Fair Raise

Connecting your bank, step by step

Donations go straight to a bank account you control — Fair Raise never touches the money. To make that work, Stripe (the payment company behind millions of businesses) verifies who you are and where the money goes. Here's exactly what it asks, in order, and what to have ready. Most people finish in about five minutes.

Have this ready

If the money belongs to a group — a PTA/PTO, booster club, or league with its own bank account:

  • The group's EIN and its exact legal name as registered with the IRS (it's on the IRS letter, CP 575)
  • The group's bank routing and account numbers — from the treasurer, or the bottom of a check
  • Your own name, date of birth, and home address (Stripe verifies you as the person acting for the group)

If you're raising as yourself — a teacher or coach collecting for a classroom or team, no formal organization:

  • Your Social Security number (usually just the last four digits; occasionally Stripe asks for the full number)
  • Your date of birth and home address
  • Your bank routing and account numbers, or a debit card

All of this is entered on Stripe's own secure pages — Fair Raise never sees your SSN, EIN, or account numbers.

The one choice that matters: organization or individual?

Early on, Stripe asks what kind of entity receives the money. Pick organization (usually “Nonprofit” for a PTA or booster club) whenever a real group with its own bank account exists — the money lands in the group's name, the group's treasurer can see it, and your fundraiser page shows donors it goes to the organization, not to you. Pick individual only when there is no such group.

This is worth a two-minute chat with your treasurer before you start, because it's the one answer that's hard to change later. Whatever you pick, your fundraiser page says so out loud — donors see exactly who receives the money.

Not sure whether your club is a registered nonprofit, or whether its status is still current? The nonprofit guide shows how to check in five minutes — and how to register if you never have.

The steps, in order

  1. On your manage page, click “Connect your bank with Stripe.” You'll land on a Stripe page that already knows it's setting up payouts for your fundraiser.
  2. Confirm your email and mobile number. Stripe texts you a code, and you'll set a password — that email and password become your Stripe dashboard login later, so use your own.
  3. Say who receives the money — organization or individual (see above).
  4. Fill in the details. For a group: EIN, legal name exactly as the IRS knows it, and the group's address. For yourself: date of birth, home address, and SSN. A mismatched legal name is the most common snag — copy it from the IRS letter, not from the banner at your school.
  5. Add the bank account. Routing and account numbers, or a debit card. For a group, use the group's account — putting a group's money in a personal account is how treasurers get gray hair.
  6. Review and submit. Stripe shows everything on one screen before you finish.
  7. You land back on Fair Raise. When the Payments badge on your manage page says Ready, donations are on. If it says “Setup incomplete,” Stripe still needs something — the “Continue Stripe setup” button picks up exactly where you left off.

You can stop at any step and come back later; nothing is lost. Your fundraiser page is already live and shareable while you finish.

After you connect

  • Verification: usually instant, occasionally up to two business days. Rarely, Stripe asks for a photo ID or the IRS letter — that's normal diligence, not a problem.
  • Payouts: Stripe deposits on a rolling schedule. The very first payout takes about 7 days (an anti-fraud holding period on every new Stripe account); after that, money arrives about 2 business days after each donation.
  • Your dashboard: the “Open Stripe dashboard” button on your manage page shows every payment, payout, and refund, and is where tax forms appear. Stripe issues a 1099-K if you cross the IRS reporting threshold — worth a word with whoever does your (or the group's) taxes.
  • Refunds: issued from that same dashboard. When you refund a donor, Fair Raise automatically returns its fee in the same proportion.

If you get stuck

Stripe's own help center is at support.stripe.com — it covers logins, payouts, identity verification, and 1099-K questions. For anything about your fundraiser itself, or if you picked the wrong account type and need a do-over, write to hello@fairraise.org — a person reads it.