Make a difference every month with payroll giving.
Employees can have a charitable contribution deducted from their paycheck, so gifts are sent to Maryland Humanities automatically, on a recurring, pre-tax basis.
Getting started with payroll giving:
Search
Use the above search tool to see if your employer offers payroll giving, and you’ll be guided through the set-up process.
Submit
That’s it! Once you enroll in payroll giving, you’ll be making a stronger impact by helping us strengthen the humanities across Maryland.
Learn more about payroll giving:
Our team is here to help. If you don’t find answers to your questions below, please contact us for more information.
Ellie Benedict
Development Officer
(410) 618-5725
Email
Maryland Humanities Tax ID (EIN):
52-1102799
What is payroll giving?
Payroll giving, also known as automatic payroll deductions, allows employees to contribute to nonprofits right from their paychecks. Since these deductions come out of employees’ paychecks automatically, it’s an easy set-it-and-forget-it way to give back.
How does payroll giving work?
- The company implements workplace giving software with payroll giving capabilities.
- The company chooses which nonprofits they’d like to support through payroll giving.
- Employees enroll and select the charity they’d like to support and how much they’d like to contribute.
- The software deducts the donation like any other deduction—such as a 401K contribution or healthcare premium—and sends it to the nonprofit.
Are there tax benefits for payroll giving?
While most payroll deductions are pre-tax, payroll giving contributions are after-tax deductions. As a result, employees can claim these donations as deductible when they file their personal taxes. Companies that offer payroll giving should reflect employees’ contributions in their W2s.
What are the benefits of payroll giving for companies?
Not only is payroll giving easy for companies to manage, but it also offers a variety of other workplace benefits for companies. Payroll giving helps companies to:
- Engage employees. Workplace giving methods such as payroll giving increase employee engagement. When employees feel that they are working together with their employer to make the world a better place, they’re more likely to find meaning in their roles and stay actively engaged in the workplace.
- Keep employees around. Employees engaged in workplace giving have higher retention rates. In fact, employees who participate in workplace giving have 75% longer tenures with their companies than those who don’t.
- Attract mission-driven employees. Payroll giving helps companies recruit employees who share their values and want to make a difference. Studies show that 71% of employees want to work at a company that gives back to charitable causes through philanthropy and volunteering. By offering payroll giving and promoting it during the hiring process, companies can attract mission-driven team applicants.
What are the benefits of payroll giving for donors?
Payroll giving is an excellent donation method for donors because it’s:
- Easy to participate in. Once donors enroll in payroll giving, they’re set to continue contributing indefinitely. The automatic donations make it extremely easy for donors to participate without taking time out of their busy schedules to make repeat gifts.
- Inclusive. While these days nonprofits accept donations in cash, credit, PayPal, Apple Pay, Venmo, and more, not all employees have these payment methods at their disposal. However, all employees receive a paycheck, so payroll giving allows them to make a difference.
- Tax-deductible. As mentioned before, payroll deductions come out of donors’ after-tax earnings, making these contributions tax-deductible. Donors can write off these costs and will owe less when they file their taxes.
Additionally, if donors don’t have the means to contribute a large sum at once, payroll giving enables them to break up their donation into smaller, more manageable amounts that they can gift to nonprofits on a recurring basis.