Capture a donation check

Record a paper check the day it arrives. Take a photo, confirm what Muin reads off it, and save it. When the deposit clears, Muin matches the check to the bank deposit, so the gift is credited to the right donor without waiting for the bank run.

When you’d use this

• Envelopes from a Friday or Sunday collection include checks.
• Checks arrive in the mail and someone opens them weekly.
• A donor hands a check to a staff member at an event.

Capture a check in Muin Go

1. In Muin Go, open Smart Payments and tap Capture Check. You need payment processing access to see it.
2. Allow camera access if asked. Turn the flash on if the room is dark.
3. Place the check flat and take the photo.
4. On Preview, tap Proceed, or Re-capture if the photo is blurry.
5. If the check came with a letter or a gift card, tap Add letter / gift card page to add it to the same record.
6. Wait for Extracting check details…. Muin reads the check for you.
7. On Review Check, confirm or fix Payor Name, Amount, Check Number, Routing Number, Account Number and Memo. Add the Donor email (optional) if you have it.
8. Tap Save Donation Intent.

The app confirms the check was captured and says it will be matched to the bank deposit when it clears.

Capture a check on the web

1. Go to Finance → Reconciliation → All Transactions and select Capture check.
2. Drag the check image onto the page, or choose a file.
3. Muin reads the payor, amount, check number, check date, routing number, account number and memo, with a confidence level for each. Check anything marked Low confidence.
4. Select Submit check.

The result tells you whether the check was linked to a transaction Muin already saw, created as a new transaction, matched to an open contribution, or left for review in the inbox.

Photo tips

• Lay the check on a dark, flat surface in even light. Avoid glare from direct sun.
• Hold the phone straight above the check.
• Handwritten amounts and memos are harder to read. Always check the amount before you save.

What it affects

• A check saved in Muin Go becomes a donation intent: a record that a gift is on its way. See Donation Intents.
• When the bank deposit shows up in your bank feed or statement import, reconciliation matches it to the captured check and credits the donor. See Donation Reconciliation.
• Only the last four digits of the account number are stored with the intent.

When it goes wrong

• “You are offline. A connection is needed to upload the check image.” Check capture is not saved for later. Reconnect and capture again.
• “Payor name is required.” or “Amount is required.” Fill in the missing field on Review Check.
• “Camera permission required”. Allow camera access for Muin Go in your phone settings.
• The check never matched a deposit. Open reconciliation on the web. The unmatched check and any unmatched deposit both show there, so you can see whether the check was never deposited or the deposit has not arrived yet.

Next step

Close out the deposit in Donation Reconciliation.