Additional General Terms of Use for Tax-Privileged Organizations and Projects
Table of Contents
- 1. Scope
- 2. Definition of terms
- 3. Role of betterplace.org
- 4. Role of the organizations when using the platform for themselves and their projects
- 5. Permissible purposes
- 6. Registration of organizations and projects and conclusion of the usage agreement with an organization
- 7. Project management
- 8. Tax relief of the organization - guarantee, evidence, changes to status and identification on the platform
- 9. Proof of the use of funds by the organization
- 10. No (forwarding of) donations to foreign organizations, foreign natural persons or other foreign recipients
- 11. Cooperation pursuant to Section 57 para. 3 AO with a tax-privileged organization
- 12. Prompt use of funds
- 13. Rights of use, linking, identification rights
- 14. End or cancellation of a project and repayment of donations
- 15. Termination
- 16. Liability of the organization due to the misuse of funds
- 17. Blocking of projects
- 18. Appearance on the platform
- 19. Changes to conditions
1. Scope
These Additional General Terms of Use apply to all organizations and their projects registered on the platform betterplace.org to collect donations. They apply in addition to the General Terms of Use. They regulate further details regarding the legal relationship between betterplace.org (gut.org gAG) and the organization.
In the event of any contradictions between the General and Additional General Terms of Use, these Additional General Terms of Use will take precedence.
The Privacy Policy of betterplace.org for the platform is also to be noted.
2. Definition of terms
The definitions in section 2 of the General Terms of Use apply as well to these Additional General Terms of Use.
3. Role of betterplace.org
The role of betterplace.org is conclusively regulated in Sections 9.1 (“General”) and 9.2 (“role of betterplace.org”) of the General Terms of Use.
4. Role of the organizations when using the platform for themselves and their projects
4.1. betterplace.org does not provide any legal advice. The organization is responsible for fully investigating the legal requirements for their project before beginning the project. In particular, it is required to adhere to the requirements under tax law and non-profit law when executing their project. If the organization does not have the required knowledge itself, it is required to seek the assistance of a legal or tax advisor. This also applies if betterplace.org has already approved the project.
4.2. Submission of proof of tax relief in accordance with Section 8 and submission of the donation receipt in accordance with Section 9.1 as well as, if requested by betterplace.org, the submission of further evidence of the use of funds in accordance with Section 9.2. and 9.3. only serve to provide evidence of the proper use of funds by betterplace.org. However, they do not replace the organization’s own statutory obligations towards the tax office or third parties.
5. Permissible purposes
5.1. Only projects which are tax deductible as defined in the sense of the German Tax Law are permitted. Only those projects which directly serve non-profit, charitable and religious purposes within the meaning of the German Tax Code (AO) in its respective valid version and which comply with the statutory purpose and the tax-privileged purposes specified in the current exemption notice of the respective organization as a project manager may be displayed on the platform.
The following are in particular not permitted:
- Projects or other commercial projects for the direct or indirect purpose of generating profit,
- Projects which promise or suggest the prospect of some form of consideration in return for a donation,
- Projects which directly or indirectly serve the purpose of supporting or promoting political parties,
- Projects which exceed the limits of permitted political activity,
- Projects that raise donations for administrative costs which are inappropriate under non-profit law,
- Projects that ultimately also serve to generate income and which are not a special-purpose enterprise (“Zweckbetrieb”) within the meaning of the German Tax Code (AO), but instead constitute a commercial business enterprise within the meaning of the Tax Code.
Furthermore, organizations’ projects must not violate German regulations regarding tax legislation in connection with non-profit status.
5.2 betterplace.org reserves the right to make approval for projects subject to additional conditions, at any time and as required and/or announced by non-profit law.
6. Registration of organizations and projects and conclusion of the usage agreement with an organization
6.1. Authority to represent
The registration of an organization and a project in accordance with Sections 6.2. to 6.3. is free of charge and can only be performed by an authorized representative of the respective organization (see Section 3.2.2. of the General Terms of Use), who must be named as a contact person. The respective authorized representative must register themselves as a user beforehand (Section 3.1. of the General Terms of Use) in order to be able to then register the organization’s project and the organization on the platform as authorized representative of the organization.
6.2. Registration of an organization and a project and conclusion of the agreement with an organization regarding the use of the platform for its project
The organization and its project are registered by completing and submitting the respective registration form on the platform. By completing the registration process, the organization makes a binding offer to conclude a contract between itself and betterplace.org for the use of the platform for its registered project in accordance with the General and Additional General Terms of Use. betterplace.org shall accept this offer by informing the organization about its approval of the project. The agreement regarding the use of the platform between the organization and betterplace.org is concluded when this approval takes place.
If a registered organization wants to register an additional project on the platform, the existing usage agreement will be extended to include the use of the platform for the additional project, whereby the organization is required to submit an offer upon registration of the project using the registration form (see above) and betterplace.org approves the additional project in accordance with the regulations specified above and thereby accepts the offer.
The subject of the usage relationship of an organization includes all rights and obligations during the use of the available functionalities of the platform.
6.3. Registration of a project
6.3.1 Projects can only be registered on the platform by organizations who are responsible as promoters of their projects.
6.3.2. The registration of a project requires accurate, complete, realistic and detailed information about the proposed project. This in particular includes information in the project description about the project goal and purpose of use, in addition to information about the project plan and the time frame as well as the project location.
6.3.3.A project manager for the respective project is to be named for each project of an organization. They assure that they are entitled to represent the organization within the scope of the use of the platform for the project, see Section 3.2.2. of the General Terms of Use. They are named as a contact person on the respective project page.
Any changes to the project manager are to be reported immediately to betterplace.org in the administrative area of the project. If the change of project manager is reported and no new project manager is named, or if no other contact partner is provided for the organization in accordance with Section 6.3.2., the respective organization will not be able to collect or request any further donations until a new project manager is named. The previous project manager will remain visible on the platform until a new project manager is named and registered. Until the appointment/registration of a new project manager, the contact partner for the organization in accordance with Section 6.1. will also act as the project manager.
In addition to the project manager, managers and authors can also be named for a project. They assure that they are entitled to represent the organization within the scope of the rights allocated to them when using the platform for the project, see Section 3.2.2. of the General Terms of Use.
7. Project management
7.1. Changes to the project description
If the project description is published, subsequent changes are to be clearly marked and, along with the project requirements and the project report, should give sponsors a realistic insight into the status of the project planning and execution. Requirements which have already received donations can no longer be changed.
Changes to the project description which deviate significantly from the project description originally published are not permitted. A deviation is significant if, for example, the core content of the project has changed or the conditions for non-profit status according to the German Fiscal Code (AO) are no longer fulfilled. If the organization detects significant changes to its project, it must notify betterplace.org of this without being asked and without delay, and must break off the project and communicate this accordingly on the platform, cf. Section 14.2.
7.2. Project reports
The organization must ensure that regular and timely project updates on betterplace.org provide accurate and reliable information about the progress and performance of the projects listed and the use of funds. Project reports should in particular include details of all transactions, purchases/expenses, and any delays or minor deviations from the project plan. Project reports should be provided in the form of blog posts with photos, linked documents and/or videos on the project page.
Project reports which deviate significantly from the project description originally published are not permitted. What is significant is defined in Section 7.1. in particular include details of all transactions, purchases/expenses, and any delays or deviations from the project plan. Project reports should be provided in the form of blog posts with photos, linked documents and/or videos on the project page.
7.3. Use of donations
Donations must only be used for the tax-privileged statutory purposes specified in the project description and in compliance with Section 5.
Minor deviations, for example with regard to the quality or quantity of items to be purchased or small price differences are allowed, provided they are immediately and transparently listed without delay. betterplace.org will decide in each individual case at its own discretion when a deviation is minor, taking the principle of commensurability into account. Payments can only be made for specific purposes. Donations made directly to the project or the sponsoring organization are first allocated to a specific purpose before they are paid out.
8. Tax relief of the organization - guarantee, evidence, changes to status and identification on the platform
8.1. Guarantee of tax relief
8.1.1.The organization either guarantees that it is a domestic tax-privileged body and the project serves solely the direct attainment of their statutory tax-privileged purposes; or, that they are a domestic legal person under public law or domestic public entity in accordance with Section 10 b para 1, sentence 2, No. 1 2nd Alt. EstG (Income Tax Act) and the use of the donations is exclusively for tax-privileged purposes in accordance with the German Tax Code (AO).
8.1.2. The organization also assures that there are no circumstances that could lead to the revocation of its tax-privileged status.
8.2 Evidence of tax relief
The organization must provide betterplace.org, immediately after registering, with its current notice of tax exemption or the current annex to the corporate income tax notice or a current notification in accordance with Section 60a AO as proof of its tax relief, or suitable proof of its status as a domestic legal person under public law or a public entity.
If only a notification in accordance with Section 60a AO can be provided in the case of newly established tax-privileged organizations, the notice of tax exemption or annex to the corporate income tax notice must be submitted without delay upon being issued, without the organization being prompted to do so. The organization may therefore only provide betterplace.org with a notification in accordance with Section 60a para. 1 AO if it has up to then received neither a notice of tax exemption nor an annex to the corporate income tax notice confirming tax relief.
Organizations must always submit the latest notice of tax exemption, the current annex to the corporate tax income tax notice or the current notification in accordance with Section 60a AO.
No later than six weeks before expiry of the notice of tax exemption, annex to the corporate income tax notice or notification in accordance with Section 60a AO provided to betterplace.org, organizations must always submit a newly issued notice of tax exemption or newly issued annex to the corporate income tax notice without being prompted to do so. Betterplace.org will assist in this regard by reminding the organization by email about the expiry of the existing notice of tax exemption, existing annex to the corporate income tax notice or notification in accordance with Section 60a AO.
In any case, betterplace.org must have valid proof of tax relief at the point in time that it forwards the donation to the organization. Otherwise, no donation can be made to the organization by betterplace.org.
8.3. Changes to the tax relief status
The organization shall inform betterplace.org of any changes to its tax relief status without delay and without being prompted, and shall guarantee the tax relief status until receipt of the notification of any changes by betterplace.org.
8.4. Identification of the tax relief on the platform and allocation confirmation
Upon proof of the tax-privileged status, organizations and projects will be marked accordingly on the platform. Donations made via the platform can be claimed for tax purposes. In this case, the corresponding donation confirmation will be issued and sent directly to sponsors directly by betterplace.org as the recipient of the donations made by the sponsors via the platform, see Section 9.3.10. of the General Terms of Use.
9. Proof of the use of funds by the organization
The organization is obliged to prove the statutory tax-privileged use of the donations in accordance with the purpose specified in the project description to betterplace.org.
This obligation to provide evidence will continue to exist even after the usage agreement has ended if the donations paid by betterplace.org to the organization have not yet been used in full at the time of the termination and/or if all evidence relating to the use of the donations paid out by betterplace.org has not yet been provided at this time in order to enable betterplace.org to provide evidence of the correct use of the funds.
9.1. Donation receipt from the organization as evidence
The evidence must be provided by issuing a donation receipt as defined in Section 10b EStG to betterplace.org. Collective receipts for donations are possible for a calendar year. The donation receipts must be submitted to betterplace.org no later than two months after the end of the calendar year in which the donations were made, or earlier if requested by betterplace.org.
If the donation receipts are not submitted within this period, betterplace.org has the right to block the respective organization and its projects so that they can no longer receive donations from betterplace.org. betterplace.org will activate them again as soon as the donation confirmations have been received by betterplace.org.
If the donation receipts are not submitted within this period, betterplace.org shall also have a right to repayment pursuant to Section 14.4.1. no. 2. in accordance with Section 14.4.2. no. 6 and a right to termination without notice pursuant to Section 15.2.
9.2 Further proof of the use of funds from the organization
In addition, betterplace.org expressly reserves the right to demand further documents in individual cases that enable betterplace.org to provide evidence of the proper use of funds.
9.3. Proof of use of funds when the organization achieves tax-relief status abroad
9.3.1 If the organization achieves its statutory tax-relief status abroad, either through its own activities, through the involvement of a domestic or foreign auxiliary person in the sense of Section 57 para. 1 (2) of the German Tax Code (AO) or through cooperation with another tax-privileged organization as per Section 57 para. 3 AO, betterplace.org expressly reserves the right to demand additional proof in individual cases. In each individual case, betterplace.org will decide at its own discretion which documents and paperwork the organization must submit to enable betterplace.org to provide proof of the proper use of funds, taking the principle of commensurability into account.
The following documents – if necessary translated into German – can serve as proof of the statutory use of funds abroad in accordance with the articles of association:
- Contracts and related transactions concluded in connection with the use of funds,
- evidence of the outflow of funds abroad and receipts from the payee concerning receipt of the funds,
- detailed description of the activities carried out abroad,
- material about the projects carried out (brochures, press releases),
- expert opinion of an auditor for large or ongoing projects,
- donation notices from foreign authorities if the measures there are funded publicly, e.g. supported by grants,
- confirmation of a German diplomatic mission that the claimed projects are being carried out.
- If an auxiliary person as defined within the meaning of Section 57 para. 1 (2) AO is involved, the written agreement concluded between the organization and the auxiliary person, specifying the content and scope of the activities and the auxiliary person’s legal accountability, and complying with the charitable and other legal requirements.
- In the event of cooperation as defined in Section 57 para. 3 AO, e.g. the written agreement concluded between the organization and the other tax-privileged organization and the articles of association.
10. No (forwarding of) donations to foreign organizations, foreign natural persons or other foreign recipients
10.1. The forwarding of donations acquired via the platform to foreign legal or natural persons or other foreign recipients is not permitted. This applies even if they are recognized as non-profits in the respective country.
10.2. Section 10.1. does not apply to the possibility, mentioned in Section 9.3., of involving a foreign auxiliary person within the meaning of Section 57 para. 1 (2) AO (as they are not to be regarded as a foreign recipient, but rather the organization’s own realization of tax-relief purposes abroad by means of an auxiliary person).
10.3. Section 10.1. also does not apply to the possibility, mentioned in Section 9.3., of cooperation with a foreign non-profit organization in compliance with the conditions of Section 57 para. 3 AO (including the conditions of Sections 51 to 68 AO), cf. Section 11 (as this does not represent a donation to a foreign recipient, but rather the organization’s own realization of tax-relief purposes abroad together with another organization within the meaning of Section 57 para. 3 AO).
11. Cooperation pursuant to Section 57 para. 3 AO with a tax-privileged organization
Organizations can execute their project together with another tax-privileged organization as per Section 57 para. 3 AO insofar as this is expressly regulated in its articles of association and if the other conditions of Section 57 para. 3 AO and other requirements under public benefit law as per Sections 51 to 68 AO are fulfilled.
12. Prompt use of funds
Organizations must generally use the donations for their tax-privileged statutory purposes in a timely manner (Section 55 para. 1 no. 5 AO). The funds have been used in a timely manner if they are used within two years after receipt. Hence, if they are received in 2022, the donations must be used in 2024 at the latest. Accordingly, the organization generally has no more than three years to use the received funds.
13. Rights of use, linking, identification rights
13.1. For reasons of transparency, all project and organization content will remain visible on the platform as inactive projects and organizations even after the project has ended or been cancelled and after the usage agreement has ended, so that the use of donations can be tracked by users and the use of funds can be tracked for documentation purposes.
Sentence 1 of this Section 13.1. does not apply if betterplace.org makes use of its right of erasure in accordance with Section 4.8 and 7.2 of the General Terms of Use or if data subjects assert their erasure rights under data protection law. Please see the Privacy Policy of betterplace.org for more details.
13.2. betterplace.org is entitled to make reference to the cooperation using the organization’s name and the general identification features, in particular in print, broadcasts or on the internet. In individual cases, this right may be shaped by the organization via the issuing of instructions.
13.3. Organizations are entitled to refer to the cooperation on their own website. For this purpose, the organization shall use the standard logo provided for download by betterplace.org for this purpose in conjunction with a link to the project webpage. Any alternative graphic design must be approved by betterplace.org.
13.4. The provisions of Section 5 of the General Terms of Use (rights of use, copyright, indemnity) remain unaffected by this.
14. End or cancellation of a project and repayment of donations
14.1. Termination of a project by the organization
Termination of a project by the organization if the donations collected before the termination can still be used for the intended purpose:
- 100% funded projects – 100% funded projects can either be terminated by the organization itself or they are automatically terminated by betterplace.org.
- Early termination of projects without 100% funding – the organization is required to terminate its project if they do not intend to fully complete their project on the platform, but can still use all previously received donations for the purpose intended. The organization must communicate the reason for ending its project and the use of the amounts donated so far to the organization responsible for the project for the intended purpose on the platform, and can submit a request for the contributions that were collected up to the point in time the project was ended to be paid out. Subsequently, betterplace.org will decide in accordance with Section 9.3.2. of the General Terms of Use whether it will pass on the contributions collected to the organization. If betterplace.org not to approve the donation request, the donation amount raised thus far will remain with betterplace.org, which will use this for the pursuit of its statutory purposes.
14.2. Cancellation of a project by the organization
Cancellation of a project by the organization if the donations collected before the termination can no longer be used for the intended purpose:
If it is no longer possible to achieve the project target as specified in the project description because, for example, the project was cancelled or the conditions for the project have changed significantly (i.e. the core content of the project has changed or the project no longer meets the requirements for non-profit status according to the German Fiscal Code (AO)) or if there is a serious risk of this, the organization must cancel the project, notify betterplace.org of this immediately by writing to support@betterplace.org, and update this accordingly on the platform.
In this case, the donation amount raised thus far shall remain with betterplace.org, which will use this for the pursuit of its statutory purposes.
14.3. Cancellation of a project by betterplace.org
betterplace.org is in particular entitled to cancel a project due to:
- a serious violation within the meaning of Section 14.4.2.
- failure to promptly apply for the transfer of the collected donations. betterplace.org regularly sends reminder emails to the organization informing them about the donation amount that can be requested for the project at betterplace.org. Organizations are obliged to promptly request payment no later than six months after they are received.
In these cases, the donation amount raised thus far and not yet passed on will remain with betterplace.org, which will use this for the pursuit of its statutory purposes.
14.4. Refunding donations
14.4.1. In the following cases, betterplace.org is entitled to payment from the organization and the project managers or jointly and severally from the organization, the project managers and any possible recipients of donations amounting to the sum that has already been paid out:
- Project cancellation by the organization in accordance with Section 14.2 or by betterplace.org in accordance with Section 14.3. No. 1.
- Serious breach of the listing conditions within the meaning of Section 14.4.2.
- Sponsor has reclaimed and recovered the donated amount from their bank.
The payment for the benefit of betterplace.org is to be made to the same account from which the payment was made, without any deduction of costs.
14.4.2. The following in particular constitute serious breaches of the listing conditions:
- False information about participating individuals or significant features of the project
- Severe or continuing breach of the obligation to provide information about project developments
- Loss of the organization’s non-profit status
- Use of donations for other purposes (inappropriate use of funds)
- Project is impermissible in accordance with Section 5
- Failure to send the donation receipt to betterplace.org in accordance with Section 9.1. or failure to send further evidence of the use of funds at the request of betterplace in accordance with Section 9.2.(Further evidence of use) and/or in accordance with Section 9.3. (Report on expenditure of funds when the organization achieves tax-privileged purposes abroad)
- Violation of Section 10 (no (forwarding of) donation to another foreign recipient)
- Violation of Section 11 (cooperation pursuant to Section 57 para. 3 AO with a non-profit organization)
- Violation of Section 12 (prompt use of funds)
- Substantial or multiple violations of the obligations in accordance with Section 4 of the General Terms of Use
14.4.3. Weitere straf- oder zivilrechtliche Ansprüche, Rechte und Folgen bleiben hiervon unberührt.
15. Termination
15.1. Ordinary termination - The usage relationship with an organization can be terminated by betterplace.org or the organization at any time by giving notice in writing with a notice period of 14 days.
When the termination becomes effective, the organization will no longer be able to use the respective functionalities of the platform that are available for use on the platform according to the usage agreement (see Section 6.2.).
The organization’s projects will end when the termination comes into force.
15.2. The right to extraordinary termination for cause remains unaffected.
The following reasons in particular are to be regarded as cause for termination by betterplace.org:
- Breach of the listing conditions within the meaning of Section 14.4.2.
- Inappropriate use of data in accordance with Section 10 of the General Terms of Use
- Incompatibility of the user content with the current version of the principles of betterplace.org, which betterplace.org communicates transparently on the platform.
15.3. As soon as the usage agreement ends as a result of the termination by betterplace.org, the organization is no longer permitted to use the platform, even with other platform accounts, and shall not be able to re-register.
16. Liability of the organization due to the misuse of funds
The organization is obliged to compensate betterplace.org for any losses suffered by betterplace.org resulting from misuse of funds by the organization.
17. Blocking of projects
betterplace.org is entitled to temporarily block projects, regardless of the right to end a project (as a result of an ordinary and extraordinary termination of the respective organization as promoter of the project) and the right to break off a project in accordance with Section 14.3. The blocking relates, for example, to the ability to post or change content on the project website on the platform and to raise and request donations. Betterplace.org shall in particular make use of this right if third parties inform betterplace.org of the violation of any laws, third-party rights, of Section 4 of the General Terms of Use, of the present Additional General Terms of Use or of the [principles of betterplace.org] (https://www.betterplace.org/c/help/what-types-of-projects-and-campaigns-are-welcome-at-betterplace) by certain content or users and if such information does not prove to be evidently incorrect.
18. Appearance on the platform
Registered organizations add their own organization profile and project websites to the platform to represent themselves and their projects.
The various options are determined by the functionality of the platform.
All forms of product advertising and approaching individual users for the purpose of selling products are prohibited on the platform.
In addition to these Additional General Terms of Use, Sections 4 and 5 of the General Terms of Use apply to the admissibility of content which an organization posts on the platform.
19. Changes to conditions
These Additional General Terms of Use are valid from February 2022 onwards.
betterplace.org reserves the right to make changes to these Additional General Terms of Use at any time without restriction, in particular in order to adapt them to legislative or technical changes. The changed conditions will be announced on this website no later than four weeks before their entry into force. Registered users will be informed by e-mail about upcoming changes at the latest four weeks before their entry into force. betterplace.org therefore advises you to regularly review the current version on its website. If a registered user does not object to the validity of the new conditions within four weeks after receipt of the e-mail, the changed conditions shall be deemed as having been accepted. betterplace.org will separately inform the registered user in the e-mail containing the changed conditions about the possibility of objecting and the significance of this four-week period.
For comments or questions about these Additional General Terms of Use (belonging to betterplace.org), please contact our support team at any time:
gut.org gemeinnützige AG
– Projects & Organizations –
Schlesische Strasse 26
D-10997 Berlin
support@betterplace.org