# Reconcile a bank statement

> Matching what landed in the bank against the donations that produced it.

Source: https://donorcare.my/help/organizations/finance/reconcile-a-bank-statement/

**Who can do this:** Owner, Finance

Reconciliation checks the donations you recorded against the money that actually reached your bank, so you can close a month knowing the two agree.

## Before you start

- A bank statement, exported as a CSV from your bank.
- If you take gateway donations, a CHIP settlement report — DonorCARE pulls this for you, so you don't need to export it yourself.

## Steps

1. **Open Finance → Reconciliation, and bring in a statement.** For a bank statement, optionally label the account (useful if you reconcile more than one), then select **Choose CSV File**. For gateway money, set a date range and select **Pull Settlement** instead — DonorCARE asks CHIP directly for what it paid out.

   *Screenshot: the Statements tab with both import options.*
2. **Work the queue.** Every line starts as **Needs matching**. DonorCARE claims a match on its own wherever the evidence is decisive — a matching bank reference, or a single donation for the exact amount — using each donation's **cash date**: its payment date if one is recorded, otherwise the date it was entered. Whatever it can't claim with confidence is left for you.

3. **Match a line by hand.** Select **Match**, tick the donations that make up the deposit, and watch the running total — DonorCARE shows exactly how far your selection is from the line, so a fortnight of collection-box gifts banked as one deposit is a tick-list, not mental arithmetic.

   *Screenshot: the match sheet with a running "Out by RM x" total.*
4. **Set aside anything that isn't a donation** — bank interest, a transfer between your own accounts, a bank charge. Select **Set Aside** and give a short reason; it's kept in the audit trail. A debit line (a charge or a reversal) can only ever be set aside, never matched to a donation.

5. **Check the balance strip** at the top. Once Recorded and Reconciled agree, it reads **Fully reconciled** for the month, and you're ready to [close it](https://donorcare.my/help/organizations/finance/close-the-month/).

## What this means in practice

**Do**

- Expect a gateway donation to sit as "waiting on CHIP" until you pull a settlement report covering its date — it will never appear on your bank statement as itself, only as part of a lump-sum payout.

**Don't**

- Expect DonorCARE to guess at a subset of donations that happens to add up to a deposit. Where more than one combination fits, it leaves the line for you rather than picking one.

## If something goes wrong

| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| A gateway donation never appears in the queue | No settlement report covers its date yet | Pull a CHIP settlement report for a wider date range |
| Two lines could both match the same donation | The amounts collide and DonorCARE won't guess | Match the one you can confirm from the bank reference, and set the other aside or match it manually once you're sure |
| A matched line turns out wrong | — | Select **Undo** on the line — it and its donations return to the queue |

## Related

- [Close the month](https://donorcare.my/help/organizations/finance/close-the-month/)
- [Read your dashboard](https://donorcare.my/help/organizations/insights/read-your-dashboard/)
- [Connect your payment gateway](https://donorcare.my/help/organizations/finance/connect-your-payment-gateway/)