Terms of Use

Welcome to Makua, we’re stoked to have you here, but first, please read these terms of use carefully.

By accessing the Site or using our app you’re agreeing to these legally binding rules (the “Terms.”). You’re also agreeing to our Privacy Policy which is incorporated into and a part of these Terms.

If you do not accept these Terms, and/or if you are not of legal age to form a binding contract with Makua, you may not use the Sites, app or the Services.

Finally, you should note that we may offer special services or features from time to time that have their own terms and conditions. In those cases, if the terms specific to the special feature or service conflict with these Terms, the terms specific to the special feature or service will control.

These Terms were last updated on 10/04/2023, and will be updated on an ongoing basis, as necessary. You agree that your use of the Site and/or Services after the effective date of the updated Terms will constitute agreement to the updated Terms.

These Terms govern your use of the Site and App. If you do not agree to be bound by these Terms, you may not use or access the Site or Services.

Donors

Makua is a service designed to make donating to your favorite nonprofits as easy as possible. Our website and app is meant solely for personal, non-commercial use.

In order to use our app, you will need to register for an account. For more information about the account-creation process, including what information we collect and how we use it, please consult our Privacy Policy.

Donations

We have selected a variety of nonprofits to be featured on the Makua app. We also utilise a 3rd party API in order for you to search from 100,000s of 501(c)(3) registered nonprofits. Using the app, you can make gifts of support to all (or nearly all) of the nonprofits listed.

When you make a gift of support to a Nonprofit through the Site, your Donation goes directly to Makua Partners which is a US-registered 501(c)(3) public charity. Makua Partners has exclusive legal control over the Donation. Makua Partners issues you a receipt for your charitable contributions as a US 501(c)(3) nonprofit, this receipt can be viewed on your user profile. At the time you make a Donation to Makua Partners, you also tell us which Nonprofit you’re wanting to support with that Donation. On a regular basis, Makua Partners approves your recommendation and disburses funds collected through Donations to recipient Nonprofits (either directly, or through a third-party nonprofit partner). We strive to ensure that your Donation goes to the Nonprofit that you preferred for your gift of support. This process ensures your eligibility for a tax-deduction and consolidated records of your giving, and reduces the administrative burden of the Nonprofits to process multiple small donations from thousands of donors.

If circumstances make giving to that particular Nonprofit impossible or inappropriate (such as if the selected Nonprofit ceases operations or loses its tax-exempt status), we will attempt to contact you first for additional preferences on where you would like your Donation to go. If we do not receive your preferences before we must disburse the funds, then we may in our sole discretion select an alternate Nonprofit to receive the Donation. We will do our best to direct your Donation to a Nonprofit in a similar space and/or with similar goals. Except in cases of fraud, we do not issue refunds.

When you Donate through the app, you may do so by either making a Recurring Donation or by making a One-Time Donation. You must provide a valid payment method to make a Donation using the app. In making a donation through your Makua account or through a linked-to website operated by our payment processor(s) for donations (a "Donation"), you may be asked to supply certain information relevant to your Donation, including without limitation your credit card number or other payment account number, and your billing address. You represent and warrant that you are eighteen years of age or older and have the legal right to use any payment means used by you in connection with any donation. By submitting such information, you grant Makua, Makua Partners (or its payment processor(s)) the right to provide such information to third parties for purposes of consummating Donations initiated by you or on your behalf. Verification of information may be required prior to the acknowledgment or completion of any Donation. Makua and Makua Partners have the right, in its sole discretion, to refuse or cancel the processing of any Donation for any reason. Makua or Makua Partners (or its payment processor(s)) may automatically process charges against your selected payment method. Makua or Makua Partners (or its payment processor(s)) will inform you if all or any portion of your Donation is refused or canceled or if additional or different information is required to process and accept your Donation. For any donation made to a nonprofit that is not based in the United States of America, 5% will be withheld from the final grant to cover the additional costs incurred by Makua Partners.

If you would like to cancel a Recurring Donation, you may do so at any time by updating your donation settings on the app, found in the profile section. If the details of your Recurring Donation change, for example if we remove a nonprofit from our system, we will notify you and obtain your instructions prior to charging your next Recurring Donation payment.

Nonprofits

For nonprofits, we make receiving support and engaging with donors as easy as possible.

In order to receive Disbursements from Makua Partners, you will need to meet the following minimum requirements:

  • Your organization is recognized by the IRS as exempt from federal income tax under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3), and has public charity status under Section 509(a)(1) or (2), and such recognition is not currently revoked.
  • If your organization does not meet that requirement, and instead your organization is an International Nonprofit, then you must submit all documentation requested by Makua Partners or one of our processing partners, and we must have determined that your organization is conducting charitable activities and/or is the equivalent of a US 501(c)(3) public charity.

Disbursements & Payment Processing

On a regular basis, Makua Partners approves donor recommendations to support Nonprofits, and disburses funds actually collected through Donations to recipient Nonprofits (either directly, or through a third-party nonprofit partner). All Donations are contributions to Makua Partners, not to your organization, so you do not need to issue a receipt to any donor, and we also do not need a receipt so please do not provide any.

We use payment processing partners to receive Donations and make Disbursements. The amount your organization receives from Donations may be reduced by the fees of such payment processing partners depending on which payment method was chosen by the donor. Your organization must provide sufficient information to such payment processing partners in order to receive Disbursements, and must update such information as needed.

For nonprofits taking part in our community model, we will transfer aggregated donations on a monthly basis to your connected Stripe account.

For more information about timing and fees, please consult our Disbursements page.

If we have chosen to make a Disbursement to your organization via a third-party nonprofit partner, you are required to enroll in the partner’s program and agree to any of their terms or requirements. The amount your organization receives from Donations may be reduced by the fees of such partner.

In exchange for Disbursements, you agree and commit that:

  • You consent to the use of the name and certain limited, publicly-available information about your organization on the App, and permit us to fundraise and collect donations on your behalf, acknowledging that it is not guaranteed that any donor will request a Donation to your organization, and that we have no obligation to list you, or to fundraise and collect donations for you at any time.
  • You will use all Disbursements either (a) for your organization’s charitable purposes or (b) for any specific charitable purpose you have proposed to us, and we have approved, prior to collecting any Donations for such purposes.
  • You will not use any Disbursement to conduct non-charitable activities, including illegal activities, impermissible political activities, or to provide an impermissible private benefit to any individual or entity.
  • You will comply with all applicable state and local statutes governing the solicitation of charitable solicitations, including but not limited to fulfilling any registration requirements.
  • The donor who recommended their Donation support your organization will not receive any goods (such as merchandise, or event tickets) as a result of the Donation or Disbursement to your organization, except where such goods or services can be disregarded in accordance with IRS guidance.
  • You will notify us promptly of any change to your tax-exempt status or ability to carry out the specific charitable purposes for which you have received Disbursements.

If circumstances make Disbursement to your organization impossible or inappropriate (such as if your organization ceases operations, loses its tax-exempt status, or fails to comply with these Terms), we may in our sole discretion select an alternate Nonprofit to receive the Donation. Except in cases of fraud, we do not issue refunds to donors. However, if we have made Direct Disbursements to your organization, we have the right to deduct amounts from your future Direct Disbursements to cover credit card charge-backs and disputed charges related to a Donation recommended for your organization. We will attempt to contact the donor of any such Donation to let them know that a charge back or disputed charge will require you to refund their Disbursement to us. We reserve all rights to pursue charge back and disputed charge amounts from the Nonprofit.

Donor Data

When a donor makes a Donation, they are given the option to share their information with your organization. If they choose this option, Makua will make available the Giver’s name, contact information, and Donation amount. We may send this information periodically or to our Disbursement partner to send to you. For nonprofits using our community model, shared donor information can be viewed within the dashboard inside the Makua app.

For more information about what information we collect and how we use it, please consult our Privacy Policy.

Your account, Donations, and the personal information you submit in connection with your account and Donations are subject to the terms of our Privacy Policy. Please review our Privacy Policy to understand how we may use your personal information.

Digital Millennium Copyright Act

Makua Inc has adopted the following policy towards copyright infringement in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (the DMCA). If you believe any materials within the site, app or in connection with the site or app infringes upon your intellectual property rights, please notify us by providing the following information:

  • A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;
  • Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works;
  • Identification of the material claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access disabled and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;
  • Contact information, reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact you, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail;
  • A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
  • A statement that, under penalty of perjury, the information in the notification is accurate and you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Please send the above information to hello@makua.com with subject line “Legal”

We may give you notice that we have removed or disabled access to certain material by means of a general notice on the Site, electronic mail to a user’s e-mail address in our records, or by written communication sent by first-class mail to your physical address in our records. If you receive such a notice, you may provide counter-notification in writing to the designated agent pursuant to instructions that will be included in the notice.

Termination and Suspension

We may terminate or limit your right to use the Site or Services in the event that we are investigating or believe that you have breached any provision of these Terms or our Privacy Policy by providing you with written or email notice. Such termination or limitation will be effective immediately upon delivery of such notice.

Contact Us

If you have questions or concerns about these terms, reach out to us at hello@makua.com

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