Recurring-Tithe (Sustainer) Setup & Enrollment Guide
A congregant-facing step-by-step guide for enrolling in automated recurring tithing across channels, plus the internal staff SOP to administer it.
Draft: pending review
This starter document is signed off by Church counsel + payments/PCI advisor + CFRE before it ships. The guardrails below define that review.
What’s inside
- Channel comparison (ACH vs. card vs. bill-pay) with processing-fee and net-to-ministry notes
- Screen-by-screen enrollment walkthrough and QR/text-to-give shortcuts
- Authorization, receipt cadence, and year-end statement handling
- Internal SOP: storing authorizations, PCI-safe handling, reconciliation checklist
Legal & ethical guardrails
The sector-specific compliance points this document must honor.
- Never store full card/bank numbers; rely on a PCI-DSS-compliant processor and record only tokens/last-four
- Recurring consent must be explicit, logged, and revocable; honor cancellations promptly
- Present automation as convenience, never obligation, to protect donor autonomy
- Disclose processing fees and whether a 'cover the fee' option changes the deductible amount
Held for professional review.
The native PDF and full working text ship only after sign-off by Church counsel + payments/PCI advisor + CFRE on this exact version. The summary and review requirements remain visible in the meantime.
Not legal advice. Not legal, tax, or accounting advice. The Fundraising Co. provides educational fundraising materials and is not a law firm; nothing here creates an attorney–client relationship or substitutes for advice from professionals licensed in your jurisdiction. Laws and IRS rules vary by state and change over time. Review every document with qualified counsel before use.