Grant Acceptance and Payments

Acceptance Letters

After a grant has been approved, an original commitment letter and one copy are mailed to the grantee. The grantee should keep the copy for its files and return the original, with an original signature, to the Foundation as proof that it agrees to comply with the terms and conditions of the grant. The Foundation refers to this as the acceptance letter.

All recognizable acceptance letter envelopes are forwarded to grants administration for processing. The grantee signature is examined to 1) verify that it is an original signature and 2) that it is a signature of a properly authorized officer of the grantee organization.

Grant Payments

Grant payments will be made only after the Foundation receives the properly executed acceptance letter back from the grantee. Multiyear grants generally require the submission and approval of interim reports before subsequent payments can be made.

The Foundation generally processes grant payments every two weeks, on Tuesdays, with wire transfers being effective the following Friday. However, the exact dates of the check runs vary according to staff schedules. The commitment letter contains projected payment dates. The grantee should contact its program officer or review the grantee toolbox to learn when a payment will be processed. The Foundation sends payments by regular U.S. mail for all domestic grantees and uses express delivery service for foreign grantees that are not able to accept wire transfers. Foreign grantees must complete the wire transfer form that is mailed with their commitment letter and return it to the Foundation with their acceptance letter. This form provides the Foundation with all the necessary banking information for processing the wire transfer. (A copy of the form is available in the forms section of the Grantees Resources.)