Recording and Acknowledging Gifts from Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs)

A donor-advised fund (DAF) is a charitable giving vehicle in which a donor contributes cash, stock, or other assets to a sponsoring public charity (Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable, a community foundation, and similar organizations), then recommends gifts from that fund to charities over time. DAF giving is one of the fastest-growing vehicles in the sector, and it has its own acknowledgment rules that look different from a standard cash gift. This article defines a DAF gift, lists the data points to track, and covers how to set it up in Humanitru so the acknowledgment is accurate.

When a donor contributes to a DAF, they claim their tax deduction at that point — when the money goes into the fund, not when it's later given out to a charity. The sponsoring organization legally owns the fund and retains advisory privileges for the donor, who recommends (but doesn't directly control) where and when gifts are made. When your organization receives a DAF gift, the check or wire comes from the sponsoring organization, but it was the donor who recommended it, and it's the donor who should be thanked.

One restriction is worth flagging for gift officers: DAF gifts cannot be used for anything that provides the donor a personal benefit — an event ticket, a table at a gala the donor will attend, a membership perk, and similar quid pro quo items are all off-limits for DAF dollars, since the donor would be receiving something of value in return.

Track these for every DAF gift:

• Sponsoring organization name — the DAF sponsor that issued the check or wire (e.g., Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable, National Philanthropic Trust)
• Recommending donor — the individual (or household/company) who recommended the gift, along with contact information if the sponsor provided it
• Date the gift was received
• Gift amount

Because the donor already claimed their deduction when they funded the DAF, the gift itself is not tax-deductible to them, and the organization should never send a giving receipt implying otherwise. What the donor needs instead is an acknowledgment: confirmation the gift was received, a thank-you, and a clear statement that it isn't a tax receipt.

There are two common schools of thought on which constituent record carries the gift. Either is workable in Humanitru; what matters is picking one and applying it consistently.

• Option 1: Add the gift to the recommending donor's constituent record, with the DAF sponsor tracked as a Key Value Pair and/or linked to the Action as a Relationship.
• Option 2: Add the gift to the DAF sponsor's own constituent record, with the recommending donor linked to the Action as a Relationship.

Most organizations lean toward Option 1, since it keeps the gift attached to the person being stewarded and cultivated, but Option 2 has real advantages for organizations that want the sponsoring organization's aggregate giving to be easy to pull as its own report. Whichever is chosen, use these fields:

Action Date

Set the Action Date to the date the gift was received from the sponsoring organization.

Donation Amount and Receipt Amount

Set the Donation Amount to the gift amount, so the gift is credited and reportable at its real value. Set the Receipt Amount to $0. DAF gifts are acknowledged, not receipted — the donor already received their tax deduction from the sponsoring organization when they funded the DAF, so a giving receipt from your organization would be inaccurate. Keeping Receipt Amount at $0 keeps the gift out of that receipt entirely while a separate acknowledgment letter, described below, does the actual thank-you.

Notes Field (Key Value Pairs)

Use Key Value Pairs in the Notes field to record the check number for reconciliation and, if Option 1 above is being used, the sponsoring organization, formatted consistently so they merge cleanly and are reportable later, for example:

• Check #: 10482
• DAF Sponsor: Fidelity Charitable

It's also worth suggesting a Key Value Pair for how the donor wants to be acknowledged, since this can differ from their legal constituent name — for example, a couple who wants to be recognized as "The Smith Family" rather than by two individual names, or a donor who has requested anonymity and shouldn't be named in any acknowledgment or public recognition at all, for example:

• Acknowledgment Name: The Smith Family
• Acknowledgment Name: Anonymous

Campaign

Use a Campaign to flag the gift as a DAF gift (e.g., a "DAF" system Campaign, the same way stock gifts and QCDs are flagged). Because the Donation Amount field holds a real dollar figure, a DAF gift will otherwise show up in standard donation and transaction log outputs the same as a receipted cash gift. These gifts may need to be suppressed from a donation/transaction log using that Campaign value — filter the DAF Campaign out of any output meant to reflect receipted giving, such as giving statements, deposit reports, and similar exports.

Acknowledgment Letter

Build a separate acknowledgment letter template for DAF gifts, distinct from the standard giving receipt. Thank the recommending donor directly — not the sponsoring organization — and merge in the Donation Amount along with a clear statement that this is not a tax receipt and that the gift isn't tax-deductible to them (they already claimed their deduction when they funded the DAF). If the donor requested anonymity, suppress their name from the letter and from any public recognition.

DAF donors have already committed funds specifically for charitable giving, which makes them strong candidates for deeper engagement. Where appropriate, use the acknowledgment as an opening to invite further involvement — a facility tour, a program visit, or a handwritten note alongside the standard letter — rather than treating it as a purely transactional touchpoint.

Fidelity Charitable, "What Is a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF)?"

Fidelity Charitable, "How to Thank Donors Who Use Donor-Advised Funds"

FreeWill, Donor-Advised Fund Acknowledgment Letter Template

Foundation For The Carolinas / Philanthropy Focus, "Tips for Nonprofits: How to Acknowledge Donor Advised Fund Gifts"

National Philanthropic Trust, "QCDs and DAFs: A Practical Guide for Donors and Advisors"