What is fiscal sponsorship, and what does it cost?
Last verified October 18, 2026
Your team runs as a sponsored program of The Robotics Catalyst Foundation Inc., a 501(c)(3), so donors get a tax-deductible receipt and you spend from a team balance with team cards. The Foundation takes an administrative fee (4% unless your signed agreement says otherwise) from each online gift, and Stripe's card processing fee is separate.
How it works
The Robotics Catalyst Foundation Inc. (EIN 39-2225353) is a Connecticut nonprofit exempt under Section 501(c)(3). When your team is sponsored, it becomes a program of the Foundation. Your team doesn't have to incorporate or apply for its own tax exemption.
- Donations are made to the Foundation, designated for your team, and are tax-deductible to the extent the law allows.
- The money belongs to the Foundation from the moment it arrives (Section 4.1 of the agreement). It is held for your team and can only be spent on the team's program.
- Your team still runs itself. Build decisions, strategy, meetings and membership stay yours (Section 2.5).
- You get a balance, team cards, a public donation page and a sponsor page, all on the same ledger as your budgets and orders.
Sponsorship is open to US-based FTC and FLL teams for now. A student can hold the account. If they're under eighteen, a parent or guardian co-signs the agreement.
What it costs
| Cost | Amount | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| Administrative fee | The Fee Percentage in Exhibit B of your signed agreement. The default is 4%. | Taken from each online donation or sponsorship |
| Card processing | Stripe's charge, about 2.9% plus 30¢ on a US card | The donor, if they tick the cover-fees box; otherwise it comes out of the gift |
| Virtual card | $0.10 per card | Team balance |
| Physical card | $3.50 per card | Team balance |
The budgeting and order tools are free whether or not you're sponsored.
The 4% is worked out on what arrives after Stripe's share. For example, if a donor gives $100 and covers the processing fee, they're charged about $103.30, about $100 arrives, and $4 goes to the Foundation, so roughly $96 reaches your balance.
Card costs are third-party costs the agreement lets the Foundation pass on at cost (Section 6.3). If a gift is later refunded or charged back, the matching share of the fee comes back to your team.
Can the fee change?
Only by written notice at least 60 days ahead, and only for contributions received on or after the date in the notice (Section 6.2). If the fee goes up, your team may end the agreement without the usual 30-day wait.