Amazon Web Services Credits Programme for Nonprofits FAQ

What is Amazon Web Services?

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a secure cloud services platform, offering computing power, database storage, content delivery, and other functionality to help businesses scale and grow.

Learn more about AWS. If you're new to AWS or want to become more aware of its services, check out the AWS introductory videos, labs, and nonprofit case studies.

What is the AWS Credits Programme for Nonprofits?

The AWS Credits Programme for Nonprofits provides access to AWS promotional credits, which help nonprofits implement cloud-based solutions to help meet their mission goals without the upfront investment of physical infrastructure.

AWS, through NASSCOM Foundation, BigTech, will make one grant of $2,000 in credits per fiscal year (July 1 to June 30) to eligible nonprofits register as Society registration OR Trust OR under companies act and to public libraries with valid FCRA certificate. Organisations can apply these service credits toward usage fees for all AWS on-demand cloud services, as available by region. AWS credits are not valid for Amazon EC2 Reserved Instances, Amazon Mechanical Turk, AWS Marketplace, Amazon Route53 domain name registration or transfer, or any upfront fee for any service. They are available for monthly support fees.

With AWS, nonprofits don't have to make large upfront investments in hardware and spend time and effort managing that hardware. Instead, organisations can provision the right type and size of computing resources they need to power their organisation and keep focus on the mission.

See the work Amazon Web Services is doing for nonprofits globally.

Is my organisation eligible for the AWS Credits Programme for Nonprofits?

Consult the eligibility and restrictions page to review your organisation's eligibility to participate in this programme.

What is the Amazon Free Tier?

In addition to the AWS Credits Programme for Nonprofits, AWS offers the AWS Free Tier for all new customers for 12 months following the organisation's sign-up date. The AWS Free Tier is a separate offer from the AWS Credits Programme and allows new customers to use certain AWS services for free up to certain usage limits. The AWS Free Tier is available for one AWS account only per organisation.

AWS recommends that potential grant recipients sign up for the AWS Free Tier before they request this offer. Note that receiving AWS credits will not reset the 12-month duration of the AWS Free Tier.

In most situations, organisations will use both the AWS Credits Programme for Nonprofits and the AWS Free Tier. This combination can help organisations leverage AWS's cloud infrastructure on a pay-as-you-go basis to host websites and fundraising software, store and analyze data, and develop new systems.

Why do I need an AWS account to request this grant?

A valid AWS account ID with the organisation name identified in the Account Name field is needed to be able to apply the grant credits.

If an organisation does not have an AWS account ID, it can simply sign up for a free account before it requests this grant.

A credit card is required to open an AWS account.

How long can I use the credits?

Credits are valid for only 12 months after they are applied to an AWS account. If they are not used within 12 months, they will expire.

What happens after I use all my credits or if they expire?

After all credits are used or if they expire after 12 months, the credit card associated with your AWS account will be charged at standard rates for all services used.

AWS recommends that organisations use Amazon CloudWatch to set up billing alerts to avoid unexpected charges.

Can I renew the grant after the first year?

Organisations can request a grant through NASSCOM Foundation, BigTech each fiscal year (July 1 to June 30) to receive additional credits.

Is it possible that my request for this grant will be rejected after I pay the admin fee?

No. Only organisations that are eligible for this grant will be allowed to request it and be charged the admin fee.