# Donate API
source: https://developer.mastercard.com/donations/documentation/index.md

## Overview {#overview}

The **Mastercard Donate APIs** provides a connected ecosystem featuring merchants, financial institutions, governments, and charity organizations as the central and most highly visible part of the charitable giving process. This option provides a secure, PCI-compliant, and customizable payment experience for accepting debit and credit cards for donations thereby enabling cardholders to incorporate giving into their daily activities.

When integrating donations into the partner user's website, this option offers flexibility in designing a unique user experience including the charities and types of donations they wish to offer. Cardholders can make a one-time donation, a monthly donation or donate a few cents for every transaction they make. A small gesture, like paying for groceries or a bus, becomes something bigger.
Note: Mastercard Donate does not accept prepaid and gift cards for donations.

## How it works {#how-it-works}

![Donate API](https://static.developer.mastercard.com/content/donations/uploads/how-it-works3.png "Donate API")
* **Cardholder or Donor**: The cardholder who registers as a donor on Mastercard Donate through the issuer application.
* **Issuer Donations App**: The issuer who integrates the Mastercard Donate APIs in their banking website or mobile application.
* **Donate API**: The REST API which makes the Mastercard Donate HTTP requests for GET, PUT, POST, and DELETE operations between the client and the server.
* **Charity Acquiring Bank**: The acquirer bank of the charity organization that processes the donation transactions and transfers the fund to the charity.
* **Charity Organization**: The charity for which the donor makes donations.
1. The donor or the cardholder selects the cause that they want to donate to:   
   1. The donor can register and then sign into the Donation platform from the partner user interface before selecting the cause.
   2. Either ways, the donor can first select the cause and then register or sign into the Donation platform from the partner user interface.
2. The donor or cardholder selects the:
   1. Donation type and the amount to donate.
   2. Selects or registers a payment card to make the donation.
3. Mastercard Donations Service APIs process the payment:
   1. The donation payment details are sent to the acquirer.
   2. The acquirer and issuer settle and transfer the funds after due diligence using Mastercard Donate to the selected charity.
4. The donor or the cardholder receives a confirmation on the issuer app of the donated amount.

## Good to know {#good-to-know}

* **Donation Types, Schedules, and Validations** : Mastercard Donate provides multiple donation options, each governed by specific schedules and validation rules to ensure secure and accurate transaction processing. For more details, refer to the [Donation Types, Schedules, and Validations](https://developer.mastercard.com/donations/documentation/donation-types/index.md) section.

* **Region Availability and Legal Scans** : Mastercard Donate is available in several countries. For more details on the available list of countries, refer to the [Availability and Legal Scans](https://developer.mastercard.com/donations/documentation/availability/index.md) section.

* **Donation Reports and Tax Receipts** : Mastercard Donate provides donation reports and tax receipts. For more details, refer to the [Donation Details File and Tax Receipts Generation](https://developer.mastercard.com/donations/documentation/donation_details_tax_receipt/index.md) section.

## Next Steps {#next-steps}

Now that you have an understanding of what the service does, proceed to the [API Basics](https://developer.mastercard.com/donations/documentation/api-basics/index.md) section for details on authentication and encryption.