Expense Policies and Limitations

What Open Source Collective can and cannot pay

As a fiscally hosted member project under Open Source Collective (OSC), funds that we hold must be used for expenses that align with your project's open source work and comply with nonprofit regulations. Below is a guide to what is permitted and what is not.

Expense Basics

• All expenses must comply with 501(c)(6) regulations and align with OSC’s mission: To promote a sustainable and healthy ecosystem that will sustain open source technology for the future

• OSC only processes expenses approved by an admin of the hosted project.

• Expenses cannot be paid in advance; invoices must be for completed work and reimbursements must be for purchases already paid for.

• If a vendor requires partial payment for a reservation, a written invoice must be submitted with reservation details.

• Expense submitters must have their "Legal Name" in their profile info setting. This can remain private and viewable only to admins.

• Payouts must be detailed and itemized; lump sum payments or future expenses are not allowed.

• We cannot process payments for expenses incurred before OSC started hosting the project.

• Due to IRS regulations, OSC may be required to collect tax forms before issuing payment.

• Projects with an associated LLC cannot used funds held by OSC for LLC-related expenses or transfer donated funds to the LLC.

• OSC's ability to fulfill requests is bound by IRS regulations, staff capacity, and technical limitations.

• All funds are held in USD. When submitting an expense, the amount can be paid out in your local currency based on the exchange rate, and any applicable currency conversion fees may apply.

Hosted member project admins can set additional expense policies to give guidance to expense submitters.

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Things We Can and Cannot Pay For

Eligible Expenses

If an expense directly supports your hosted open source project, it's usually eligible. Sometimes we may ask for more context — not to make things harder, but because we’re a nonprofit and need clear documentation for audits and compliance. When we ask for extra details, it's to ensure the expense meets legal and tax requirements.

You can use OSC-held funds for:

• Payments to contributors for completed work (via invoice)

• Reimbursements for project-related purchases

• Infrastructure costs (e.g., domain hosting, software subscriptions, servers)

• Travel costs for project-related events

• Shipping, duty, and import fees related to your project

  • Please include proof of the item being shipped so we can confirm it’s project-related

Ineligible Expenses

OSC-held funds cannot be used for:

• Personal expenses unrelated to the project (eg: rent, groceries, clothing)

• Non-project related travel or entertainment

• Donations to unrelated causes or organizations

• Work that has not yet been completed (OSC cannot prepay for work)

• Transferring funds to an LLC related to the project

• Expenses that do not align with OSC's mission (eg: unrelated business activities that do not support open source)

• Expenses without a clear connection to the project's open source work

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Not sure if something qualifies?

If you're unsure whether an expense is eligible, reach out to us before spending. We're happy to help clarify — asking first can save time and prevent headaches later.

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Methods of Payment

• Payment methods must be owned by the expense payee

• OSC only makes payments via

  • Wise (bank transfer)

  • PayPal

    • Payments via PayPal are capped at $5,000 USD.

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Permitted Countries, OFAC Checks, and Payment Restrictions

• OSC cannot process payments to sanctioned regions
• Payments may also be restricted in certain other countries
• Payments are processed via PayPal and Wise, but some banks and countries may not be supported by their services

  • PayPal supported countries can be found here
  • Wise supported countries can be found here
• Some bank transfer fees may require intermediary banks, which may result in additional fees beyond OSC's control.
• Payments to some countries can result in higher banking fees due to banking infrastructure, the regulatory environment, currency exchange practices, and interbank agreements. One country that has such practices is Nigeria. As such, a minimum balance of $30 USD is required for payouts, as these fees often exceed $15 USD.

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Additional Verification and Policy Compliance

• Some expenses may require additional verification. OSC will request further documentation, if necessary. We may occasionally ask for links, documentation, or proof of work to support submitted expenses. This isn’t to question your contributions -- it’s part of our responsibility as a nonprofit to maintain clear records, ensure regulatory compliance, and be responsible stewards of held funds.

• Failure to follow expense policies may result in a hosted project's page being frozen.