I need help

What to prepare

A description is enough for the request. Documents will be needed later — the charity that takes it on will ask for them, to confirm the need and, if it opens a campaign, to show them to a Dolonia moderator. What exactly is needed depends on the situation and on the charity; most often it is:

• an identity document of the person who needs help; if you are applying for someone else, also a document showing you may act on their behalf (for example, a child’s birth certificate);
• medical documents — a discharge summary, a doctor’s report or prescription, if it is about treatment, rehabilitation, medicines or medical devices;
• an invoice, cost estimate or quotation from the supplier or provider — for what needs to be paid for;
• other documents relevant to your situation, if the charity asks for them.

Give documents only to the charity that has taken on your request — we email you its name and EDRPOU code. The charity may ask you to sign an application or a charitable aid agreement and a consent to the processing of personal data — this is normal practice. On Dolonia, only the moderator and the charity see the original documents; on the campaign page donors see the mark “documents checked” and de-identified copies of the documents — without tax numbers, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, medical record numbers or signatures. A copy of a medical document is shown only with your written consent, which you can withdraw at any time — the copy is then removed straight away.

Who sees what

• Charities before taking it on: what the request is about after the moderator’s review, the area of need, the region and the town (if you gave one), the approximate amount and the “urgent” mark. No name, phone number or email.
• The charity that takes it on: also your name, phone number, email and how you are related to the person who needs help.
• A Dolonia moderator: the whole request — to review it and remove unnecessary personal details.
• Website visitors do not see requests. Only a campaign becomes public, if the charity opens one — and it does not contain your contact details.
• If a request is rejected, closed or withdrawn by you, the personal details in it are erased after 180 days.

By sending a request, you agree that your contact details will be given to the charity that takes it on. How we process personal data and what your rights are is set out in the Privacy policy.

Requests from military units

A unit sends its request as a separate type — “Unit request”. An official letter from the unit must be attached. Only charities whose statutes include support for defence see these requests; the charity receives the unit’s name, the town and the letter only once it takes the request on.

Do not include the unit number, call signs or exact locations in the text — the moderator will remove them. Campaigns for firearms and ammunition are not allowed on Dolonia; handing aid over to a unit is documented with a certificate of acceptance.

Beware of scammers

Scammers take advantage of other people’s hardship and hide behind the names of well-known platforms and charities. Remember how we work:

• Dolonia does not give money to individuals directly and does not send aid to personal cards — help comes from a charity, and money from a campaign goes to the charity’s account.
• Neither Dolonia nor the charities charge for considering a request or for helping, and they never ask for advance payments, “insurance fees”, “transfer fees” or for you to buy cryptocurrency.
• We never ask for your card number, its expiry date, the CVV code, SMS codes, passwords or sign-in codes — not by email, by phone or in messaging apps.
• We write to you about your request from hello@dolonia.com.ua. The charity that has taken it on is the one whose name and EDRPOU code we sent you; you can find it in the charity catalogue.

If something seems suspicious, do not pay anything or share card details — write to us via Support. If you have already shared card details or a code, call your bank straight away and block the card, and report the fraud to the National Police.

If no charity takes it on

Charities decide for themselves which requests to take on, depending on their areas of work, region and capacity. So neither Dolonia nor the charities can guarantee help for every request. Until a charity takes it on, the request stays available to charities.

• Check that the description makes clear exactly what is needed and how much it costs — a specific request has a better chance. To change it, withdraw the request via the link in the email and send a new one.
• Look through the charity catalogue: each charity lists its areas of work and regions — you can also contact a charity directly.
• If your situation has changed or help is no longer needed, withdraw the request so that charities see current needs.

Dolonia and the charities never take money from people asking for help and never ask for card details or codes. If anyone asks you to pay in our name, they are scammers.