Funds Access

The process for spending money

Overview

One of the main purposes of the FreeCAD Project Association is to collect money in support of FreeCAD, and disburse it as needed to further the project. The processes for doing so are described below.

Small Expenditures

To speed the process of making small transactions, FPA Board Members are authorized to spend up to 100 USD without submitting the expense to a vote of the general membership. A General Member may request reimbursement of up to that amount from the board, who may approve it without a vote, or, at their discretion, ask for a vote of the General Membership. Larger amounts must be approved by a vote of the general membership.

Large Expenditures

Funding for items over 100 USD must be put to a vote of the General Membership following the standard FPA voting procedures. If the expenditure is approved, a Board Member (typically the Chair) will be assigned responsibility for disbursing the funds as directed by the vote, either as reimbursement for expenses incurred by an FPA member, or by directly paying the expense from an FPA account.

Grant program

The FPA is distributing money to FreeCAD developers through its grant program. FreeCAD contributors wishing to obtain money from the FPA to help them to contribute must do so through the grant program.

Working on FreeCAD is always, primarily and fundamentally, a voluntary act. One should never expect to receive any kind of monetary compensation for the work they have already done on FreeCAD. In other words, one cannot ask money for pull requests they have already done. To obtain an FPA grant, a contributor must comply with the FPA grant program rules, which require them to submit a proposal that describes the work to be done.

In specific cases, the FPA might decide to bypass this rule, for example by giving honorary grants to reward a developer who has made exceptional contributions, or to retroactively attribute bounties to issues that have already been solved. This is the sole decision of the FPA, and cannot be actioned or required by contributors.

Important Financial Accounts

The FreeCAD Wiki Donations page has an up-to-date list of accounts at which we accept donations.