Financial Projects and Information
The CouchSurfing Wiki, an informal workspace which anyone can edit.
This page is set up to keep people informed of the progress being made on various financial issues as CouchSurfing grows larger and more complex. It is also a place where potential volunteers can see where they can help. At the moment, this page is still under construction. The link to the Chart of Accounts may not work with your particular server yet, but will be soon.
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Quickbooks Online
- We have determined that we will need to set up multiple Quickbooks Online companies: one for each country where we have a Collective. This way each collective around the world can set up their own list of vendors (local stores, landlord, etc.) and plug their expenses into their own Quickbooks account without worrying about translating every little thing into US dollars as they go. Their Chart of Accounts that they use would be standardized globally within Couchsurfing, however, so it will be very easy to consolidate their numbers into worldwide statements and reports. We will have good records within each currency and/or country, as well as global. The cost of each additional company we set up in Quickbooks Online will be about $10-$20 US per month, depending on the discounts we get from Quickbooks.
- Online or Online and Desktop Versions?
- We will be going completely online with Quickbooks. No desktop versions. This will give us maximum flexibility and global access. To address the issue of data safety, we will have one Online company set up with the global consolidated data which will have very restricted access. If you have any experience with running a global business using only Quickbooks Online, we's love to learn of your experiences. Please contact Diane
- We are also looking for CouchSurfing members who are experienced with Quickbooks – either Online or Desktop versions, to help get set up and manage the financial side of Couchsurfing. Again, please contact Diane if you have a bit of time to help out.
CouchSurfing International Chart of Accounts
- The Chart of Accounts has been developed, in conjunction with the Uniform Chart of Accounts for Nonprofit Organisations (UCOA), as well as the IRS form 990 for nonprofits. If you are interested, check the UCOA information: The full scale Uniform Chart of Accounts is far too large for us to use as is, so it has been streamlined to include only those accounts we need this year. We can always add more from the UCOA as we need them. Please click here) to see a copy of the Couchsurfing Chart of Accounts.
Global Bank
- We are in the process of opening up a Centralized Bank Account with ABN Amro. It will be good for Couchsurfing International to have as a banking partner a large global bank, with branches throughout the world.
Partially Convertible Currency
- Many countries around the world have what is called ‘partially convertible currency’. India is an example. Their currency is not easily converted to US dollars. In these countries, our members have difficulty sending in payments for the Verification process. It is hoped that ABN Amro will be able to help us solve some of these issues for our members.
Global Consolidation of Data and Reporting
In order to consolidate our global data from the collectives, we will need to do this in Excel, as Quickbooks Online does not handle currency conversions. Quickbooks Online now downloads to Excel directly, so we will use Excel to convert local currencies from the collectives around the world into US dollars. We may use Excel to create regular financial reports as well, or we may purchase additional software to upload transactions into Quickbooks and create reports from Quickbooks.
- We have not yet discussed exactly what financial data should be reported, to whom, and how often. This will be worked on during April.
International Taxes
- This is a complex area that we are just learning about. We could really use some international tax experts to help us in this area. Any takers? Please contact Diane Emerson if you can help us out on a pro bono or volunteer basis. We need to know what the triggers are for Couchsurfing to file reports to the various countries in the world where we have collectives and accept payments and donations for Verification.
Paris Collective Financial Coordination
- The Paris Collective has set up a separate association with the French government. They will be partially self funded, and have their own bank account. We need to determine the legal relationship between the Association and Couchsurfing International, for global government reporting purposes. We need some guidance from someone experienced in these matters. Please contact| Diane if you can help out.
