What is Auto-pay?
Auto-pay is an automated system that processes commission payments from you to your affiliates' designated accounts once their earnings reach a specified threshold or on a set schedule you define. This feature is designed to streamline your payment process, eliminating the need for manual payout interventions and ensuring your affiliates receive their commissions promptly.
Key Benefits of Using Auto-pay for Your Affiliate Payments:
Consistency: Ensure affiliates are paid automatically when conditions are met.
Convenience: Set it up once and let us handle the rest.
Efficiency: Reduce administrative overhead for managing affiliate payments.
Transparency: Clear tracking of payment statuses and history.
Our Commitment to Secure and Reliable Payments: Powered by Stripe
To ensure the security, reliability, and efficiency of the commission payments you make, we have partnered with Stripe, a global leader in online payment processing.
Stripe is a PCI Service Provider Level 1, which is the highest level of certification available in the payments industry. By leveraging Stripe's robust infrastructure, we facilitate:
Secure Transactions: Stripe's advanced security measures protect financial information during payouts.
Reliable Processing: Ensuring your payments to affiliates are processed accurately and on time.
Industry-Standard Practices: Adherence to global payment standards for a seamless experience.
Understanding Processing Fees
When you use our Auto-pay system to pay commissions to your affiliates, a processing fee is applied to each transaction. This fee is paid by you, the merchant, in addition to the full commission amount earned by your affiliate. These fees cover the costs associated with securely and efficiently processing these payments through our platform and payment partners, including any costs related to currency conversion if applicable. We aim to keep these fees transparent.
Fee Structure:
The processing fee that you, the merchant, will pay is based on your selected merchant plan and the payment method used for the transaction with your affiliate. The table below outlines the fee structure:
Payment Method | Starter Plan | Pro Plan | Premium Plan |
Bank account/Debit card | 8.9% | 3.9% | 2.9% |
Credit card | 14.9% | 8.9% | 6.9% |
Your affiliate will always receive the full commission amount they have earned. The processing fee is an additional cost to you. For example, if an affiliate has earned $100 in commission, and your applicable processing fee (based on your plan and the transaction type) is 3.9%, the fee amount would be $3.90. In this scenario:
Your affiliate receives: $100.00
Your processing fee: $3.90
Your total cost for this payout: $103.90
You can view a detailed breakdown of all commission payouts and the associated fees in your merchant dashboard. These fees are essential for covering the transaction costs charged by our payment processor, facilitating currency conversions where needed, and for maintaining a robust and secure payment infrastructure for your affiliate program.
Tax Documentation: Form 1099-K for U.S. Affiliates
For U.S.-based affiliates to whom you issue payments, our platform facilitates the issuance of IRS Form 1099-K in compliance with U.S. tax regulations, where applicable based on payment volumes and IRS thresholds. This form reports payments processed to them. Merchants should ensure their program settings and affiliate data are accurate to support this process. We recommend consulting a tax professional for any questions regarding your business's tax obligations related to affiliate payments.
Managing Your Auto-pay Settings
You have full control over your Auto-pay preferences for your affiliate program:
Enabling/Disabling Auto-pay: You can enable or disable Auto-pay at any time from the relevant settings section of your merchant dashboard. If disabled, you may need to process payouts manually (if this option is available).
Updating Payment Configuration: To update your payment source or payout rules, please visit the appropriate settings section in your merchant dashboard.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Q: Is there a minimum amount an affiliate needs to earn before I pay them?
A: You can set a minimum payout threshold in the "Payouts" setting. Please refer to your affiliate program configuration options.
Q: How can I track the payments I've made and the fees applied?
A: The "Payments" section in the app provides a detailed history of all payouts, including the full commission amount paid to them and the separate processing fees charged to you.
Q: Am I responsible for issuing 1099-K forms to my affiliates?
A: Our app processes the issuing of 1099-K forms for payments made through our system to eligible U.S. affiliates, according to IRS regulations. However, as the merchant, you are ultimately responsible for ensuring compliance with tax reporting obligations for your business, so it's always suggested to consult with a tax professional.