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Manage Contribution Statements and Templates

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Contributions Statements are the end of year statements and only include contributions associated with Tax Deductible Funds. If a contribution is not linked to a tax deductible fund, then it will not be added to the giver's contribution statement. This is because statements are for tax purposes and can only include transactions that are tax deductible.

Statements can be generated for both members and non-member contributors. [Note that Contacts (non-member contributors) are a paid feature.]

You can work with Contribution Statements within ChMeetings by going to Contributions > Statements. Here, you can generate statements for a specific contributor and period of time, adjust the template, and print or email them. This article discusses these features in detail.

Configure Statements

You can generate a statement by going to Contributions > Statements, then configuring the following:

  • The contributor(s) for whom you want to generate the statement. You can select more than one,
  • From which date to consider contributions,
  • To which date to consider contributions,
  • Group by family (optional).
  • Exclude archived people (optional).
  • Include people who pledged but have not contributed (optional).
  • Include non-tax-deductible funds (optional)

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Once you have made your selection, you can move on to either printing or emailing the statement. 

Print Statements

For people who do not have an email, you can print their statement, print a mailing label and send it to them via regular mail.

To print a statement, you need to configure the statement, as explained above, then click the Print Statement button. You can sort contributions by First Name, Last Name or Envelope Number. 

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You can then download a .pdf file that will include the statement, in accordance with your list criteria. 

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Email Statements

To email statements, make the configuration as shown above, then click the Email Statement button. 

An email window opens up, where you can configure the following:

  • Select a template if you have created one previously. This is optional and you can save the message that you are currently writing, as a template, to use later. To save the template click Save this as template after you have written your full message. We recommend that you use merge fields to make templates more effective. See the section below for details.
  • Enter the Subject of your email.
  • Enter the email body. Here is where you can add the text you want to send, 
  • Use merge fields in the email body to retrieve information from people’s profiles. These fields are dynamic, so if the profile details change, you can be sure that the field will retrieve it automatically every time, with no need to change the email template. 
    • To add a merge field to your message, place the cursor where you would like to insert it, then select it from under the Add to body list. Click the 🕀 sign next to it, and it will be inserted into your email.
    • You can delete a merge field just like any other text, e.g. with your backspace key. 
  • For Sender, choose whether to send the statement email from your own account email, or from the main church email address.
  • Click Send to send your email to all people selected while configuring the statement.

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Modify Statement Templates

Statements come pre-built with a default template, which you can customize according to your needs. Click Modify Statement to get started.

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In the Modify Statement window, you can configure the following: 

  • Edit the template body, including text, links, tables, images and merge fields. (You can add merge fields from under Add to body.)
  • Save the statement template, using Save this as template. You can give your template a name, by which you can identify it later, under the Select a Template dropdown list.
  • Edit existing templates: Edit the name, save the current template as a new one, update the template with changes, or delete the template. Note that deleting a template requires your confirmation and cannot be undone. 

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Note 1: Please do not remove the [CONTRIBUTION_LIST] merge field, as this will retrieve the actual list of contributions that goes on your statement.

Note 2: If you want to add the total amount contributed by someone to the Statement Template, you can do so using the merge fields called Total Amount and Total amount In Words. The Total Amount In Words field will insert the total contributed amount, in words, in the default member portal language that is configured under your Settings > Account Settings > General Settings. This field will also respect the currency configured in the same section of your Account Settings. 

Don’t forget to Save your template changes when you are ready. 

Below is a short demo of this feature: 

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Troubleshoot Missing Contributions

If you expect to see specific contributions on a giver’s statement, and that contribution is not listed, it is because it is not linked to a fund that is marked as tax deductible.Statements are for tax purposes and can only include transactions that are tax deductible. 

If you want a specific contribution to be listed on the giver’s statement, you must either edit the contribution and move it to a different fund that is tax deductible; or edit the linked fund and make it tax deductible.

Please keep in mind that the contributions actually need to be tax deductible according to your local legislation. So, it’s important that the funds that you mark as tax deductible only contain tax deductible contributions.

 

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