Stripe Transactions fees:

Standard Rate is 2.9% + .30 per transaction
Nonprofit Rate is 2.2% + .30 per transaction
Amex Rate is always 3.5%
International cards crossing a border include 1% International fee

Additional transaction information:

United States
Rates offered:
Standard rate: 2.9% + .30 per transaction
Nonprofit rate: 2.2% + .30 per transaction

Australia
Rates offered:
1.4% + 30c for non-American Express transactions
1.75% + 30c for American Express transactions
2.9% + 30c for international transactions

United Kingdom
Rates offered:
1.2% + £0.20 for EU Visa and MasterCard transactions
2.9% + £0.20 for Non-EU and American Express transactions

New Zealand
Rates offered:
2.5% + 0.30c for domestic Visa and MasterCard transactions
2.9% + 0.30c for American Express and international transactions

Integrate Your Stripe Account with Donate2:

We've made the process of connecting your Stripe account to Donate2 as simple as possible. Please be aware that the following steps will need to be taken by the listed Owner of your 2Account.

When you are logged into Donate2, click the Strip menu from the options on the left side of the screen.

Click "Connect with Stripe."

Enter your Stripe email and password.

To authenticate, click "Continue." This will connect Donate2 and Stripe. The integration is complete when you see a button that will allow you to disconnect your Stripe account.